AIRLINE ANSWER-PERSON

I am so looking forward to the show about airline travel that is making it’s debut Thursday. It’s called On the Fly and it is on TLC at 8:00 pm CDT or 9:00 pm EDT. I hope it’s a realistic view of what the industry is really like, and not just a vehicle to give people yet another reason to bash the airlines.

I’m sorry if I come across as though I don’t like my job or the customers I serve, because that is far from the truth. I love my job, and the majority of the passengers are wonderful people. But this is an imperfect world and those of you in customer service know that there’s a percentage of people out there, that just don’t get it.

I think there is enough information available for most of us to have a basic understanding of how air travel works. When you get to the airport, you have to park your car, come inside, check in and get a boarding pass, check your bag which has to be screened. You then go through security where you and everything you have with you, is screened, you then go to your gate, you board the plane, you stow your carryon items, your bag is loaded in the cargo bin, the captain does paperwork, the door closes, the plane leaves. That’s a fairly simplistic view but the point is, even if you are the only person on the flight, this all takes time. It doesn’t matter how big or small the airport is. It all takes time and at some point, the door of the aircraft will close whether you are on board or not. It doesn’t matter if you “already checked in at home”.

This morning a passenger showed up about 15 minutes prior to departure. The ticket counter was closed. I was already at the gate, boarding the flight. The passenger had checked in at home but was “unable to print a boarding pass” because she didn’t have a printer. So I got a call at the gate that this passenger was at the counter and was having a melt down because no one was there to help her. I had to stop boarding the flight, lock up the gate, run back to the ticket counter where I was served a heaping plate of attitude.

When I told her I wasn’t sure I could get her on the flight, she flipped out because she was “already checked in”, and  informed me that she had been checked in since last night.  I’m sorry but this kind of behavior infuriates me. So what if you’re already checked in?? You don’t even have a boarding pass! Your bags not checked, you’re not screened, everyone else is already on board and you’re not even at the gate yet! Unless you can beam yourself onto the aircraft from home, why would you think that checking in at home makes this all OK? What if she had overslept for hours this morning? Does she think that we’d say “Oh look, this person already checked in! The plane can’t leave until she gets here.” And then we’d all sit around for hours waiting for her to wake up and get dressed and show up while everyone else missed their connecting flights….because after all, she was already checked in!

And yes, I can leave these people behind, and often I have no other choice. I am capable of unchecking-them-in and I can’t delay the flight. But I usually try to get them on because if I don’t, I’m the one that has to deal with them after the plane leaves.  Most days I’m just not in the mood for that so I do what I can.

Can’t wait to see “On the Fly”.

There are some misconceptions out there about the Essential Air Service program. I don’t pretend to know everything about it, but I’ve been around the industry long enough to gain a basic understanding. For those of you who have never heard of it, it is a program of the Department of Transportation that provides a government subsidy to an airline, in order that the airline can provide commercial air service in a market that would otherwise not have any.

So a city that has no other air service can apply to be included in the program. Airlines can bid to provide the service, indicating how much it will cost them to provide basic service to a hub. The government then subsidizes the service to ensure the airline can make a go of it without losing astronomical amounts of money. The goal, I believe, is that the airline will eventually make enough money that the subsidy is not needed, and in some markets, that is truly the case. In others? Not so much. Before you get upset, keep in mind that most city bus services and most other forms of mass transit are all subsidized. Without a government subsidy, there would not be any mass transit.

The availability of commercial air service contributes to business growth and expansion. Without air service, communities may not be able to attract businesses that bring jobs to their area.  Basic services are essential for business growth and development.

There are some cities that are too close to a hub to really need EAS. If you can drive to a commercial airport in 30 minutes, I don’t think your town needs a subsidy. And if no one is utilizing the air service, your community may not be able to support it. Airlines should have a reasonable amount of time to build ridership and if it doesn’t happen, the subsidy should end. It’s my understanding that there have been changes in the program that address these issues.

For the most part I think it is a good program and until something else is proposed and implemented, it needs to continue. What concerns me is the high cost of fuel and the inefficiency of smaller, regional aircraft. It is extremely difficult to turn a profit on these routes. We can’t subsidize every regional airport or airline! As a result many smaller, regional airlines are disappearing and some markets are without service. Your only choice then, is to drive to the nearest airport which may be many hours away.

It makes me wonder why some states refused funding for high speed rail. It seems like that might have been one alternative to reduce fossil fuel consumption and move people around more efficiently.