Full Service, Low Fare

[Be Careful What You Wish For.]

...Southwest and Air Tran, both of which "underpromise" and "overdeliver".

Whole post is great. Well thought out.

 

[trvlr64]

We are in last place because the folks in Tempe have not done a very good job of managing customer expectations. They have continuously failed to match the philosophies of Southwest and Air Tran, both of which "underpromise" and "overdeliver". I will give Tempe credit that they are working toward lowering the bar, but they are meeting a great deal of resistance when they lower the bar, and that in and of itself is creating a large portion of the complaints that the DOT is logging. Once Tempe is able to find a base line to set the standards, the complaints will dissolve and new customers will find their experience to be better than they expected.

It's all psychological. There are just too many pre-LCC customers who keep traveling on US that are holding on to the legacy carrier higher expectations that cannot be met in these troubling financial times.

That's because the Sandcastle as purposely LIED since the very beginning. "Pardon Our Dust as we bring you a low cost full service airline". Remember those signs in all the airports?

Once the dust settled, or has it, LCC is not an LCC. The Sandcastle said they would take the best of HP & US and build a better airline. They haven't. They kept the name and repainted the planes but they run the airline like it is still HP. Why? Because they don't know how to run it any other way.

There was a distinct difference between the original US and HP and they didn't blend the 2 cultures and business models to create a new and unique airline.

I also don't think that Tempe will ever find a baseline set of standards. They keep changing the product too often. When you keep making changes that become negatives in the customers eyes then you'll never be able to keep your customers returning. Loyal or new.

As a "pre-LCC" customer I've found that DL is the closest to the original USAirways for me. The front line staff has been wonderful, the crews have been friendly and I'm seeing a lot of the original US in the new DL for me. It makes me miss the original US. DL is facing the same issues as US and they have exceeded my expectations. I wouldn't have flown DL when I was a US diehard customer. Now it's the opposite. It will be very difficult for me to step foot on a US plane now since I've moved on to DL.

 

[Singleflyer]

I flew US yesterday, the second time since Feb.

PVD-CLT-CHS $119.00 plus fees. This works out to about $0.13 per mile. How stupid is it to sell a walk up fare (1 hour before departure) at below cost.

My co-workers ticket to FFL on SW was $310.00 plus fees.

I was up graded to first (currently a gold)

Both the gate agents and in-flight (CLT Basaed) were great. I had a pre departure drink, new style of party cup.

The plane was clean (737-400)

Overall an uneventful flight. Great value since the fare was below cost. The product in 1st was not as good as the competition since it was plastic and not as many choice in the snack basket as before. But again I can't complain since the drunks in Tempe price this walk up fare below cost.

SO I can say this flight was full service and LOW cost.

PS the new uniforms looked nice.

 

[NCFL]

Once the dust settled, or has it, LCC is not an LCC. The Sandcastle said they would take the best of HP & US and build a better airline. They haven't. They kept the name and repainted the planes but they run the airline like it is still HP. Why? Because they don't know how to run it any other way.

Bingo -
1. They don't know how.
2. They refused to listen to anyone who tried to suggest any other way than their own.
3. They appear to have either sacked - or driven away out of sheer frustration - most of the people who had talent...perhaps afraid of having their own underperformance exposed.

As a "pre-LCC" customer I've found that DL is the closest to the original USAirways for me. The front line staff has been wonderful, the crews have been friendly and I'm seeing a lot of the original US in the new DL for me. It makes me miss the original US. DL is facing the same issues as US and they have exceeded my expectations. I wouldn't have flown DL when I was a US diehard customer. Now it's the opposite. It will be very difficult for me to step foot on a US plane now since I've moved on to DL.

As a "pre-LCC" employee, I've found that DL is the closest to the original US for me. Ditto the rest of your post.

 

[N965VJ]

<SNIP> My husband recently flew to Gatwick on USAir in Business Class.

he said the entree he chose, the panfried steak, was not fit for human consumption. He is not a picky eater but he said it was disgusting and he was not able to get past two bites.

Mmmmm, that’s good eatin’!

Just like the Cracker Barrel off Interstate exit #78.

 

[SS255]

Bingo -
1. They don't know how.
2. They refused to listen to anyone who tried to suggest any other way than their own.
3. They appear to have either sacked - or driven away out of sheer frustration - most of the people who had talent...perhaps afraid of having their own underpeformance exposed.

I think you hit it on the head.

They did not understand (nor did they make any attempt to understand) the customer base that the old US served. And all of the members of management who did left within a year or so of the merger.

Business travelers in the East Coast have very different expectation levels than PHX-based leisure travelers flying to Vegas for the weekend (like having a place to hang their winter coats, for starters).......not to mention the havoc which a Nor'Easter can wreak on the entire Eastern Seaboard.

They are free to run their airline however they want, and customers are free to not fly them if they don't like the way the airline is being run. I personally do not care for the HP business model, so after my flight next week I am moving to CO. I will either pay more to get more, or pay the same or less to get more. Either way, I win, because I get more.

 

[Bobbie]

I'm sure His Royal Highness is going to show up soon and start pointing out all the ways US Airways is making good on their promise of "full service." The thing is, it really amounts to a "full service" visit to the proctologist.

 

[DrBeth]

I will either pay more to get more, or pay the same or less to get more. Either way, I win, because I get more.

That is what Tempe doesn't get. It is not just about price/fare for loyal and frequent flyers, it is about perceived value. I have found that I get more value out of my experiences with other carriers. I guess this is why we have been shown the door by this management team.