Scorecard: Where Does Your Airline of Choice Rank?
The Wall Street Journal has a nifty scorecard of U.S. airline carriers. Alaska Airlines (my airlines of choice) ranked first, while American Airlines ranked last. I actually find the bottom three airlines on the scorecard rather telling.
(click on graphic to read the complete article from the WSJ)
ORD – SEA on American: Thoughts
A couple of observations:
- I totally appreciate the reciprocity of elite status between Alaska Airlines and American. My boarding pass for my American flight had “Priority Access” stamped on it, which got me through security in what seemed like under a minute. Even though I had “Platinum” on my boarding pass, I couldn’t access the Admirals Club. This would only be possible if my outbound flight was international or if I bought a days pass, which I didn’t want to do. Not a big deal. I wish the reciprocity would encompass first-class upgrades as well, but this probably won’t happen in the near future (especially with the recent bankruptcy situation by American).
- Wifi in O’Hare stinks. Unless you have access to the lounge or have your own personal hotspot, you aren’t going to get online. I’ve had success with the Boingo Wi-Fi network. You can access the network by purchasing a Wi-Fi pass or using Skype credits. I’ve always used the latter, and this time I had about an hour’s worth of Wi-Fi minutes through Skype. Only this time the Boingo network completely failed on me, dropping my connection and eating my Skype credits. After about 5 five minutes and $6 lost, I gave up and tweeted my frustration. Within about a minute after I tweeted, a Boingo customer service person tweeted back to attempt to help me out. I thought the response was pretty amazing. It was only until I got back home could I e-mail the contact e-mail given to me during our Twitter exchange. Long-story short: Boingo came through big time and accommodated me for my troubles! Excellent customer service, indeed. The lesson here: Never underestimate the power of Twitter.
- Once on board in my seat early because of “Priority Access,” I was struck again by how utterly dysfunctional the boarding system is, not just with American but with other airlines. I think in some ways Southwest has it right to assign boarding numbers instead of preassigned seats, though that has its own set of problems. There is NEVER enough room in the overheard compartments! Once the last of the passengers get on, they are always S.O.L. looking for room for their bags. It’s almost comedy at this point, but also completely frustrating. Something needs to change.
- No pretzels or peanuts were given out during the flight! Totally unacceptable. Let’s hope if American comes out of bankruptcy re-organized and in better financial health, it can bring back the complimentary inflight snacks. By the time we landed near midnight, nothing in the airport was open for food. I was hungry and needed to pee badly (three rounds of refreshments will do that). Seriously.
Fantastic Alaska Airlines Cyber Monday Deals
Alaska Airlines has been our airlines of choice for much of the year. I am currently MVP, but will earn MVP Gold after my trip to Denver next weekend. My partner Andreas is MVP Gold, gaining it after sending an e-mail asking them for it since he is also Platinum status with American Airlines, which Alaska Airlines honored. I’ve had no major issues with Alaska Airlines thus far. For the most part, I’ve gotten upgraded to first class each time I’ve traveled without having to haggle or even wait on the first-class wait list. Most recently, I flew to Chicago with my cat, and the Alaska Airlines team in Seattle did a fantastic job getting my cat securely on the plane and to Chicago in one piece, all for just $100. So now when I travel anywhere, I immediately check for flight on Alaska Airlines before I search for fares on other airlines.
Click on image above to take you to the Cyber Monday deals
It’s always a treat to find new Alaska Airlines deals. For those of us who travel between Seattle and Portland to other parts of the U.S., the Cyber Monday deals posted today on Alaska Airline’s Web site is such a welcome holiday gift. Unfortunately, most of the dates to get the bargain deals don’t overalp with peak-season travel dates in December. But I’ve searched routes from Seattle to Chicago – $100 each way – and have found dates through March with the low rate. You must book by December 5, 2011.
Cyber Monday Fares from Seattle
The Cyber Monday deals on Alaska Airlines might be a good opportunity to lock in some bargain rates for travel in 2012!
Fabulous: Air New Zealand’s Superhero Pink Flight
Now honestly, why can’t all airlines be like Air New Zealand! Every video “coming out” of Air New Zealand is making want to book my trip already! Remind me to book a seat for Andreas and myself on the Pink Flight for next year’s Mardi Gras. I need to be on that flight! Air New Zealand knows how to have fun!
< Air New Zealand "Superhero" Pink Flight >
I love the superhero theme the airlines had this year … I wonder what it will be next year? A “monsterball” theme? (paws up, everybody!) … just saying.
Love it!
Surprise! KLM and the Social Media Project
I just happened upon the article “Fifteen of the best social media campaigns in travel … so far” and was pleased to see KLM use of social media at #1. I flew KLM last year from Frankfurt to Lisbon via Amsterdam and loved the experience. Here’s what KLM did:
Using information from Foursquare and Twitter, KLM identified passengers currently checked in and waiting to board KLM flights. A quick search of each person’s social media profile garnered info about their personal interests/reasons for flying.
Staff then purchased appropriate gifts which they gave to passengers prior to boarding their flight. (Source: TNooz)
Brilliant! The video above was very touching. While I think social media outlets like Twitter, Facebook, and Foursquare do wonderful jobs in facilitating connections virtually, real-time connections are still very much experiences that people want. KLM did a fantastic job bridging virtual and real-time through its campaign.
Lesson learned: Keep tweeting and checking-in! Surprises might be waiting for around the corner.
Oh No: Air France Plane Clips Comair Plane at JFK
The Airbus A380 was taxiing out to a runway when its left wingtip crashed into the tail of the regional jet, operated by Comair for Delta Air Lines and stopped on an intersecting taxiway, whipping the smaller plane around nearly 90 degrees. (Source: NYTimes)
Whoa! Sucks to be in that Comair plane, but luckily no one was hurt.
Weekend Update: Shelly Elaine, Southwest Flight Attendant
There was a strong smell of pee in the air…
I admit, I laughed a little. I’m sure the original experience was most definitely nothing to laugh about. I love Kristen Wiig (“I’m one of those funny flight attendants …”).
Watch It: San Francisco to Paris in 2 Minutes
(Source)
Wow! Over 2,000 photographs taken on an Air France flight from San Francisco to Paris (over 10 hours), condensed into 2 minutes. There are some beautiful shots of what looks like the aurora borealis (the northern lights).
Scary // Hole in Southwest Airlines Plane Fuselage
Must have been a horrific experience. A few people fainted, but thankfully nothing more serious happened. The plane going from Phoenix to Sacramento landed safely in Yuma, Arizona. This isn’t the first time a hole in a Southwest Airlines plane fuselage has rupture. Last year a similar thing happened. Hurrah to the pilot!
Air New Zealand with Richard Simmons!
Indeed, mile-high madness! Can’t wait to fly the queer-friendly skies with Air New Zealand!
