Can anyone explain why we went to the age of 14 for UM

[MDMUS1]

This has been one of the more thoughtful and interesting discussions on this board.

I suspect that with the 40/75 fee for a U/M that it has been a profit center for U - perhaps a small one but if only 1/50 or 1/100 U/M's actually need an overnight(I'm guessing, but that's probably the range), and if only part of what SAR's do is watch U/M's overall it seems as if it would be profitable, of course not during a bad weather week - but year round. I'm almost certain that if parents knew that thier child would be put up for the night and accompanied by an adult that more parents would pay this fee. I also think that it would then be even more profitable as more would pay but the 1/50 or 1/100 ratio would still hold.

Now having said that, I'm also intrigued by the concept of marketing running with a theme of the family friendly airline - or something like that - actually selling the idea of how U considers people with special needs as part of thier family, etc. Think of the great commercials that could be put together on the topic.

The folks who have said that air travel has become more and more intimidating and scary at worst, and more unpredictable and with a higher hassle factor at best are absolutely right. So if the lower fares and other traditional marketing draws have not worked well - and who can argue that, why not go with a theme of we care - we're all family - and we will do our part to make this experience better.

This would be a real challege, and for some a real paradigm change, but what a great initiative. What a great idea it would be to put together a working group of line employees, customers and management and task them with - "Come up with a list of ideas on how we could make flying on U a more customer friendly experience." I'm not talking about just give me more for less and I'll be happy - I'm talking about thinking outside the traditional box - keeping costs and staffing issues in mind - but also trying to be creative. There are some very successful companies out their in other competitive industries who have achieved this level of service in their customers eyes. Think of IBM and Lexus as two examples. They are perceived as quality companies who care about their customers AND both have been profitable, so you can do it without giving away the farm. How refreshing it would be to have a group thinking outside the box, and I'll have to throw in -empowered/commissioned by upper management. So many people - employees and customers are down on the whole state of air travel affairs - lets have someone focus on the up side. Convince people like my mom who is 75, that if she chooses U, her flying experience will be a positive one, even if the unexpected occurs and you will have thousands of new customers choosing U because they care. A ton of what would make this work would be communication, I can see that U is doing a lot of things now that people don't know about but that would fit very nicely into this theme.

Sorry for the long reply - but this concept just really has me excited - and I'm just one lowly customer.

I do hope that someone from CCY has followed some of this thread and that they show the initiative to follow-up on some of the good suggestions that posters have offered.

And please - resist the temptation to reply with negative comments like - it will never happen, etc, etc. Nothing good ever happens if people like each of you don't try to make it happen and being negative never makes a bad situation better. Thanks for listening -

 

[tadjr]

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On 8/8/2003 12:27:17 PM LavMan wrote:


Mark, US does pay for skycaps, they have a contract with their employers, for example in CLT US pays ITS for the skycap service.


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Yeah, we pay for skycaps, and they get about $2 an hour plus tips in TPA. No other bennies. A little bit of a cost advantage over paying a SAR or an agent salary and benefits...but, you also get what you pay for at times...
​

 

[MarkMyWords]

MDMUS -
I think that is a great idea. Do a commercial showing video glimpses of a child traveling alone. A shot of them checking in and getting their paperwork. A shot of them pre-boarding the aircraft with a smiling agent. A shot of the flight attendant helping them to their seat and helping to buckle them in and get them settled. A shot of the SAR meeting them at the connecting point. A shot of the agent walking the child to the boarding area where an anxious family member awaits their arrival. Then the scene fades to the US Airways logo and a slogan comes up that says.....At US Airways, we treat U like you are part of our family.......
Run a commercial like that before the big summer travel season for UM's, do a similar scenario with perhaps an elderly couple that are going to Florida for the winter.
But first, we have to get someone to spend the money on advertising.

 

[JS]

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On 8/7/2003 754 PM AtlanticBeach wrote:

Some impressive ideas throughout this thread. A recap, in case someone from CCY is paying attention.

1. UMs and WC/assistance adults should not be on the last flight of the day.
2. Originating location may be given authority to deny boarding in case of severe irreg ops. (Delays greater than 2 or 3 hours?)
3. UMs over a certain age must have in their possession one or more of the following; cell phone, phone card, credit card.
4. UMs guardians must provide active emergency phone numbers.
5. Different rules for non-stop vs. connections.

I'm a bit hazy on the age rule. My daughter was a US3 and CO Silver by age 14. She figured out a re-route for her school group going to FCO when 20 of them got stuck due to snow at their connection. Should she have been a UM?

Anything else that we're missing?

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Good grief! Deny boarding and require cell phones? Do you want people to choose US Airways or not?

 

[justanadd]

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On 8/8/2003 9:00:03 AM PITbull wrote:

I don't believe parents would refuse to pay for hotel accomodations if the agent is on the phone and telling the parent how to make the arrangements with the hotel. $45 or 75 doesn't pay for diddly squat, you know it and I know it. So why take it. All we need is policies in place on how to handle these situations and be consistant. Period.

I will never look to see if someone paid a fee or not. That's bull xxxx that its like an insurance policy. Its a way to nickle and dime the customer. ----------------​

Would these be the same parents that squak about paying the unaccompanied fee? BTW in our company e-mail today NWA said it made $6 million in 2002 in unacompanied minor fees. Thats alot of nickels and dimes!

 

[TomBascom]

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On 8/8/2003 11:17:59 PM justanadd wrote:
... BTW in our company e-mail today NWA said it made $6 million in 2002 in unacompanied minor fees. Thats alot of nickels and dimes!
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It's a pittance compared to the money they lost in 2002. And even tinier as a percentage of cash flow.

So they collected $6M -- what did that cost them in direct expenses to collect? What did it cost in terms of customer satisfaction? How many additional customers would have used NWA if they were not charging this fee?

 

[PITbull]

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On 8/9/2003 803 AM TomBascom wrote:

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On 8/8/2003 11:17:59 PM justanadd wrote:
... BTW in our company e-mail today NWA said it made $6 million in 2002 in unacompanied minor fees. Thats alot of nickels and dimes!
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It's a pittance compared to the money they lost in 2002. And even tinier as a percentage of cash flow.

So they collected $6M -- what did that cost them in direct expenses to collect? What did it cost in terms of customer satisfaction? How many additional customers would have used NWA if they were not charging this fee?

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Tom,

My point exactly.

 

[justanadd]

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On 8/9/2003 803 AM TomBascom wrote:​

 

[ual06]

Just a little story about a UM on one of my flights. Out of a smaller Texas city to DEN. The door closed on time. The ramp people called "Ready to push." But I sensed something going on in the cabin. The cockpit door was still open. I leaned over and looked down the isle. There was a little girl, about 8 yrs. old, standing in the center of the isle, looking at the forward entrance, with alligator tears flowing down her cheeks. The First Flight Attendant was leaning over her. She had forgot her "Best Friend" - a stuffed animal - in the boarding
area. The jetway was being parked as I motioned for the jetway to return. The jetway did return. The entrance door opened for about a second and closed again. The First F/A reported that she had been told that if the UM was to get her "Best Friend", she would have to be left behind. I again motioned for the jetway to be returned. The agent on the jetway pointed to her wristwatch and waved "Go, go, go." I opened my sliding side window. Laid my crossed arms on the windowsill. Lowered my chin to my crossed arms for a few seconds while stareing at the agent on the jetway, and then again motioned for the jetway to be brought back. The jetway did come back. This time the UM was lead inside to attempt to get her "Best Friend". "Best Friend" was not found. The really sad part about it all was that the UM had been visiting her Dad and his new girlfriend who could not even remain in the boarding area until the plane had pushed. (This was long before restrictions on ticketed passengers only beyond security check points was brought on by 9/11.) Bottom line is that 99.99% of all airline employees in this country will never forsake a young child traveling alone. Their parents also have responsibilities. The flight arrived on time. Never heard a thing about a crew departure delay.