A (not so) Flyer Friendly Experience
By Candy Parks - Director, Integrated Insight
I love George Gershwin’s Rhapsody In Blue. I bet he’s bluer than blue that this tune is
the hallmark theme probably best recognized as the tag associated with United
Airlines. Way back when - they wanted us
to fly the friendly skies, and now they are trying with great fervor to
convince us they are flyer-friendly. I
think they need to keep trying.
What I experienced on my recent travel was definitely not a friendly
experience. I had to travel from Orlando
to Washington to Munich to Bari, Italy in one fell swoop – two legs on United
and one leg on Lufthansa –both members of the Star Alliance. My first clue that this would not be United’s
finest moment came when I checked in at Orlando. I was told by the United agent that he was
unable to print my Lufthansa boarding pass and I would need to check in for
that flight in Munich. When I looked
confused, he explained ‘that’s not United.’ Why tout the alliance
to the public if it’s not easier or better for the customer?
Given that I knew I was facing a daunting travel day, I had
happily paid the upgrade for extra legroom on my United flights. Imagine my dismay when I found out
I was in boarding group FIVE - the very last group called to board. Even after paying for premium seating, I had
to watch four groups board ahead of me, loaded with carry-on luggage. I’m betting the majority of those folks
didn’t pay for early boarding – yet another ‘friendly’ service provided by
United – for a fee. Spoiled by JetBlue,
I expected the hundred and thirty something dollar premium I paid would include
priority boarding as well.
My flight to Bari was scheduled
with Star Alliance partner Lufthansa and there was a reasonable two hour
layover. I first tried using the kiosk to
print my remaining boarding pass, but was told it couldn’t find my travel
arrangements and I would need to go to the counter. Unfortunately, the ticket agent could not
find my reservation either, commenting, ‘Oh,
this was through United. That explains
it.’ He punched a bunch of numbers,
and then some more and finally called a supervisor. It was explained that because the tickets
originated with United, they weren’t recognized in the Lufthansa system and
they had to CALL United to sort it out.
Not check online, CALL. Perhaps
because it was 2:00 am in the U.S. and the call center was closed, or maybe the
agents were simply busy with other calls, but Lufthansa was never able to reach
United by phone or online. By contrast, while working on a ship
in Greece, my boss got a call from her
father in Pennsylvania. In Greece. On a ship.
In an elevator. But United can’t
be reached by phone by a Star Alliance partner to work out a paid ticket issue
with a flight they booked and which was about to board? Why was there a need for a call?
Why was the itinerary number issued by United not recognized in the
Lufthansa system if they are part of a Star Alliance? And if they know their numbers differ, why
don’t they have a fast and efficient way to handle this – especially in
situations involving international travel on a connecting flight they scheduled?
Lufthansa simply ‘fixed the situation’ and
issued me a boarding pass so I could make it through security in time to make my
flight, but I had to hussle. My Lufthansa experience was ‘flyer friendly." Lufthansa is a STAR in my book. For all I know, Lufthansa was at fault, but by
that point I was more than happy to blame United. In my mind, I was United’s customer – they
booked the flight. The fact that United,
in my experience, dropped the ball not once but twice was all the evidence I
needed that they were falling far short of flyer-friendly. I can only laugh when I see their
commercials. Flyer-friendly? Heck, even when you pay a bunch of fees, it’s
a crap shoot as to whether or not you will get good service. So, I say ‘flyer-friendly my foot.’ 
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