The folks at United Airlines are looking into a complaint from a gay couple who say that they were not only treated rudely by airline employees but that one actually called them "f****ts" at Denver International Airport. More »
Holiday travel plans change all the time, meaning lots of people will be spending lots of time on the phone trying to speak to a human being. And according to a new report, passengers on Virgin America should have something to occupy themselves with while waiting on hold, as the average wait time for the carrier is longer than 20 minutes. More »
While regulators continue to push through rules intended to make airfares more transparent, airlines continue to pare base ticket prices down while charging fees for everything else that used to be included in the listed cost. Given all the potential permutations, it's not surprising that Jeff Smisek, CEO of United Airlines, doesn't see things getting simpler anytime soon. More »
Getting a leg up on the competition and also doing your part to help the environment is a bit of a coup, so props to you, United Airlines, for launching the first commercial flight in America powered partly by biofuel. Namely, algae jet fuel. More »
WiFi access in airplanes is becoming more and more common, and the United-Continental monolith is out to make the feature ubiquitous in its aircraft fleet within the next three years. The airlines, which are owned by United Continental Holdings, are pumping up 300 more planes with WiFi in the middle of 2012, thanks to a partnership with Panasonic Avionics Corporation. More »
When what was supposed to be a 20-minute flight turns into two-plus hours of turbulence, it's easy to understand why a passenger would be peeved. But is worthy of a lawsuit against four airlines? More »
When Cindy purchased her adult daughter's plane tickets to visit for the holidays, she didn't realize that United would rather have her just send her daughter the cash. At least, that's the only logical explanation for the rule she learned about only after the purchase was complete: the credit card used to buy the tickets must be available at check-in. How is Cindy's daughter supposed to present her credit card? More »
People with stockpiles of Continental Airlines frequent flier miles who haven't flown in a while may want to pay attention to this. When that airline finally weds its frequent flier program to that of United Airlines in 2012, the clock could be ticking before those miles disappear. More »
Fees for checked bags vary wildly, from absolutely nothing to arm-and-a-leg-and-an-ear. And according to a new round-up of fees from the various carriers, you might need to throw another limb in there if you're checking an oversize bag on your international flight. More »
You fly and fly and you spend on your credit card and do things to rack up miles, and finally, the day comes, as it did for Consumerist reader Jim, when you can cash those miles in for an actual flight! Hurray! But oh, wait, there's this thing called "fees" which end up raining on any happy redeeming parade. More »
The last time a jet's emergency chute made national news, it was a JetBlue flight attendant experiencing an on-plane meltdown. But earlier today, a United Airlines flight that had just boarded at Dulles International outside of Washington, DC, had to be evacuated, which meant Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had to go for a ride down the slide. More »
A really nasty woman named Irene is about to swoop in from the tropics and potentially screw up air travel for everyone. So in advance of the hurricane, many airlines are playing nice with their re-booking fees and policies for flights to and from destinations affected by the storm. More »
Last week, folk singer and aviation enthusiast Vance Gilbert thought he'd pass the time on his United Airlines flight from Boston to Washington, DC, by perusing some books about old aircraft. This was apparently enough to set off alarm bells among the flight crew, who had the plane return to the gate where Gilbert was met by the authorities. More »
When a United Airlines passenger got off the flight from Washington, D.C., to Oklahoma City, he was expecting that his $20,000 power wheelchair would be waiting for him. And it was... well at least some of it was. More »
It's not easy to fly to Cuba from the United States, but passengers on a United flight from Washington's Dulles airport to Cancun, Mexico wound up there due to an emergency diversion. When crew members noticed a burning smell that seemed to be coming from the cabin, the flight was diverted to Havana, the location of the nearest available airport. More »
Though United Airlines and Continental have been married for the better part of a year, the newlyweds haven't begun to see eye-to-eye on everything. Take, for instance, a customer's right to photograph a staffer's name tag. United says it could get you banned from the airline and put on a "no fly" list, while Continental says that's just not so. More »
Some sort of mysterious flu bug must be circulating the in cockpits of Continental flights. The airline has been forced to cancel 24 flights today because too many pilots called in sick. More »
As we reported last week, the inability for Congress to come to terms on a bill that would extend the FAA's operating authority means that airlines are not currently charging federal taxes on airfares. But if you're not seeing any difference in the final price of your ticket, that's because most airlines have increased their fares since Saturday. More »
A United Airlines customer became the first of the airline's passengers to pile up 10 million frequent flyer miles. He flies so often that United's customer service reps recognize his voice. He had a Boeing 747-400 named in his honor and received United's first Titanium United Mileage Plus card, which has perks United refuses to publicize. More »
The Department of Transportation released its final numbers for airline baggage fee revenue from 2010 and Delta has sent a very loud message to the rest of the industry: Y'all got a lot of catching up to do. More »
Fuel surcharges can add hundreds of dollars to the cost of a flight, a fact that travelers trying to buy tickets on Continental's website weren't finding out until after they had selected their itinerary. That's why the Depart of Transportation has slapped the airline with a $120,000 fine. More »
We've all gotten annoyed at a passenger in front of us who reclines his seat too far into our space, but most of the time it doesn't lead to two fighter jets escorting the plane for an unscheduled landing. More »
Sure, you can be quite the topic of conversation at a party if you can claim you've joined the Mile-High Club, but it's a much sadder story if you're the guy who got caught having sex with yourself. In your seat. Next to an innocent bystander. More »
An oversight by someone at United Airlines ruffled more than a few feathers this morning when it looked like the carrier was set to reinstate flight numbers UA093 and UA175, both of which had been out of use since jets associated with those flights were used in the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. More »
When did "taking photographs" become "suspicious behavior" on a plane? Because that's exactly what caused an entire United flight to return to its gate, be evacuated and inspected, leave 2.5 hours late and forced to make an additional stop because of the delay. More »
Brad flew halfway across the country to propose to his girlfriend, but the engagement ring that he picked out didn't make the trip. He was forced to check his carry-on, and somewhere between handing over his bag to United employees and landing in Boston, the lock came off his bag and the engagement ring mysteriously disappeared. United claims no responsibility because he didn't contact someone in the airport soon enough. Which is funny, because he did, and encountered an indifferent response. For which United later apologized. More »
Air travelers all have and use their own horror stories to determine which airline is the worst one around. But which U.S. carrier is statistically the worst company flying? American Eagle. More »
You may remember the United Airlines flight from last May that could have resulted in a burnt Olsen twin if the pilots hadn't reacted so quickly to a cockpit fire. Well, newly released documents from the National Transportation Safety Board show that there had been at least two related incidents on that same plane in the days leading up to the fire. More »
A vegetarian woman aboard a Continental flight from the Dominican Republic to Newark, NJ, was apparently none too pleased when she received a non-vegetarian meal. But rather than file a complaint with the airline, she reportedly opted for the less formal hurl-your-tray-at-the-flight-attendant tactic. More »
For the sixth year in a row, we asked Consumerist readers to send us their nominations for our Worst Company In America tournament. And this year's response was the greatest by far. More »
Continental and new spouse United Airlines have begun to decide which of their pre-marriage belongings to keep and which to discard. One thing that has already gone in the dumpster: free snacks in coach. More »
Delta recently announced that they would be adding roomier "Economy Comfort" seats to its international flights. Competing carrier United Airlines already has something similar with its Economy Plus seats, which will be showing up in planes operated by its new merger partner Continental. More »
Marissa says she booked a flight in 2008 before canceling and using the credit to try to buy another flight. But United said she'd waited too long to re-book the flight, so her sunk cost and frequent flyer miles are gone. More »
The Superbowl of storms is headed for the Midwest with 20" snow and 45 mph winds predicted for Chicago. Thankfully, a lot of airlines are waiving their usual ticket change fees for travelers who could be affected. 3,000 flights have already been canceled in advance of the potentially deadly weather. Don't go to the airport to see if you can make your flight, don't get stuck in an airport, stay home, stay over at your friend's house an extra day or two, and take advantage of this leniency. Here are links to the various airlines and their waiver and winter update pages and policies: More »
Remember the woman who almost got kicked off a Skywest flight over a dispute about her infant's baby seat? Well, the same woman was removed from a United Airlines flight earlier this week for allegedly causing a disruption. More »
The mother of a one-year-old baby girl says she was threatened with being ejected from a SkyWest flight when she tried to convince flight attendants that her child's car seat was acceptable for use on the plane. More »
While Santa and his pointy-eared, non-union laborers toil away at the North Pole, the editors of our more famous sibling publication Consumer Reports have compared their notes on a wide variety of companies' policies on everything from guarantees to fees to refunds and distilled it down to the best and worst of the lot in their first-ever Naughty & Nice Holiday Shopping List. More »
Bob was in such a hurry to get off a United flight he left his iPad at his seat, and didn't realize his mistake until he had crossed the security checkpoint. He tried like hell to rescue his lost tablet, even using the MobileMe function that's discovered the whereabouts of many a swiped idevice, to no avail. He says United has been less than helpful. More »
Reader Alanna says United Airlines told her the TSA wouldn't let her husband escort their grandkids to the gate because there was a limit on the number of gate passes available. She asked the TSA and they told her they had no such policy. Alanna wants us to know she thinks United is "unbelievably mean." More »
It's hard to keep track of all the extra fees airlines have invented to pad a ticket purchase, especially since they keep introducing new ones; USA TODAY says revenue from added fees have jumped nearly 16% from a year ago. The newspaper reviewed fees from 13 airlines in the U.S. and compiled this handy reference chart of current fee schedules, to make comparison shopping a little bit easier. As expected, Southwest continues to be one of the best values. More »
If there was something that could delay United Airlines flight 1488 from Washington to Philadelphia, then it happened, writes our tipster dev. Although originally meant to be a short one hour flight, the delays stretched to over three hours. Dev writes that most of the delays were caused by the pre-flight crew: "Those of us in the front of the aircraft could hear the Trans States Airlines crew griping over the fact that the ground crew, another contract outfit (this group from Air Wisconsin Airlines Corporation), did not do their pre-flight prep work on the plane properly." More »
United has already mastered guitar bashing, so now the airline is moving on to more ambitious projects: screwing up diplomatic relations with other countries. More »
The marriage between Continental and United Airlines got one huge step closer to happening on Friday when investigators at the Justice Department wrapped up their four-month inquiry into the merger and offered its blessing. More »
Continental and United Airlines won't officially join to form their airline Voltron for several months, but yesterday they released this image of how the branding on their planes will work once the merger is complete. More »
Next to Disney World, the one place children want to spend the day is the kids lounge at O'Hare Airport in Chicago, right? Just ask the 9-year-old who was left there for eight hours because a United Airlines employee forgot about him. More »
A newly released study shows that airlines around the globe are raking in cash from ancillary revenue like baggage fees. Worldwide, carriers collected $13.5 billion in fees last year, an increase of 43% over the previous year. And sitting high atop that pile was United Airlines. More »
A United Airlines flight from Washington, D.C., to Los Angeles hit more than a few bumps in the road Monday night when turbulence not only caused the plane to be diverted to Denver, but also left at least 25 people injured. More »
Over at JoeSugarman.com, Joe writes that on his way home from a seminar in Austin, he settled into his first class seat—he's what United Airlines calls a 1K traveler because he flies over 100,000 miles with them every year—and asked the flight attendant, "Are you serving any meals during our flight?" A few minutes later, he writes, "two armed Austin police officers boarded the plane, looked at me and said, 'Sugarman, follow us.'" More »
Last week, a United Airlines flight from Burlington to Washington, D.C. was deemed too heavy to fly, so the company had to decide who to boot off. In a moment of what was almost certainly accidental honesty, they targeted the 20 least profitable customers. We know this was their criteria because they announced it to the rest of the passengers, so those who remained were able to rest easy knowing that all the cheapskates, budget travelers and poor people were gone. More »
As reported earlier today, the Government Accountability Office thinks airlines could do a lot more to be transparent about the fees they charge. And buried about 45 pages deep in the GAO's report are two very helpful tables detailing fees for checked bags and other items that U.S.-based airlines charge extra for. More »
He thought he was golden but radio host Todd Schnitt had to check his carry-on unexpectedly because the baggage check template at the gate was one inch shorter than the one at check-in. More »
May was the first full month that the Dept. of Transportation's new regulations regarding planes idling on the tarmac were in effect. And for United Airlines, it could end up being a very expensive few weeks. Of the 5 flights that violated the new rules, 4 were operated by United. More »
With both Continental and United Airlines ready to say "I do," a group of peeved passengers has busted into the church prepared to give their reasons for why these two carriers should not be wed. More »
Look, pilots, we know that times are tough, but when security asks you to remove your belt and shoes, you probably shouldn't laugh and drop your pants, ok? Because if you do, you're going to end up detained and will have to explain yourself to a judge. Just ask United Airlines pilot Michael Slynn, who forgot this relatively simple advice yesterday in Rio de Janiero. More »
A Gothamist reader's bags didn't show up until three days after she got off the United Airlines flight, and when they did, they looked like they'd been ravaged by the gnashing of an angry monster. The bags and contents were torn, soaked, and moldy, and several items were missing. More »
For anyone wanting to earn reward miles on their favorite airline, the options are many. Your credit and debit cards can earn miles, so can taking online surveys or taking part in experimental drug trials (okay, not that last one). But while it's becoming increasingly easy to accrue miles, it's becoming more difficult to actually cash them in. More »
American Airlines told Bill that he couldn't acces their international lounge because his flight from the Dominican Republic to Houston, which required a passport and a customs form, didn't count as an international flight. Bill's wife had paid $300 to upgrade Bill's ticket to first class expressly so he could access the lounge, and Bill wasn't sure what part of "international" American didn't seem to understand. Yet it turns out American might be right. More »
You love the airlines now! Or at least, you don't hate them any worse than you did back in 2007, according to a new survey released by J.D. Power & Associates. More »
Even the Huffington Post admits that their Safest U.S. Airlines list is a bit unnecessary, considering the excellent safety records of everyone on the list. Still, it's fun to rank things, so that's what they did. U.S. Airways and JetBlue came in near the top, while Delta, United and Continental came in at the bottom. Regardless, you're likely to remain alive after a flight on any of them. More »
The prevailing attitude has been that impending nuptials between United and Continental will be a disaster for consumers, but the NYT has taken another look and come to some slightly less hysterical conclusions. More »
Jessica Cabot was born blind, but she'd been on two flights by herself before boarding a United Airlines flight last month, so she figured she knew what to expect. On all three flights, she was told by the flight attendants to remain seated until everyone else was off the plane, and then someone would help her off. That worked the first two times at any rate. More »
While United Airlines has languished near the bottom of many quality and popularity rankings, Continental's image has stayed sky-high. And now that the two are merging, will the new United benefit from Continental's popularity — or will the new airline be derided as nothing more than the old United with a new set of paint? Industry-watchers questioned by Ad Age aren't very bullish: "Fares will be higher, and service will be reduced," warns Chris Elliott of elliott.org. More »
If and when the United/Continental merger is finalized, it's going to be very good news for Chicago, which will retain its status as the new airline's headquarters. Cleveland, on the other hand, will lose out, since it will basically be a redundant hub stuck between the airline's bigger operations in Chicago and Newark. And, Houston, current HQ of Continental? Sorry, pardner. More »
The Continental/United merger may not be officially consummated for several months, if ever. In the meantime, what should you do to make sure your frequent flyer points with the two airlines don't fly the coop? Consumer Reports has some tips to protect your miles, including cashing some of them in right now, before any changes are made to the reward structure. More »
The NYT says that Continental and United Airlines have agreed to a $3 billion merger that will create the world's largest airline, eclipsing current front-runner, Delta. More »
It's being widely reported that Continental Airlines and United Airlines, who have flirted with the idea in the past, could announce merger plans as early as Monday. If so, the deal would make the combined entity the largest airline in the world. But is that a good thing for travelers? More »
Looks like you should return that toaster oven you were going to give U.S. Airways and United Airlines for their merger, because the two carriers have stopped talking to each other after four months of heavy flirting. More »
In the aftermath of Spirit Airlines' announcement that they'll be charging up to $45 for carry-on bags, five airlines have pledged that they won't jump on the fee bandwagon. New York Sen. Charles Schumer said today that American, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, US Airways and JetBlue have told him they won't start charging for carry-ons. More »
For the second year in a row, Hawaiian Airlines has topped a study that ranks 18 commercial carriers according to a formula that accounts for everything from on-time arrivals/departures to baggage handling to customer complaints. On the bottom end of the rankings was American Eagle. More »
It's airlines meets air time in today's Sweet 16 battle. In the far corner, wearing blue trunks and sporting a thick Chicago accent is United Airlines! Let's give it up for exorbitant fees! In the near corner, sporting red trunks and coming straight outta Philadelphia is the Comcastic Kid! Can I get a cheer for inept customer service?! More »
In what is clearly an attempt to make it easier for us to think of stuff to write about for the Worst Company In America contest, the two remaining airlines, United and US Airways, have begun merger talks. More »
Sneaking a smoke in an airplane bathroom is not a good idea these days. You may accidentally set off a Jerry Bruckeimer movie. Much like the recent incident where a drunk guy started yelling about jihad on a cruise ship accidentally activating a full on action movie, today we bring you the story of a Qatari diplomat whose secret cigarette on a United Airlines flight from Washington to Denver caused fighter jets to be scrambled. More »
A Consumerist reader wrote into us to complain about a horrible experience he had with a hotel in Ft. Lauderdale he booked while making flight reservations on United Airlines' website. More »
Silly Mike. He thought that by booking seats in the bulkhead row next to each other on well ahead of time for his flights to and from Tokyo on United later this week, he would actually get to sit in those seats. Instead, he writes, United's customer service changed the plane type for their flight long after he reserved his tickets. Yet the airline somehow managed to not re-book seats for Mike and his wife at all. When he called to straighten things out, the airline put them on a different flight not sitting together and took away their precious bulkhead seats. United's representatives don't see why Mike has a problem with any of this. More »
If you're planning on flying on United Airlines between now and March 29, the airline is offering to help you save a bit of cash on your checked luggage... if you ship it via FedEx. More »
In a move to cut down on paper and ID fraud, United Airlines has announced passengers can now opt out of paper boarding passes and have digital boarding passes sent to their Internet-ready phones. More »
You'd think United Airlines would have learned a lesson from the whole "United Broke My Guitar" thing. But they've once again let a passenger's problem go global. This time, it's almost 6,000 Facebook users who think the airline charges too much to check your bike on their planes. More »
The final leg of Dave Carrol's anti-United Airlines musical trifecta is here. He's not mad anymore. He's got his big break and two new Taylor guitars. What about all the customers who write David every day with their own United horror stories? More »
Harold says he paid $40 to check luggage with valuable camera equipment on a multi-leg United flight from Hawaii to Tucson, only to discover his camera had been lost. When he complained, United would have none of it, claiming it's airline policy not to assume liability for camera equipment. More »
Tonight at 7:30 Eastern the third and final installment in the "United Breaks Guitars" music trilogy hits the streets in a live webcast release party. As you wait for that latest hot joint, relive the magic and catch up on the story of the country singer who watched in horror from their airplane as baggage handlers tossed around his Taylor guitar on the tarmac and broke it, by watching the first two videos: More »
Mark Smith just got suckered into buying travel insurance that turned out to be worthless to him. There was a huge hole in the middle of the coverage, which meant he and his two kids were stuck overnight in Denver on his own dime. Luckily the policy only cost $40, but that's $40 that now belongs to Access America in exchange for providing a useless service. More »
Bucky Turco got a $250 credit for his next United Express flight after he complained about the two-hour gab fest between two United stewards he endured on a recent trip from SLC to ORD. In that time he learned from the two women such factoids as: Hispanics, Blacks and Asians shouldn't go blonde, a type of birth control gave one of the stewards' sister menstrual spots, how getting spit on is the ultimate disrespect, right up there with getting a shoe thrown at you like George Bush did, and more. Too much information! More »
We've brought you plenty of airline horror stories recently, but Marine officer Christopher's experience is positively heartwarming in comparison. After the East coast snowpocalypse canceled his original flight and he was forced to wait on the tarmac for three hours due to a baggage handler shortage, United Airlines contacted him to offer a $250 travel voucher. No EECB needed. More »
Automobile sales consultant Tom Stuker is the real-life equivalent of George Clooney in the Oscar-contending film Up in the Air, well, except for the whole having hot, dirty airport hotel sex with Vera Farmiga thing. More »
—>Glassdoor released its report of the 50 lowest-rated CEOs as determined by employee reviews on its site. I scractched out all the companies you don't care about and ended up with this list of the 10 Crappiest CEOs (of consumer-facing compaines) (according to their employees)... More »
—>Two passengers were arrested on a United flight from LA to New York after one of them jumped up and ran to the bathroom after being instructed to remain seated by a flight attendant. Apparently the man just needed to use the bathroom — like now.More »
—>If you're planning any air travel on the busiest post-holiday travel days this year, prepare to pay $10 in an extra, uh, "fuel surcharge" on Delta, American, and United flights. Fuel is super extra expensive on November 29th, January 2rd, and January 3rd, you know. More »
—>The Times of London claims that public relations fallout from Dave Carroll's catchy videos panning United Airlines for breaking his beloved $3500 Taylor guitar and then denying his damage claim may have cost the airline's shareholders up to $180 million. More »
—>United couldn't have been more understanding and helpful after reader Chris' wife had a seizure as they flew from Sullivan's Island, SC to Winnipeg. The flight attendants onboard offered to divert the flight to Chicago, but the couple decided instead to power through. United's staff met them at the gate along with paramedics, and offered to rebook them on the flight of their choice. If they wanted to stay the night, United said they'd be happy to pay for a hotel room. Chris' takeaway perfectly captures the spirit behind our Above and Beyond posts: "Even if United is a horrible company," he writes, "there are still nice people there, and sometimes even big companies surprise you." Chris writes: More »
—>James says he got ejected from his United Airlines flight because he had a cold and some of the other passengers wigged out, fearful of becoming swine flu victims. His letter, and its surprise ending, inside... More »
—>Mike rushed his girlfriend to the airport to catch a flight to see her dying mother, only to watch her miss the flight because United Airline's ticketing agent refused to help because "it was time for her to go on her break." Passengers waiting in line were more than willing to let Mike's girlfriend skip to the front of the line, but her sad situation apparently wasn't enough to earn the agent's sympathies. When his girlfriend finally reached the gate in time to watch her flight depart, the gate agent defended his colleague's lack of sympathy, saying "management really makes us work some unreasonable schedules." More »
Good Job More than 40,000 United Airlines "front-line" workers will receive a $100 bonus because the carrier's on-time performance topped the Transportation Department's monthly performance rating for March, the Chicago-based airline said Thursday. [Chicago Tribune] More »
—>Reader Nicholas likes to listen to the cockpit channel while flying, because he says it calms his nerves. The flight attendants must have assumed that no one was turned to that station (or that they weren't being broadcast on it), because Nicholas says he heard one of them refer to the passengers in the coach cabin as "idiots." Whoops. More »
—>United Airlines doesn't want to talk to you on the phone about your complaints — so they're disconnecting it. MSNBC is reporting that starting in April, the airline will shut down the call center that deals with customer complaints. More »
Not content to just outsource their customer service, United is shutting down its phone center in India in April, instead relying wholly on written complaints. They claim they'll be able to better respond to written complaints, but we know it's just as easy to paste irrelevant advice and insincere apologies as it is to speak them. More »
—>If you want to hit Australia like right now,United is having an unadvertised sale with roundtrip tickets for about $1000, no advance purchase required. For instance, JFK is only $973 with taxes. Usually no advance purchase required tickets cost a pretty penny. The deal is good at airports all across the nation. Qantas is price-matching the sale, too. More »
—>No longer distracted by high oil prices, airlines now claim that they're starting to focus on customer service. Two of them, American and United, think that their biggest issue is dirty planes. Wouldn't it be great if that were true? More »
—>United Airlines has announced that passengers on flights from New York City to Los Angeles and San Francisco will soon have access to WiFi... for $12.95. More »
—>Hey, remember all those chronic unsolvable delays that were threatening to grind air traffic to a halt in this country? It seems that we've found something that can really help. A huge global recession. More »
—>When company policy has a head-on collision with absurdity. Your United Airlines ticket is $60. Your baby's, who's going to be sitting in your lap? $1,280. [Elliot] (Photo: moxythecat) More »
—>Reader Thomas's scheduled travel on United Air on Christmas Eve went pretty much how you'd expect: his flight left four hours early, and his rebooked flight at 4 a.m. was overbooked. The horror, inside. More »
—>The Chicago Tribune says that a couple are suing United Airlines, claiming that the airline "negligently over served" the man — causing him to become drunk and to beat his wife. More »
—>We understand that airlines have to bend over backwards to attract and retain lucrative business travelers. We get it. Sadly, it seems that some airlines are running out of obsequious language that manages not to be insulting to the "rest of us." More »
—> A United Airlines crew was apparently forced to use duct tape to restrain an unruly passenger after the normal ankle cuffs kept slipping off. The passenger, who was apparently quite intoxicated after having several drinks at the airport (she also brought alcohol onto the plane), is accused of slapping a flight attendant on the behind, and grabbing and pulling the hair of a passenger whom she'd fallen on.
—>Could this be a sign of thawing in the hearts of United Airlines? They announced yesterday that after four months of crediting Mileage Plus members with actual miles flown instead of a minimum of 500, the airline will reinstate the old program for "elite" members. More »
—>Think twice about bringing home Thanksgiving leftovers: United will raise fees for 2nd checked bags to $50 from $25 staring November 10th. [United] (Photo: zonaphoto) (Thanks to Derek!)More »
—>United Airlines is just super crappy at fuel hedging, says Wired. Now that oil is trading at less then $100 a barrel, it turns out that United is paying more than that — and more than other airlines: More »
—>CNBC has put together a quick slideshow list of the top 10 largest Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings in US history based on the pre-bankruptcy assets of the companies in question. It really gives you a sense of the incredible scale of the Lehman Brothers filing — the next closest bankruptcy was Worldcom, which had $103.9 billion in assets before the filing — 535.1 BILLION DOLLARS less than Lehman Brothers. Damn. More »
—>United Airlines has decided that $25 was too generous a price to check your second bag with their airline, and have announced that they'll be bumping the fee up to $50. More »
—>Here's what really happened with United Airlines' stock losing 99% of its value on that bankruptcy story from 2002 that people though was new. This is what happens when you let the robots do your thinking for you... More »
—>United Airlines said it would listen to feedback from customers about its proposed plan to ax hot meals for coach passengers on international flights... and it did. The company has decided not to go ahead with the plan. Reader Jason forwarded us the following email from Graham Atkinson, United's Chief Customer Officer. More »
—>Airline fees are a controversial topic these days, so we look a look at the fees that airlines were charging and picked the top 3 most and least "fee crazy" airlines. Avoiding fees is hard, so why not try to avoid the airlines that charge them instead? More »
—>It took a little negotiating but reader Noah was able to get United Airlines to honor the agreement that their CSR made, despite the fact that it was a violation of some kind of deeply sacred policy. More »
—>United Airlines is obviously not to familiar with the dollar menu at McDonald's because they're convinced that you'll pay up to $9 for their "Buy-On-Board" snack offerings, says the Wall Street Journal. More »
—>The San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that United Airlines will no longer offer free snacks in coach starting September 2nd. They are also dropping complimentary meals in business class except for "premium transcontinental flights from San Francisco and Los Angeles to New York." Shockingly, this move coincides with the airlines' expansion of their "buy-on-board" food offerings, says the Chronicle.More »
—>United Airlines' pilots have had enough of Glenn Tilton, the CEO of United, and have started a website that calls for his resignation. In addition to listing Mr. Tilton's various faults, the website asks you, the consumer, to help them by submitting your United Airlines horror stories. (CC: The Consumerist, naturally...) More »
—>Joe may have uncovered a deceptive policy at United Airlines that's screwing over customers. Here's how it works. If you've got an economy ticket and the only seats available are in Economy Plus, but you didn't spring for the extra Economy Plus fee, you're asked if you would like to pay the upgrade fee for economy plus seating. If you decline to upgrade, they seat you there anyway. Sounds pretty sketchy to me. Here's Joe's story: More »
—>John finally got United to pay for the car he had to rent when the airline flew him to the wrong airport over nine months ago. In classic fashion, their refund invoice has a big typographical error. Airlines, even when they get it right, they manage to get it wrong. More »
—>Ew! United Airlines 1178 was delayed 6 hours because a passenger spotted a tick hitching a ride in coach during a previous flight from Washington D.C. to Denver. The airline isn't sure how the plane got tick infested, but had to temporarily pull the plane out of service while a crew cleaned it. More »
—>In a letter signed by 12 CEOs, the US air travel industry has called upon you, their customers, to help them lobby congress. What's the problem that they need help solving? Oil speculation. Read the letter inside. More »
—>After a mechanical snafu grounded his flight to Zurich, Aaron received several vouchers and an upgrade as compensation from United Airlines. Unfortunately, the vouchers and upgrades proved so difficult to use that he has given up and is now publicly vowing never to fly United Airlines again. More »
—>The bad news is that because of high fuel costs, United Airlines and US Airways will be following American Airlines in charging a $15 first-bag fee. The even worse news is that most of the remaining airlines will probably follow suit with the exception Southwest who locked in their fuel prices several years ago. Since the airlines are attempting to cash in on baggage fees, SmartMoney offers some tips on how to avoid them. The tips, inside... More »
—>Passengers on United Airlines Flight 416 from Salt Lake City to Denver were in their seats, waiting to taxi to the runway, when their pilot suddenly announced that "an interpersonal confrontation [has] upset me significantly to the point where I'm not focused enough to fly you to Denver." Apparently, the "interpersonal confrontation" started when the pilot was caught wearing his hat in front of management. More »
—>Sorry travelers, as expected, United Airlines will require minimum stays on all flights starting in October. Gone are the halcyon days of jetting away for a business meeting after breakfast with time to spare before returning for dinner. Most United fares will now require a three-night or weekend stay, but it "will depend on the destinations involved, the price of the ticket and the length of the flight." And, yes, you will still be charged $15 to check your first bag. More »
—>You may be thinking to yourself, "Congratulations, you've written the world's most obvious headline!" And you'd be right, but according to J.D. Power and associates there could be something of a sea change going on in the universe of airline complaints. It seems that crappy customer service may have reached a Gladwellian "tipping point" — more customers are choosing which airline to fly based on factors other than price.More »
—>Praying is nice but you should try not to disrupt the entire flight with your holiness. WNBC says an Orthodox Jewish man got up from his seat while passengers were still boarding, and walked to the back of the United Airlines flight where he began praying. His friend said the prayers lasted approximately 2 minutes. When flight attendants asked the man to return to his seat so the plane could take off, he ignored them. More »
—>Can't fit it all in one suitcase? United is going to start charging passengers a fee for checking more than one piece of luggage, $25 per bag. Elite frequent flyers will skip the charge. The new policy begins May 5. It's certainly one way to pass fuel costs on to passengers using more fuel, without raising up-front fare prices. More »
Travel site Jaunted suspects that United Airlines is blocking their employees from reading the site. Muahahahaha! [Jaunted] More »
According to court documents, the Patels boarded United Airlines Flight 836 from Shanghai to Chicago on July 17. The tickets came with an airline pledge to furnish the Patels and other members of their group with Hindu meals. More »
—>Eight passengers and two flight attendants were injured when flight 1028 from Los Angeles to Chicago O'Hare encountered turbulence and was diverted to Denver. More »
—>Passengers on a flight from Puerto Rico to Chicago claim that they were delayed for 33 hours while United Airlines loaded them on and off two broken planes. One passenger compared the ordeal to being "held hostage," says FOX Chicago. More »
Over Thanksgiving, five United Airlines workers had to go the hospital for nausea and vomiting after eating the company-provided turkey dinner. "There were questions about whether the turkey smelled quite right," said Don Wolfel, the president of Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association Local 4, "The popular opinion was that it didn't." [AP] More »
—>The San Francisco Chronicle has an interesting article about the strategies that the big US carriers are taking to restore their tarnished (or completely obliterated, depending on how recently you've had to fly somewhere) reputation for customer service. More »
—>How long does it take for United Airlines to get a maintenance crew over to your plane so that they can "fix" something with duct tape? The answer is 45 minutes, not including the time it took to "de-plane" the passengers. More »
United and American Airlines introduced new business class seats. United's let you lie completely down. [Upgrade Travel Better] More »
—>An editor over at Jaunted has perfected a strategy for hassel-free airline bumping. We all know that we can grab some pretty nice rewards if we give up our seat on an overbooked airplane, but we're never in a position to do so. More »
"It was human error during routine testing," United Chief Operating Officer Pete McDonald told airline employees on a recorded call. "An employee made a mistake and caused the failure of both Unimatic and our backup system." More »
Airplanes were still allowed to land at O'Hare even though there were no available jetways at the United terminal. Wow, this looks like fun! —MEGHANN MARCO More »
—>United Airlines experienced a computer glitch that grounded all of their flights today, according to the AP.
United spokeswoman Robin Urbanski said the airline did not yet know what caused the outage between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. CDT, when departures were able to resume. More »
—>American Airlines pissed off the wrong people when they stranded several flights at Austin International Airport in December. Now the Coalition for Airline Passengers Bill of Rights, which started as a blog full of irritated consumers from those flights, has grown to 15,000 members and is holding press conferences. Today they've issued the first "Airline Strandings Report Card," in which they detail not only the failures and successes of various airlines, but also highlight the inaccuracies of the Department of Transportation's statistics. More »
—>You know who has to deal with a planeload full of sweaty, angry grounded passengers? Flight attendants. Know who wants a passengers bill of rights? Flight attendants. Specifically, United Airlines flight attendants. They've issued a press release through their union criticizing United's "Flights of Note" compensation plan for grounded fliers. More »
—>Thank goodness for United Airlines, they've solved the problem of what to do with grounded, stranded passengers. You know, the problem that Congress has been having hearings about? The solution: a 20% off coupon, a $10 airport meal voucher and a note of apology! The Denver Post says that United will consider anyone with a taxi-out delay of more than 3 hours or a taxi-in delay of more than 90 minutes eligible for the goodies. More »
—>A box cutter was found by a passenger on United flight 490 from Denver to Dallas Tuesday, causing a delay of almost two hours while the passengers were rescreened. From the AP:
Flight 490 had left the gate and was taxiing toward a runway when the passenger found the cutting instrument and notified a flight attendant, United Airlines spokeswoman Megan McCarthy said. More »
—>The Trans-Atlantic deregulation agreement known as "Open Skies" has airlines chomping at the bit—even though the start date is still 11 months away, according to USAToday. The agreement will allow any US airline to fly anywhere in the EU and any EU airline to fly anywhere in the US. So, will you be flying Aer Lingus from Cleveland to Dallas? Maybe. Will it be cheaper? More »
How would you like to fly from Hawaii to Chicago in an airplane full of cigarette butts, candy, used tissues, pretzel bags, maxi-pad wrappers, crumbs, dirt, pens, balls of "goo", and god knows what else...More »
Heard a very interesting story tonight from the friend of a United Airlines customer service rep. Apparently when you call up United customer service, the name the customer service rep provides may be completely false. That's right, they sometimes make up the names they give you. These names are registered in a database, so when someone calls up to register a complaint about customer service rep "Peter Parker," United knows exactly who they're talking about. Undoubtedly, this practice extends to other companies as well. Nothing particularly earth-shattering, just interesting that while a company knows everything about your credit and purchase history, and most certainly, your name, they still feel compelled to use false identities. Probably a good security move, nonetheless. — BEN POPKEN More »
—>How would you like to fly from Hawaii to Chicago in an airplane full of cigarette butts, candy, used tissues, pretzel bags, maxi-pad wrappers, crumbs, dirt, pens, balls of "goo", and god knows what else just because United Airlines didn't have "time" to clean the plane? We wouldn't like it very much at all, and neither did Chris and his wife when they flew from Hawaii to Chicago last weekend. More »
Tears filling his eyes, Roger Barbour watched in disbelief as two United Express jets took off without him just before Christmas at the Cheyenne airport in Wyoming. He wasn't the only one left behind. More »
Thinking of flying today? You may want to think again. United is offering travel waivers for those of you flying in or out of the following states: Colorado; Connecticut; Illinois; Indiana; Massachusetts; Maryland; Michigan; Missouri; New Jersey; New York; Ohio; Pennsylvania; Rhode Island; Virginia; Washington, D.C.; and Wisconsin.More »
Ever go to check in for the next leg of your flight, only to find that there is no check-in for the airline you're supposed to be on? That's what happened to Michael and Joyce Ludmer. More »
Yes, flying can be stressful, but it's no excuse to get belligerently drunk. On a recent United Airlines flight from Boston to San Francisco a 28 year-old female passenger did the following: More »
"This change makes our Mileage Plus program better for customers who are most loyal to United, reduces our operating costs, and brings our program in line with major competitors," said Dennis Cary, United's Senior Vice-President of Marketing. More »
A 12-year-old orange tabby cat named "Pumpkin" is said to be doing well, after going three weeks without food or water in the cargo hold of a passenger jet that flew from England to Germany. More »
United Airlines has discontinued snacks on flights shorter than 2 hours, according to Cheapflights. United has also raised fares by $5 each way, except in markets where its competing with Southwest...and despite falling fuel prices. More »
—>They fired him in 2001, but Charlie Trotter is coming back to design the menu for first and business class passengers, says United. "Trotter previously contributed to United's menu from 1999 through 2001, creating such esoteric fare as Maine lobster with tropical fruit and black pepper, and Thai barbecue poussin with braised collard greens and preserved red onions." More »
—>So you've got some intractable issue with United Airlines. You've called several times and spoken to supervisors, written letters, and you're not getting anyway. It might be time to kick your issue up to executive customer service, a team of ninja specialists possessing superhuman complaint resolution powers. Here's a guy to talk to: More »
—>United Airline attendants are stripping to their skivvies and draping themselves over WWII trainer planes, to raise money and awareness about retiring stewardesses being stripped of their pensions. More »
