NO IFE on domestic A/C

[CLT-Douglas]

Maybe they figure if passengers stay loyal to US Airways they won't know other airlines are not removing IFE systems, charging for drinks, snacks and every other amenity that was once complimentary. I am glad I keep up with the airlines to know for the last 3 round trip tickets I bought in the last month, they will all be on other airlines instead of US Airways. It would be one thing if they were passing the savings on to the passengers, but with all these cuts I don't see any big difference in the fares compared to the competition who are still providing the amenities.

 

[rvolkcpa]

We (US) are not southwest, will never be southwest!!! We have a totally different model. We fly different type aircraft. We have a totally different route structure. We are a mostly hub a spoke airline. We were not fortunate to have a big fuel hedge. how can you compare southwest to US. Sorry to see you go...but hey times are tough bud, fuel is not cheap.

In the old days before Piedmont was acquired, they gave People Express a run for their money in Newark by offering the extras for about the same fare as People Express. I believe that at the time Piedmont was the second largest airline in Newark. Maybe US needs some Piedmont type thinking now about little things they could do to improve the passenger experience.

Wings 396 can probably elaborate about Piedmont's success in Newark back then.

 

[diamondcutter]

In the old days before Piedmont was acquired, they gave People Express a run for their money in Newark by offering the extras for about the same fare as People Express. I believe that at the time Piedmont was the second largest airline in Newark. Maybe US needs some Piedmont type thinking now about little things they could do to improve the passenger experience.

Wings 396 can probably elaborate about Piedmont's success in Newark back then.

That was over 20 yrs ago, and times have changed. As you know fuel is the highest its ever been we cant compare what happend that long ago to whats going on now.

 

[jimcfs]

We (US) are not southwest, will never be southwest!!! We have a totally different model. We fly different type aircraft. We have a totally different route structure. We are a mostly hub a spoke airline. We were not fortunate to have a big fuel hedge. how can you compare southwest to US. Sorry to see you go...but hey times are tough bud, fuel is not cheap.

And US has a different attitude in the model, too, which will be the ultimate undoing of US. That was the whole point of phlus2's post.

 

[SS255]

Is US's motto still "low cost, full service airline"? If so, they should probably change it. Aside from not being "low cost" in many of their markets, they are certainly no longer "full service."

 

[YVINTERN]

Is US's motto still "low cost, full service airline"? If so, they should probably change it. Aside from not being "low cost" in many of their markets, they are certainly no longer "full service."

maybe they mixed it up full cost, low service airline?

 

[Art at ISP]

Newsflash for the Kool Aid Drinkers:

NO other airline is actively removing IFE. CO is taking delivery of some new aircraft without the old IFE because they begin installing the new systems next year. I think that US' "new" IFE will be cancelled, if they even last through the year.

Interesting side note-in the American Way I read yesterday, there was an article announcing that crews and passengers were being asked what movies they want to see--with a web site (can't remember the link). So while US is pulling back, AA and others are trying to be more creative.

And to the poster who said rationalize the fares, I say "AMEN".

Survival of the fittest, folks, and US is not fit by any stretch of the imagination.

Nickel and diming won't work.....and there is a significant backlash coming.

Every airline is facing high fuel costs, but they differ on how they are handling it. US is consistent in making bad decisions that actually wind up costing more than they save.

 

[US Oringinal]

EXCELLENT POST, ART!!! That's exactly right---but do you think ANYONE in Tempe will realize it before it's too late?? They make a big deal out of giving employees "feedback venues" --but they don't listen to anything they don't want to hear--they continue making their bad decisions and putting their front-line employees on the battlefield while they sit behind their desk in Tempe or conduct another "meeting".

I wonder if Shamblin will be out on the line (this time on a real flights, not PHX-SFO-PHX) trying to "ala carte" beverages to our customers the week of August 1st. A REAL leader would be elbow to elbow with her coworkers--my guess is--she'll be "too busy" to go out on the line and fly.

Here's my challenege--Anyone who is at Tempe HQ--if you are F/A qualified, I challenge you to join the frontline employees the week of August 1st and fly some domestic long-haul flights. PUT SOME REAL ACTION BEHIND YOUR WORDS AND YOUR "DECISIONS". Find out first-hand what the effects of your decisions are like in the "real world". SS should be out there with US, trying to sell cokes and water to passengers on long-haul flights!

If any Tempe "bigwigs" read this--make it your duty to get all Supervisor and up, qualified F/A's from HQ and all bases out on the line the 2 weeks following August 1st. If you do not, you cannot blame the the F/A's for the failure of "ala carte" beverages. Managment 101--don't EVER ask an employee to do something you won't do yourself.........

We'll see what happens.....but my guess is that nothing will happen. "Ala carte" will be continue to be shoved down the throats of the employees and the customers---even if it is a miserable failure(which most of us can see it will be). One thing I know about our Management--they do NOT like to admit their mistakes, even at the cost of customer loyalty or lost business.

(The above are opinions and are not "insubordinate" in substance or motive)

 

[SS255]

I wonder if Shamblin will be out on the line (this time on a real flights, not PHX-SFO-PHX) trying to "ala carte" beverages to our customers the week of August 1st. A REAL leader would be elbow to elbow with her coworkers--my guess is--she'll be "too busy" to go out on the line and fly.

That's a great idea. I will be flying from LAX-CLT on 8/1, and since it is a Friday, and I am only Gold, my upgrade has about a 1% chance of clearing......so I'd welcome Sherri on my flight. I will buy a bottle of water from her if she will sell it to me. (Which reminds me....I had better go to the bank and get some rolls of pennies.)

I'm actually looking forward to roughing it in Y on the day that the paid beverage service goes into effect. Who needs IFE when you can be entertained by the reactions of customers when they find out that they have to pay for water? I will bring some extra FFOCUS pins with me that day to hand out to the crew.

 

[US Oringinal]

That's a great idea. I will be flying from LAX-CLT on 8/1, and since it is a Friday, and I am only Gold, my upgrade has about a 1% chance of clearing......so I'd welcome Sherri on my flight. I will buy a bottle of water from her if she will sell it to me. (Which reminds me....I had better go to the bank and get some rolls of pennies.)

I'm actually looking forward to roughing it in Y on the day that the paid beverage service goes into effect. Who needs IFE when you can be entertained by the reactions of customers when they find out that they have to pay for water? I will bring some extra FFOCUS pins with me that day to hand out to the crew.

WOULD LOVE TO SEE THAT!!! Make sure you post your experiences on here--it's bound to be quite a brouhaha.......

 

[SS255]

WOULD LOVE TO SEE THAT!!! Make sure you post your experiences on here--it's bound to be quite a brouhaha.......

You got it! I'm looking forward to being right in the thick of things on Day 1.

If any FA's on this board want to bid for this flight....I'll set aside a FFOCUS pin for you!

Fasten your seatbelts, folks....it's going to be a bumpy flight!

 

[sharktooth]

We have a totally different route structure. We are a mostly hub a spoke airline.

SWA does have hubs. Due to their increased frequencies, their hubs are much more efficient than ours.
SWA average wait time for pax at hub: 45 minutes
US average wait time for pax at hub: 90 minutes.

SWA calls them rotating hubs (I think). Also, I have watched three completely full(more than 100 pax) SWA aircraft (I counted the passengers, at gate 10 in LAX) accomplish three complete turns in less than 55 minutes, all at the same gate. Their management costs are less than US while their people are paid more, go figure.

ATA wants to whine and complain about fuel costs and seemingly want you to pay attention to that hand yet ignore the hand that comprises SWA, the fly in ATA's ointment. Fact is, ATA is composed of ponderous inefficient carriers more adept at hiding cash that actually running an airline.

 

[flybynite]

EXCELLENT POST, ART!!! That's exactly right---but do you think ANYONE in Tempe will realize it before it's too late?? They make a big deal out of giving employees "feedback venues" --but they don't listen to anything they don't want to hear--they continue making their bad decisions and putting their front-line employees on the battlefield while they sit behind their desk in Tempe or conduct another "meeting".

I wonder if Shamblin will be out on the line (this time on a real flights, not PHX-SFO-PHX) trying to "ala carte" beverages to our customers the week of August 1st. A REAL leader would be elbow to elbow with her coworkers--my guess is--she'll be "too busy" to go out on the line and fly.

Here's my challenege--Anyone who is at Tempe HQ--if you are F/A qualified, I challenge you to join the frontline employees the week of August 1st and fly some domestic long-haul flights. PUT SOME REAL ACTION BEHIND YOUR WORDS AND YOUR "DECISIONS". Find out first-hand what the effects of your decisions are like in the "real world". SS should be out there with US, trying to sell cokes and water to passengers on long-haul flights!

If any Tempe "bigwigs" read this--make it your duty to get all Supervisor and up, qualified F/A's from HQ and all bases out on the line the 2 weeks following August 1st. If you do not, you cannot blame the the F/A's for the failure of "ala carte" beverages. Managment 101--don't EVER ask an employee to do something you won't do yourself.........

We'll see what happens.....but my guess is that nothing will happen. "Ala carte" will be continue to be shoved down the throats of the employees and the customers---even if it is a miserable failure(which most of us can see it will be). One thing I know about our Management--they do NOT like to admit their mistakes, even at the cost of customer loyalty or lost business.

(The above are opinions and are not "insubordinate" in substance or motive)

Well, here it is the beyond the middle of the month and I do not have a directive on how I'm supposed to handle sales for sodas.

Not one peep from the company.

My pax are asking...what no movie??? Why???

I can only say ....HQ needs to hear from you. Let me show how to contact them..

 

[debbieb]

I earned gold status on US last year but have only flown US on 2 flights this year (the first week of January) plus 4 flights (1 trip) on award tickets. I am mostly flying Delta (status match to gold). When choosing long distance flights, I intentionally look for Delta 757's that have the individual TV's. They also have a 26 seat first class cabin and I usually get upgraded. I rarely got upgrades on US, especially on long distance, especially after they removed FC seats. Given a choice, I would have previously said I would choose US over SW on a long distance trip because I like to watch the movies & short clips. US without IFE, I would choose SW. I get free drinks, no worry about change fees, no charge on award tickets, free curbside check (vs none now on US), no baggage fees (after I lose status on US next year). Alcoholic drinks are $4 on SW. Why would I choose US for anything? Even on the few routes that they still fly non-stop from PIT, I would rather connect on others than give US any business. When I decided to leave US at the beginning of the year, I didn't think it could get much worse. Guess we've found out how much worse. Charging for soft drinks and water hits rock bottom, but I guess it could still get worse. The SW commercial that shows coin slots to open the overhead, recline the seat, pull the shade down, put the tray down, really cracked me up! I bet when Doug saw it, a light bulb went off in his head!

 

[aredeeyou22]

My pax are asking...what no movie??? Why???

Because we are trying to be more like WN, AA, and NW?