OT - Rant on...

[Ysabel Kid]

I travel a lot for my job - and most of that travel via airplane. It is no fun - just when you think the airlines or the TSA couln't come up with another way to make one's life miserable, they prove Einstein's observation that only the universe and human stupidity are truly infinite.

Somehow - between budget constraints, lots of phone work, and a bit of ingenuity I managed to spend almost two months local - all during the summer when my kids were off school. They go back this week. I started traveling again last week. It was great to be home for so long, and I can't believe how fast the summer went by, but I got out of practice doing the travel thing. Apparently, in the last two months things have gone from bad to ridiculous for the airlines.

I'm on my way back home last Thursday, and got to the airport with enough time to catch an earlier flight. I get through the ordeal that is security, and get to the gate. Barely anyone is there, so I ask the gate agent if there is room on this flight. "Sure, lots of room" he replies. I explain I am on the next flight and would like to standby this one and catch it if possible. He says "no problem - that will be $50". I blink hard, and explain to him I'd like to go "standby". He replies that "they no longer do that", and I'd have to pay to get on the earlier flight. I look at him and ask him why I should pay to hop on an earlier flight, that has plenty of room, enabling them to possibly sell my seat on a later flight. Worst case for them, I fly back home - which I was doing anyway - on one of their flights. He looks at me like I'm speaking Greek and says...

"Those are the rules".

To add insult to injury, they now charge $2 for a soda pop on the flights! I understand the airlines are in deep doo-doo due to mismanagement, fuel costs, a slowing economy, retiree burdens and the liability of outstanding frequent flyer miles. Still, when one's hurting the last thing you do is chase away customers.

I hate flying, I hate airports, and I hate the airlines. I've just expanded my "drive it" radius by another 2 hours. Bet I'm not alone. The airlines are going to save themselves into bankruptcy. Oh wait - they are already there. No, they will save themselves into having no customers...

Rant off...

[RKrodle]

I feel your pain, I just went over a million miles with American Airlines. And have probably 500,000 or so with other airlines. Travel for business is never fun but the airlines, and TSA, have managed to make it even worse. I've been lucky this year and haven't flown as much as usual.

[JReed]

Dang that sucks. The only time I travel by plane is when the Corps pays for it any other travel I do is by car or on my bike. I see more that way and I have more leg room.

[O.S.O.K.]

I'm there too - although more of my travel at this time is by ground vehicle, I am steadily increasing my air travel as I increase my division's sales coverage. I just opened Florida and that means that much more flying.

I hate it too.

I do try and fly SW as much as possible as they seem to have things much more together thant the others... plus I have a gob of fee drink vouchers

[Hobie]

I have to say that in my boss's insurance business where they once flew they now drive. From central VA now to ME and northern FL by car. Time being money and their need to carry brochures and such (with additional bag fees) makes driving cost effective. The time spent going to and from many locations is the same or less in the car and the cost is much less (especially where more than one fellow is traveling). The airlines are penny wise and pound foolish if you ask me.

[donw]

i beleive the costs of energy is begginning to rear it's ugly head and that's but one way it's manifested. if costs stopped at the gasoline pump, that might make it different...but... it just STARTS at the gas pump! you know it, i know it...every price increase digs into our pocket more and more...

if prices are NOT brought back down to late nineties level or so, this economy will almost surely come to a complete stand still...and my belief is that our present democrat congress is doing it's level best to do nothing about it...if this continues, air travel will be a thing of the past for all but the most wealthy and in fact, travel by automobile is becoming an activity only the more wealthy can afford. my last fill up for my toyota truck cost me nearly seventy dollars!

i retired in 2002 and since then prices have gone up for medical insurance by nine times and fuel for automobiles by three times (in my case at least)...my financial manager tells me "get rid of your motor home and jeep"...in the first place, i ain't got a "motor home"... all i have is a 17' travel trailer and the jeep is a NECESSITY for transportation...

we are rapidly becoming victims of a select few industries, companies and foriegn nations prosperity...

i'll cut my rant short to renew my caffiene fix for the morning...

[AJMD429]

I am fortunate in that I NEVER have to fly for my employer (which is ME ), because I don't like arbitray and asinine rules, ESPECIALLY when they are counterproductive and dangerous. The "risk" of flying doesn't bother me, either pre- or post-terrorism, but the stupid rules would have me making a scene and probably getting in more trouble than the idiots who actually try to blow up the planes.

[mescalero1]

Take it from an " insider " I just retired from that snake pit.
DO NOT travel by airline.
OSAK mentioned the best of the lot.

[jeepnik]

I used to take some jobs on the gulf coast. No more. I've pretty much decided that if it isn't in the SoCal/Southern Nevada/ Arizona area, I'll pass. The cost of the travel eats into profits, and the hassle into sanity. Driving isn't all that fun, but I'll just arrange to get there the day before and relax overnight. The wife sometimes comes along for mini second, third, etc. honeymoons. She can always find a place to shop while I'm working.

[meanc]

Yeah, I remember those easy days of flight with absolutely no hassles thru security or getting on earlier flights.

Now that they have to lie in the bed of bad management that they've made, they've incorporated all these new money making schemes. All they're doing though, is biting the hands that feed them.

I guess they really don't care since they figure they're due for another gov't bail out.

[Old Ironsights]

[don Tomás]

Here ya go, Jay...
-- --

Tom

[Ysabel Kid]

Here ya go, Jay...
-- --

Tom

Tom -

I knew I could count on you to find the perfect smiley! I think I have those - I was sitting in an airport (again) when I typed this, and didn't have time to look!

US Airways was the airline I complained about in the original post. I flew Northwest today and they did not charge for soft drinks. Maybe a little sanity is peeking through. I wish I could fly Southwest but they just don't fly out of the airports (or into them) that I normally travel through.

Looks like I'm not the only one miffed at these guys!

[jeepnik]

Sadly the poor grammar in the "ad" above is a pretty accurate interpretation of the speach patterns and education level of most of the TSA folks at LAX. When the TSA hired after 9-11, they needed bodies. Educational requirements were very lax (pun intended). For that matter, apparently the background checks were lax as well.

I had one encounter while flying with firearms that almost defies belief. The TSA agent I encountered first, thought it was illegal to fly with properly stored firearms. His supervisor said it was, but that they weren't properly packed. He couldn't tell me what was wrong, just that it did not meet the requirements. I finally managed to get someone (they never would tell me their exact position) higher in the food chain to come down and set the record straight. Now mind you this was four years after 9-11.

I went so far as to send emails to the TSA upper managment about the encounter. They wrote back that they could find no record of the incident, and therefore doubted it occurred. Ah yes, the "government" at it's finest. Be ignorant, lie when found out, and destroy the paperwork of the incident at the first opportunity.

[piller]

My sister used to be a flight attendant for US Airways. Based on her recommendations, I will never set foot in US Airways. She claims that her scheduler would not give her good flights due to the fact that she refused to sleep with him. For a year she got the red-eye flights, and never got anywhere near home. She quit. I spoke with the scheduler once to try to find her about a family situation, and he was the rudest person I have had the displeasure of speaking with outside of the SFC's in the 101st.

[FWiedner]

I can't understand why anyone would pay to be treated worse than a criminal.

IMO, no destination is so worthwhile, and no job is so profitable that it is worth sacrificing human dignity or civil rights.

I'm kinda thinkin' that anybody who is still flying will just keep bending over, because they kinda like it.

[Ysabel Kid]

I can't understand why anyone would pay to be treated worse than a criminal.

IMO, no destination is so worthwhile, and no job is so profitable that it is worth sacrificing human dignity or civil rights.

I'm kinda thinkin' that anybody who is still flying will just keep bending over, because they kinda like it.

No, I don't like it, but I do like putting food on the table and a roof over my family's head. Sure I can do something else, accept a whopper of a pay cut, but I also think of it two ways. My ancestors dug canal ditches. Working the blister-end of a shovel 10-12 hours a day 6-7 days a week wasn't fun, easy or thrilling. They did it because it is a JOB - and I for one still believe jobs = work, not self-fulfillment. If the latter happens, more power to you, but it is work first.

Second, I have no right to complain about anything when I think of the situation our brave men and women in uniform are in. They do this to keep me free. So, I may grouse a bit, and marvel at the sheer stupidity that is flying, the airlines and the TSA, but in the end analysis, compared to most others, I have it pretty darn easy...

[FWiedner]

Everybody has to feed kids and keep 'em dry if they got 'em. A fellow does what he's gotta.

Just my opinion, but our government is fighting for corporate and political control of the world, and it's got nothing to do with yours or my "freedom'. The troops are simply the foreign-policy tool currently in use.

I have a hard time seeing strip-searches and games of 20-questions with government goons just so I can move from point A to point B as "freedom".

Going where I want, when I want, how I want, without answering to anyone I don't want to seems more like freedom to me.

[O.S.O.K.]

Well, while I don't like the flying, it is preferrable to sitting in a car for 18 hours... especially with SWA - they are pretty good still - good on-time and as mentioned, free beer for me on the trip home. But I don't like it and would rather not have to, but its part of my job and travel jobs pay the best - no doubt and with one child in college and two more on the way there.... and yes, I'd like to have the option of retiring some day.

So, I suck it up and take my shoes off and say "baahhh" and "moooo" when I go through the lines.

Fact of the matter is, that there are always things about your vocation that you don't like - very very few people love every aspect of their job or business.

I like my position quite a lot - but not the travel - mostly being away from my home/family... but when I'm feeling lonely, I just think of those in Iraq or Afganastan or any of 20 other places around the world who haven't seen their families for 6 months...

[Old Ironsights]

If I was flying regularly to regular ports of call I would have (if available) a NR CCW for each port and a handgun in a lockbox for retrieval on arrival.

And I would wear my Protest Jammies (flipflops, Sweats and the below shirt) to the airport... every time.



They will never seperate me from all my weapons though... ya just gotta be more clever than the Mall Ninjas running the machines.

[jnyork]

Being retired, I am very glad I dont have to fly to put bread on the table. I absolutely refuse to fly anywhere for any reason whatsoever, I will never set foot in another airline terminal.

I have a friend in San Diego who is a retired airline captain, he could fly anywhere he wants free of charge. He also refuses to fly.

[Old Ironsights]

Oh yeah. The TSA makes us so much safer...

I could "inspect" planes better than that. Why can't I have his $75K+ job? Oh yeah, I'm not connected to the Daley Machine...

--------------------

Aviation inspector goofs and delays 40 American Eagle flights at O'Hare
Transportation Security Administration official touched sensitive equipment, officials say
By Jon Hilkevitch | Chicago Tribune reporter
11:56 PM CDT, August 19, 2008


A blunder by a federal security officer inspecting aircraft forced American Eagle to delay 40 flights Tuesday at O'Hare International Airport while the planes were examined for possible damage, airline officials said.

The Transportation Security Administration officer was conducting routine checks to make sure that planes parked at the airport overnight were secure from tampering, according to the federal security agency and American Airlines, which owns and operates American Eagle.

But while ensuring that aircraft doors were locked properly, the inspector either stepped onto or grabbed sensitive avionics probes mounted on the fuselage of nine American Eagle planes, officials said.

"There is a sign that clearly says, 'Don't step,' " said American spokeswoman Mary Frances Fagan.

No damage was found on any aircraft, but the inspections took up to two hours for each plane, Fagan said.

The grounding of the planes caused 40 flights to be delayed for American Eagle.

The security agency will retrain its inspectors to prevent a future occurrence, TSA spokesman Elio Montenegro said.

jhilkevitch@tribune.com