Grimy Way To Fly

[Dea Certe]

Tom's right about the accumulated grime and daily wear and tear. It doesn't get taken care of often enough. Broken seats, tray tables, taped shut overhead bins, the list goes on. We write it up as often as we see it but sometimes it's days, even weeks before it gets repaired. Why is that? Lack of employees to see it taken care of or lack of time at the gate? Or poor scheduling of the labor? That's something for management to figure out.

Again, it's a lack of management skills. The entire industry has lost its equalibrim. I don't believe our FF's have unreasonable expectations. They pay plenty and put up with a lot. If a delay is announced, they aren't the ones screaming at the top of their lungs. They're the ones sitting quietly with their laptops or PDA's making other arrangements or working. They get on the plane with carry-ons and they know how to efficiently stow them. They know what's on the "menu" and have their drink orders ready.

The FF's are more interested in rationalized fares and dependable service than a free ride.

Dea

 

[KCFlyer]

It seems to correspond with the fares going down, the trash gets worse. (And take that any way you want!) :down:

[post="264629"][/post]​

I dunno...I have a friend, who when she was younger "took care" of a persons home in the city of Mission Hillls, Kansas (99% of the population are millionaires). Among the trash she picked up from one of the teenage "little darlings" were used tampons - just tossed on the floor because "someone else" would pick it up. Don't let the price of tickets lead you to believe that only those "trash" folks are the ones who trash a plane. Indeed, many of the "well to do" have the attitude that "someone else" will pick it up.

 

[JayBrian]

Maybe another management volunteer weekend is in order.

 

[TomBascom]

Maybe another management volunteer weekend is in order.

[post="264682"][/post]​

I volunteer to burn as many miles as it takes to send any of them off on one-way golf trips while GE et al get real management into the place.

 

[CLT-Douglas]

I flew US Express over the weekend. PSA and Chautauqua and I do have to say both planes I was on were very clean. However, I was at gate 35A in DCA for almost two hours because my flight was delayed. I must have watched ten flights leave from 35A and B which you take a shuttle bus out to the planes on the tarmac. I couldn't believe the ammount of trash that was stacking up everywhere just in the time I was there. That boarding area is very small for the ammount of people using it so there is often not a lot of room or seating. After watching while I waited (I was bored) the only reason started to become clear to me. I think people are affraid they will loose their seat if they get up to throw something away, and then when they do get up for boarding they forget to throw their trash away because they rush to board all at once here. I must have thrown away 10 or 15 empty cups near me while I waited for my flight and every time I got up and came back the seat I was sitting in was taken.

That got me thinking on another front. They could just get delayed passengers to clean the planes and terminals if they wanted to. There is nothing else to do then just sitting around. Give them a discount or a upgrade for the help and all is fixed for everyone.

 

[Squonk]

You're wrong! Steve is one of the more unbiased writers covering the airlines today. He was the reporter who had the testosterone to write how SWA only has the lowest fares 26% of the time. If speaking the unvarnished truth is biased then I guess you're right.

:down:

Huettel is a typical staff reporter from the most biased news paper in the state of Florida. They spin everything they publish. I am not surprised that PineyBob puts such reverence in this paper and its reporters. It fits his MO.

 

[longing4piedmont]

red roach two this is black roach one. Package of 409 was successfully transported through security in EWR this afternoon at 17:34. Package is good to go. Alert all roaches.

 

[AtlanticBeach]

Huettel is a typical staff reporter from the most biased news paper in the state of Florida. They spin everything they publish. I am not surprised that PineyBob puts such reverence in this paper and its reporters. It fits his MO.

[post="264852"][/post]​

We agree that the St. Pete Times spins a lot on the editorial pages. But, "the most biased newspaper in Florida"? Far from it. With the Gainesville Sun on the left and the Florida Times-Union on the right, there is a great big middle ground of conflicting opinions. Mine is that the SPT is no better, no worse than the competition.

My personal dealings with Huettel have only occurred in the past year. I have found him to be reasonable and thorough. His quotes are not presented out of context. My guess is that if he has a bias, it is for US Airways to succeed. But, he has seen the dismantling of the Piedmont Shuttle, the Florida Shuttle and a very good intra-state hub in Tampa, that seemed to be profitable. For him to report on this topic is appropriate, especially given the number of US Airways jobs that used to be based at TPA.

The question for you, Squonk, and others is whether Huettel's article was accurate. So far, no one on this board has claimed that his premise is incorrect.

Since the issue of aviation publishing has been raised, my candidates for least objective writers include much of the staff of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and Scott McCartney of the WSJ (before he started ignoring US Airways). Fortunately, Susan Carey, Melanie Trottman and Janet Adamy are the other aviation writers at the Journal. They have provided even coverage and seem to be hoping for US Airways' turnaround.

 

[RowUnderDCA]

i agree with you about the st. pete times and have posted as such prior.

Also is a "grimy way to fly' a play on a airline motto... it seems familiar.

But what is the motto and to which carrier did it belong?

 

[Art at ISP]

I was on a 737-300 this morning which appeared almost clean...except when I looked at the ceiling. I don't know if it was just stains but I could swear I saw significant mold coming from the metal strip with the air vents in the ceiling center--enough that it certainly could be a health hazard if that what it is.

The discoloration ran the entire length of the cabin as far as I could see Does anyone know what if any measures are taken to kill mold or other contaminants?

 

[jimcfs]

I was on a 737-300 this morning which appeared almost clean...except when I looked at the ceiling. I don't know if it was just stains but I could swear I saw significant mold coming from the metal strip with the air vents in the ceiling center--enough that it certainly could be a health hazard if that what it is.

The discoloration ran the entire length of the cabin as far as I could see Does anyone know what if any measures are taken to kill mold or other contaminants?

[post="265062"][/post]​

Yes, Art, mold can be a health hazard. We had our building here at the university closed for over a year because of black mold... and the sad thing is we know they didn't get rid of it. It's back.

 

[AtlanticBeach]

I was on a 737-300 this morning which appeared almost clean...except when I looked at the ceiling. I don't know if it was just stains but I could swear I saw significant mold coming from the metal strip with the air vents in the ceiling center--enough that it certainly could be a health hazard if that what it is.

The discoloration ran the entire length of the cabin as far as I could see Does anyone know what if any measures are taken to kill mold or other contaminants?

[post="265062"][/post]​

As someone who developed mold induced asthma three years ago, please allow me to break in on this discussion.

Mold in A/C typically occurs when the air handler is not sealed properly and super-humidified air goes through the ductwork. Historically, airplanes are not susceptible to A/C mold due to the frequent low humidity at pressurized altitude. Personally, my only relief from symptoms prior to being diagnosed, was on airplanes.

As Jim mentioned, mold can be an extreme health hazard. I would encourage restraint and evaluation. Art, please e-mail management immediately with the flight number so this aircraft can be checked tonight.

All that being said, it is far more likely that mildew is the culprit at the interface of the ductwork and the registers. Let's hope this condition is identified and corrected as soon as possible.

 

[mga707]

Also is a "grimy way to fly' a play on a airline motto... it seems familiar.

But what is the motto and to which carrier did it belong?

"It's the only way to fly!"--Western Airlines, 1960s/70s.

 

[longing4piedmont]

"It's the only way to fly!"--Western Airlines, 1960s/70s.

[post="265142"][/post]​

I was thinking "you'll love the way we fly, and it shows" from Delta.

If the Wright brother were alive today Wilbur would have to fire Orville to reduce costs.

— Herb Kelleher, Southwest Airlines, 'USA Today,' 8 June 1994.

 

[sfb]

I was thinking "you'll love the way we fly, and it shows" from Delta.

I think the actual slogan was "We love to fly and it shows."

Maybe it's a take-off on 'Singapore Girl, you're "a great way to fly."'