The State Of Things At Us Airways

[longing4piedmont]

Are you kidding me!? I would freak out if I were a passenger. This is unacceptable! This entire management has no clue the *$%^#& they are doing. They must go.....NOW. I hear the calls for a new leadership getting louder and louder everyday. This just get worse and worse. These people are out of their element.

Please tell me how this is managements fault. I guess someone from CCY boarded the plane and took the panel out. :angry:

Come on folks get real. I don't know much about who services the planes, but some one left this panel off and it was an employee. How many other employees saw this before it was boarded by the passengers, or even before it was pulled to the gate. Why didn't the mechanics fix this? Somebody is playing games here an it isn't CCY.

Why hasn't there been a single question of how this plane arrived at a gate in this shape?

Keep this up and you will not have Dave or CCY to worry about anymore. Your only worry will be how long you can survive the umemployment line.

 

[Teflon]

It is management's fault for not having another panel in stock to replace the missing panel. Management makes those decisions to purchase, not the hourly workers.

 

[tadjr]

Customers must clear security AGAIN since they've had access to their checked luggage while clearing customs. If they didnt have to do this, they could stash something in their checked bags and then use it on the domestic portion of the flight. I do agree though that there needs to be a bigger screening area at A in PHL, but that needs to be addressed with the airport and not just US. I've just gone down to B in the past to avoid the long lines. Only problem is, you have to go outside to do this. If they could add an inside walkway down to B in front of the terminal to spread out the screening load, it would help.
Why are the crews using napkins to screen off the cabins? This is tackier than not having a curtain in the first place. I thought the curtains were a new security issue. Is this not the case?
I agree that the headsets (Domestic and INTL) for $5 are a joke. I do like the fact that you can now use your own or resue ones from previous flights. I just wish that domestically we offered more flights with video/audio programming. Even if we have to add comercials to get sponsorship to reduce our costs to offer it, I'd much rather listen/watch something (and sit thru a commercial) than not have anything at all.

I just had two international flights in the past month and can say that it has changed. However, I would note that some of this has to do with the crew staffing the flight. The most recent trip over was outstanding in Envoy and the crew was CHEERFUL and ATTENTIVE and that made all the difference to cover some of the things that I know are lacking. We had meal issues on several flights leaving Europe (SNN and LGW, not enough for nonrevs so we got a makeshift setup of this and that) but it was handled nicely. I know we're all heartbroken about what the company has given us to work with on a daily basis and the direction our service appears to have gone, but those of us on the front line have to remember that even if we are lacking in material things to enhance the service, it is still US, the front line employees, that must continue to go above and beyond to keep our passengers happy if possible. We can apologize for the cuts and lack of material things if asked about something and give consumer affairs address (they have those little cards in the magazine now so use them!) but dont take it personally. Give the people the correct avenue to vent their frustrations about the lack of service and make it easy for them to do so. Maybe eventually someone will catch on.

 

[airlineorphan]

Perhaps the plan is to go for a Retro "convertible-top" look?

-Airlineorphan

 

[longing4piedmont]

It is management's fault for not having another panel in stock to replace the missing panel. Management makes those decisions to purchase, not the hourly workers.

Sorry, but that is not going to fly here, unless you personally know that to be the case.

I'm guessing that it not the case.

 

[tadjr]

It is management's fault for not having another panel in stock to replace the missing panel. Management makes those decisions to purchase, not the hourly workers.

I guess without knowing exactly what happened with the panel we'll never know "who's fault it is". Was the original one broken or just forgot to be replaced? Is this something that has to be replaced often or is it not economically feasible to have an extra one somewhere if they only have problems once every few years? As long as it isnt a safety issue, is it better to run the flight and apologize for the missing (broken?) panel and let everyone know that the other option was to cancel so it didnt "look bad when boarding?" I think most passengers would rather travel as long as it isnt a safety issue. If we want to discuss not flying for "cosmetic" reasons, then a lot of the planes would be grounded from the dirty look they have. Has anyone thought about changing the colors of the wallpaper in the lavs? If we arent going to keep them clean, at least get rid of the ecru colored paper (and on the bulkheads of some of the planes).
Management has made lots of mistakes, and they may be responsible for this too, but I am sick of hearing how EVERYTHING is their fault. We as employees need to start taking action on our own and make sure they ARE held accountable for the things that are their fault and that WE (and your fellow employees) are held accountable for things that are our fault.

 

[usacrew3]

In Europe when you have a connecting flight you proceed to your connecting flight once you have gone through immigration. Why is it that in Philadelphia once you have cleared customs you are forced to stand in an oven ( the glass walkway to get to the A concourse) for over an hour just to get to your connecting flight which has left by the time you get to the gate - sweating!
Please remember that Europeans love to talk about teir trip to America and our name is coming up constantly!

 

[Phantom Fixer]

Sorry, but that is not going to fly here, unless you personally know that to be the case.

I'm guessing that it not the case.

If that's your guess? Guess again !!!

U has a staggering backlog of items that are not being processed for purchase or repair.

If you had access to Merlin...and ran a check on rotable and consumable parts that are either pending outside (vendor) repair orders or purchase orders in general , you would be simply flabergasted.

Materials (Purchasing) has been so hamstrung by management since Dave arrived...it's amazing that we don't have more Acft missing cosmetics than we do.


....and to answer your next question , Yes I have direct knowledge of what I'm speaking about.


Here's a small example. Acft 705 has an MEL on a passenger seat power port. We tried to get the MEL cleared on an RON in DCA last week. Sadly the only 3 spare sockets we owned were shipped to Mobile Ala. as part of the Illegal farm-out inventory.

We had purchase orders filed from both CLT and PIT for added inventory...but most were cancelled. We still have a 90 day lead time on these items.

So somewhere along the line ,somebody is going to purchase that seat...and he/she just might want to use their laptop or other electronic device and won't be able too. Small example....but an example none the less. Volums could be written on the subject...but you'd still defend CCY no matter what.

 

[tadjr]

In Europe when you have a connecting flight you proceed to your connecting flight once you have gone through immigration. Why is it that in Philadelphia once you have cleared customs you are forced to stand in an oven ( the glass walkway to get to the A concourse) for over an hour just to get to your connecting flight which has left by the time you get to the gate - sweating!
Please remember that Europeans love to talk about teir trip to America and our name is coming up constantly!

Because in most European cities you clear customs at the end of the trip and do not have access to your checked baggage upon landing unless you are only going to the city you are arriving at. You go to the connecting desk and on to the next flight.
Everyone coming into the US must clear customs (get their checked bags) at the first airport of entry. Not like it is done in most European cities. This is the same no matter what airline you fly into the US on, even BA,LH, etc have passengers do this before they continue to their connecting flight upon arriving in the US. Its because we do not staff customs agents at ALL airports in the US, only those with Intl arriving flights.
Once again though I will agree that there is definite lack of screening facilities in PHL to handle all of the arriving European flights at the same time and this isnt just a US issue, but a PHL airport issue. Maybe someone in PHL news needs to get a story going on why the "new" international terminal was so poorly designed to handle all of the arriving International customers and rescreening? Anyone know someone with media connections in PHL?
In the meantime maybe someone in PHL management can come up with a plan to actually direct customers at the back of the A security line to go to B or C and rescreen?

 

[longing4piedmont]

Sorry, but that is not going to fly here, unless you personally know that to be the case.

I'm guessing that it not the case.

If that's your guess? Guess again !!!

U has a staggering backlog of items that are not being processed for purchase or repair.
....and to answer your next question , Yes I have direct knowledge of what I'm speaking about.

I'm sure you do but I am speaking about this specific case. This flight left PHL and returned to PHL. Teflon is based in PIT I believe.

So again, unless you have specific information on this flight and these pictures, I will stand by my statement that everything is not CCY's fault, and I still guessing that this one wasn't either. Care to prove me wrong?

For the record, US is my airline of choice. I thnk the front line employees (the only ones I have ever meet) are the best in the business and the main reason US continues to get the 4-6 segments a week and an average of $1000 bucks a week in revenue.

But for the record, the constant refusal to accept that there is anyone to blame other than Dave for the current situtation is just as wrong. Had I been on this flight and the cabin looked like this, you could kiss my $50,000 plus in revenue good bye for good. Who's fault would that have been? Dave's? I don't think so.

 

[cavalier]

This was the 1r door which we were told was still operational!

The trim panel is missing and it means NOTHING except cosmetics and worry to people that don't understand how they are built. Trim panels do absolutely nothing for the integrity of the A/C, they could all be missing in the entire cabin without any harm whatsoever. It’s a zero issue on safety and a big issue for people who look at aesthetics for acceptability.

 

[wench]

The media would have a field day with this>>>>>

PUTCCY ON THE SPOT and call them on the carpet!

 

[Phantom Fixer]

Without seeing the AFML entries...it's hard to say why this took place?

However...Dave is the leader of this company. If we fail to have the necessary stuff on hand to fix something..which we do more often than you would care to imagine , Yes it's ultimately Dave's fault. A leader by nature can deligate authority...but not responsibility.

To give you a brief overview of the decline of things I will illustrate with this as another example.

In 2001 we had over 400 Acft. Robbed parts from out of service aircraft in heavy maintenance ranged in the area of 3200 times for that calender year.

In 2003...We have 279 Acft on the property...yet robs have crested the 4000 mark with 2.3 months remaining in this calender year.

I gues it doesn't take a brain surgeon to figure out that the purse strings are being yanked a bit to taught when you compare the figures year over year.

Then we have the reverse end of the spectrum. Wasted Effort. When a part is robbed , that takes man hours to perform said task...then it has to be re-installed on the doaner Acft. Somebody needs to figure it out...time is money...and we are wasting man power and it's labor costs by not keeping our inventory at respectable levels. Yes , this is ultimately Dave's fault. The upper levels see this report on a daily basis..yet refuse to take corrective action. This is certainly not the fault of the laboring class. The so called leaders set the tone of everything.

 

[USAirBoyA330]

And you think the average passenger gives two flips about it being just cosmetic? They don't know that and why should we even have to explain it? Unacceptable....PERIOD. Looks like S*#*!.

 

[ExUAW]

This is what the forward galley looked like on my recent trip from Munich. You should have seen the look on the passengers faces as they boarded. Is this the new minimalistic look at US Airways?

I am embarrassed for the first time to be an employee of this airline. To fly an aircraft looking like that for any reason is abominal. Can you imagine what a passenger thinks about such a thing. If we let them see something like this what might we be hiding from sight? Perhaps the panel is in HMV 425001 (Mobile). How could I ever say "Fly the Flag" again? We're buying them from Europe and contracting with a Singapore company to fix 'em! Fly which flag I ask?