Jet Blue - would you fly with them?
Feb 15th, 2007, 07:23 PM
#22
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But couldn't they have avoided imprisoning their passengers for such a long time, perhaps by better anticipating the hold? Maybe not, I'm certainly no expert.
The side effects of the storm persist, of course. My daughter took an AirTran flight from Boston to Washington that was due to depart at 6:30 PM tonight, it arrived in DC two hours late. AirTran's first flight today at 6:30 AM was cancelled and there was at least one person still trying to get out of Boston onto my daughter's flight -- he could have driven to DC faster.
BTW, heads up: I just saw a teaser on TV and Dave Letterman's Top Ten tonight is going to be Jet Blue's Top Ten Excuses.
The side effects of the storm persist, of course. My daughter took an AirTran flight from Boston to Washington that was due to depart at 6:30 PM tonight, it arrived in DC two hours late. AirTran's first flight today at 6:30 AM was cancelled and there was at least one person still trying to get out of Boston onto my daughter's flight -- he could have driven to DC faster.
BTW, heads up: I just saw a teaser on TV and Dave Letterman's Top Ten tonight is going to be Jet Blue's Top Ten Excuses.
Feb 15th, 2007, 08:16 PM
#26
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I've never flown w/ JetBlue, but come on people! Give it a rest already! These things happen once in a while with commercial aviation. Big deal.
I'm an easy going passenger and while I get annoyed like everyone else having to sit on the runway for 8 hours, I get over it. Life's too short.
I'm also w/ Bobmrg.
Then again, I confess I'm not a business traveller, where delays might have impact on your work.
I'm an easy going passenger and while I get annoyed like everyone else having to sit on the runway for 8 hours, I get over it. Life's too short.
I'm also w/ Bobmrg.
Then again, I confess I'm not a business traveller, where delays might have impact on your work.
Feb 16th, 2007, 06:41 AM
#29
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OK - thanks for the responses, I am back to my old cheap self. I won't boycott any carrier over delays. But I just can't imagine being forced to sit in a cramped airless plane for 11 hours knowing that freedom was just a short walk away. I have circled the airport for up to an hour to land, or sat in line for that long waiting to take off - I have spent 3-4 hours in the Chicago terminal waiting for my connector to come in - but 11 hours in a plane on the ground is beyond my comprehension. Wouldn't people start to freak out? If there was a medical emergency they would get someone off. There should be time limits and guidelines to these situations.
Feb 16th, 2007, 07:11 AM
#31
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I have always loved Jet Blue, too, but they really are not handling this week's weather-related difficulties! Maybe growing pains. I just read in the NY Times that they cancelled every flight out of JFK that left after 5:00 p.m. yesterday (ours was one of them). This was not because of high winds (as we assumed), but because they did not have flight crews to match the aircraft as a result of Wednesday's storm cancellations. According to the article, they had to call police to guard the counter, and "there were literally thousands of people in winding lines." I'm sorry we couldn't make our trip, but I thank my lucky stars that we found out about the cancellation before getting to the airport.
BTW, their phone reservation service couldn't handle the mess, either. We tried calling for hours to rebook, and they had a message saying they wouldn't take any calls. Finally, we got through, and were put on hold for a long time (at least we got through, though!).
It's really too bad, because until now Jet Blue has been a model of efficiency!
they also are only low-cost up to a point. If you want an offpeak travel time, you can get some great deals, but if not the fares can be as high as any other carrier.
I hate to trash them because they've been so great in the past, but I think they have gotten a huge black eye this week.
BTW, their phone reservation service couldn't handle the mess, either. We tried calling for hours to rebook, and they had a message saying they wouldn't take any calls. Finally, we got through, and were put on hold for a long time (at least we got through, though!).
It's really too bad, because until now Jet Blue has been a model of efficiency!
they also are only low-cost up to a point. If you want an offpeak travel time, you can get some great deals, but if not the fares can be as high as any other carrier.
I hate to trash them because they've been so great in the past, but I think they have gotten a huge black eye this week.
Feb 16th, 2007, 07:31 AM
#33
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Joe Scarborough on MSNBC was stuck on a Delta plane for 9 hours the same day as all the JetBlue planes were grounded.
One of the many real aviation problems in the US is that this government is cutting traffic controller jobs. More air traffic, but less controllers does not help.
One of the many real aviation problems in the US is that this government is cutting traffic controller jobs. More air traffic, but less controllers does not help.
Feb 16th, 2007, 07:34 AM
#34
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Donna, you echoed my sentiments exactly. I would either have OVER-sedated myself, in order to deal with it, or I would have been arrested for having had a MASSIVE, MASSIVE panic attack. LOL
Someone on tv said yesterday that travelers must start up with the class-action lawsuits because treatment of travelers has gotten so bad that the "suits" at the airlines were going to have to learn that it is not acceptable. He said that it is not the employees faults. However, lack of civility on their part, IS their fault. Perhaps there is an idea there.
Someone on tv said yesterday that travelers must start up with the class-action lawsuits because treatment of travelers has gotten so bad that the "suits" at the airlines were going to have to learn that it is not acceptable. He said that it is not the employees faults. However, lack of civility on their part, IS their fault. Perhaps there is an idea there.
Feb 16th, 2007, 07:47 AM
#35
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Assuming that the airport gates were all full so that the plane could not return to let passengers get off, why couldn't Jet Blue have brought some food (e.g. box lunches) and bottled water out to the passengers on the plane? This would have blunted some of the criticism.
Feb 16th, 2007, 11:30 AM
#36
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Like someone else mentioned the one thing that does amaze me is that the passengers don't go nuts and pull the exit door and activate the slide. I realize this is drastic and I'm not condoning it at all, but if you have someone who is scared of flying or a little clostrophobic and you trap them on a plane for 11 hours, all heck could break loose. I surprised someone didn't bolt for the door when they opened the hatch to let in air...yes I know it's 30 feet down but people do stranger things!
Feb 16th, 2007, 12:46 PM
#37
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I am not a happy flier to begin with. Frankly, though I acknowledge the relative safety of air travel, not to mention the overwhelming convenience factor, flying scares the bejesus out of me. Irrational, yes, but still real.
Add to that all of the stress that can come along with flying (seems so many people who work for airlines get rude without provocation - perhaps their jobs really suck and it makes them mean; I mean it can't be that only jerks apply for the jobs). The result is an unhappy and stressed flier. I have found that a small, consistent dosing of a mild sedative is the answer. Not so much to make you loopy (the ground agents would likely deny you access to the plane due to inebriation), but just enough so you don't give a damn about anything that may happen. This care-free feeling allows me to deal calmly with the attendant who has told me I cannot use the bathroom. Calmly stated, "I have to go. I am not making it up, and I don't like it any more than you, but it is going to happen regardless. The question now is how long I can hold it, and where will it happen."
I don't condone drug abuse, but for someone who otherwise sweats bullets during a hassle-free, good-weather flight pharmacology is your friend. (Legal and prescribed by a physician, obviously.)
Add to that all of the stress that can come along with flying (seems so many people who work for airlines get rude without provocation - perhaps their jobs really suck and it makes them mean; I mean it can't be that only jerks apply for the jobs). The result is an unhappy and stressed flier. I have found that a small, consistent dosing of a mild sedative is the answer. Not so much to make you loopy (the ground agents would likely deny you access to the plane due to inebriation), but just enough so you don't give a damn about anything that may happen. This care-free feeling allows me to deal calmly with the attendant who has told me I cannot use the bathroom. Calmly stated, "I have to go. I am not making it up, and I don't like it any more than you, but it is going to happen regardless. The question now is how long I can hold it, and where will it happen."
I don't condone drug abuse, but for someone who otherwise sweats bullets during a hassle-free, good-weather flight pharmacology is your friend. (Legal and prescribed by a physician, obviously.)
Feb 16th, 2007, 01:23 PM
#38
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Orlando_Vic, I'll admit up front that I know absolutely nothing about conditions at that airport on that day or what equipment the airline or airport might have had available. So I'm doing a lot of guessing.
IF the airport had any moveable stairways available, would it have been possible for ramp personnel to push/drive them out to the airplane, or were conditions on the ramp such that IF any were available they could not be moved?
Given that hot food is hard to come by on airlines these days (the kitchen serving Seattle-Tacoma has gone out of business), where would the food have come from?
Commenting on another post (not yours, Vic) I think the story about the pilot taking matters into his own hands and parking the airplane is an urban legend. First, he would have been in violation of Federal Aviation Regulation 91.123, "Compliance with ATC Clearances and Instructions" (Part 91, General Operating and Flight Rules applies to all flights, including Part 121 airline operations).
Second, where would he have "parked" it other than at a gate? Ground space at airline terminals is congested at best, and airliners can't be driven around like Volkswagens...he would have needed at least one marshaller and two wing walkers when he got in close. If he wasn't at a gate, how could the pax disembark? Sorry to have dragged you into this extension of the original discussion, Vic.
IF the airport had any moveable stairways available, would it have been possible for ramp personnel to push/drive them out to the airplane, or were conditions on the ramp such that IF any were available they could not be moved?
Given that hot food is hard to come by on airlines these days (the kitchen serving Seattle-Tacoma has gone out of business), where would the food have come from?
Commenting on another post (not yours, Vic) I think the story about the pilot taking matters into his own hands and parking the airplane is an urban legend. First, he would have been in violation of Federal Aviation Regulation 91.123, "Compliance with ATC Clearances and Instructions" (Part 91, General Operating and Flight Rules applies to all flights, including Part 121 airline operations).
Second, where would he have "parked" it other than at a gate? Ground space at airline terminals is congested at best, and airliners can't be driven around like Volkswagens...he would have needed at least one marshaller and two wing walkers when he got in close. If he wasn't at a gate, how could the pax disembark? Sorry to have dragged you into this extension of the original discussion, Vic.
Feb 16th, 2007, 01:35 PM
#39
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Bobmgr - I've been curious as to the rule on how long the crew could stay on the plane and still fly? After sitting for 11 hours, with no guarantee of the emoitional shape they'd be in I question there "ability" to fly safely. I'm not sure what the destinations of these flights were or how long the crew had been working but wouldn't this all come in to play at some point? I have the utmost respect for the pilots and cabin personnel but even they must have a "breaking" point.
