The airlines hate passengers, and it shows in their pretzels
Filed under: Ripoffs and Scams, Transportation, Travel
It's bad being an airline passenger in a coach seat. It's pretty bad as an employee too. Especially if you work for US Airways. Apparently, employees are embarrassed to admit they work for this pathetic excuse of an airline.US Airways is known far and wide as the worst big airline in America, and it's not hard to see why. Employees are complaining about how bad the planes smell and how dirty they are.
And apparently passengers aren't too thrilled with the pretzels handed out in coach. Wonder why they suck? Because they cost.... get this.... three cents per package. Three cents. That's what you, the hated passenger, are worth. Three cents. So at three cents per package, US Airways isn't too eager to find a supplier with better tasting pretzels, you see.
Employees are encouraged to give feedback directly to the company's CEO, but that doesn't seem to have much of an impact. In addition to dirty planes, the company's current claim to fame is the worst on-time flight record, the highest rate of lost luggage, and the most complaints filed with the Transportation Department.
Well, at least US Airways isn't offering passengers urine-soaked seats like AirTran is.
Tracy L. Coenen, CPA, MBA, CFE performs fraud examinations and financial investigations for her company Sequence Inc. Forensic Accounting, and is the author of Essentials of Corporate Fraud.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
12-31-2007 @ 9:32AM
WINECORDOC said...
right on. The employees are as bad as management. There are millions of stories in my file from this 35K a year hostage to PHL.
Fri the pleasent attendant told me that if I wanted the light replaced for my reading,he could call a maintainace person and hold the flight 20-30 min. Implying repairing their poor maintainance was my falt. When we arrived in PBI 45 min. late, I reminded him to have it repaired and he just turned away. On the same flight, the 2nd witch shook me awake and yelled at me as we were landing. I was sleeping in a exit aisle with eye shade and my seat fully UP.She said I couldn't use the shades as we landed. When I asked why since I often sit there and usethem she said"because I said so!". And the beat goes on till they deservaby fold.
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12-31-2007 @ 8:56PM
joel turcios said...
and let's not forget the bigger tragedy here, that the federal government bailed out this poor excuse of an airline with our tax dollars while screwing their employees out of pay and pension, so that they can stay in businness and compete (unfairly) with others like Southwest who pay their bills on time. They should have let "grandma" die when they could, and let someone new come in and for starters rescue the citizens of Charlotte being held hostage by the worse airline in the industry with the highest fares!
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1-01-2008 @ 2:08PM
Baron said...
oops you forgot that they paid their debt in full with interest to the government. Yep the federal government actually made money on that loan.....
12-31-2007 @ 9:15PM
Jade Spalding said...
This is crazy! Something should be done about this! No other business would get away with this & they shouldn't either!
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12-31-2007 @ 9:47PM
Dee said...
USAirways is just as good as other major US carriers. I've flown plenty of other airlines in the past few years and USAirways is more reliable and on time than the others. I've never had a problem luggage and the staff have been friendly. Let's face it - air travel is no longer the "luxury" it was (remember when you actually dressed up to fly?) it is a necessity ... consider it a bus with wings! You want to get on and get off --- and bring your own snacks, no matter which airline you fly! Obviously it was a slow new day if this is the article that was published.
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12-31-2007 @ 9:50PM
WILLIAMROSE said...
In August or September 1989, US Air took over Piedmont, a great airline. The night of the merger, I was returning to Charlotte from Phoenix on the return leg of a FIRST CLASS FULL FARE TICKET. The US Air folks were nothing short of rude and abusive. One rather stout fellow not only threatened to remove me from the plane - I had 2 briefcases and a small duffle bag - but when I finally got a seat in first class, he entered the plane, walked over to me and yelled something like "you're not supposed to be up here." I looked at him - as I started to uncoil my 6'4" frame from my seat and said, "don't start with me." He backed down and I disputed the charges with AMEX, which kept them from getting their money for almost a year. I've never flown on US Air since - they ruined a great airline - Piedmont.
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12-31-2007 @ 9:58PM
Steve said...
If the USA citizens are so stupid to put up with the problems of US Air then they deserve it. I would not travel by US Air even if you paid me too. Stop using US Air and they will improve eventually.
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12-31-2007 @ 10:01PM
msmedina83 said...
US Air is by far the worst. I went on a cruise and they lost my luggage the entire week I was away. It never made it on my connecting flight. It was forwarded on the next flight, which I was not able to retrieve since I was on a cruise. They said they will ship it to St. Thomas (our first island of the trip) and no luggage. This went on for the entire 7 days. I called and called and called and no one knew where my luggage was! It was very unorganized and everyone was incompetent! As an aside, Carnival cruises is nothing to brag about either. They were just as little help!
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12-31-2007 @ 10:11PM
Mike said...
I wont ever beingtravelling US Airways again, EVER!
This world seems to be falling apart at the seams.
You cant even trust an American run corporation to back its people whom live in that country. WHAT!!!!???
I give up, america you are so finished!
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12-31-2007 @ 10:23PM
George said...
This is crazy because i have all ways receive good sevice from US Airways even before 9/11 yes the employees did give up a lot but just two weeks ago i got great service as i have always from great people who work this so called poor airline,as for screwing employees out of money that comes from the so called low cost airlines who started it all with pay 1/2 of what the so called big airlines where paying ; Delays are passengers maybe like you who stand there for 5min playing with bag in the over head bin x 5 and now my flight is late not the airlines are employees falt but passengers who just stand there .Thank you every one@usair for a great job you do
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12-31-2007 @ 11:15PM
Jo said...
A lot of these comments are valid, hinge on experience and are obviously personal opinions. Yours was the only one that wasn't at all coherent; I read it a few times and I truly do not understand your argument/comments. Did you miss some spelling, commas, etc? What on earth are you trying to say?
1-01-2008 @ 5:30AM
Ed said...
You should truly learn how to write in English. It shows something and I will let you decide that.
12-31-2007 @ 10:35PM
jsmayer said...
Just flew America West since it merged with USAir. I was discouraged by how dirty the planes were. I did enjoy the Mesa airlines portion of my trip between Tucson and Phoenix. These planes were cleaner and the flight attendents were nice
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12-31-2007 @ 10:52PM
mike said...
you get what you pay for...
you want nice fresh clean oats you got to pay for them,... now in you are willing to take recycled oats they come a little cheaper.
the truth is your employees are the face of your company, you can hire rude inconsiderate people who steel your customers baggage have multiple piercing and body ink or not they all make the same under contract
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1-01-2008 @ 3:41AM
evilelshen said...
What does tattoos and piercing have to do with the service you receive? Thats a jump.
12-31-2007 @ 10:58PM
Steve said...
On top of that.....try to use US Airways frequent flier miles. Unless you want 2+ stops and travel to last all day, you cannot use them...
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12-31-2007 @ 11:01PM
Donnie L. said...
I worked as a taxi driver at a local airport to make a little extra cash this past summer. I watched flight crews come and go, for all airlines, and noticed they were snobbish, belligerent, and pushy, belittling everyone around them. Then, one day, I watched a pilot go to the emplloyee parking lot, looked at his tags on his vehicle, and noted that they were local. He dropped his keys three times before he found the correct one to open the door,then got in, backed out and clipped the fender of the car parked beside him. Didn"t even leave a note. This guy is a pilot?!>!?!
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12-31-2007 @ 11:05PM
mike said...
now can I mention the fat pigs that set in 2 seats and neglect to bathe for 1/2 bottle of rancid can't stanz za man...
you know the smell that is still in the planes air filters 90 flights later and the people with small crying brats and un-disciplined young children that need to be duct tapped to there seat...YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE NEXT TIME DRIVE YOUR SELF if you cant be in the car with um 10 hours why should I be in the plane with um for 2 hours I didn't breed um. that is the domestic terrorism we can do something about
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12-31-2007 @ 11:13PM
Carl937 said...
I would never use this airlines, there are plenty more out there that WANT your business......
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12-31-2007 @ 11:31PM
SafeAndEffective said...
I'm curious what AOL's motivation is in posting this story. Maybe U S Airways would like to post a story about the pathetic, crap company AOL has been until only recently.
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