Airlines: Cheers & Jeers

February 5, 2008

In Which I Set The Stage:

I’ve been waiting a few days to post my thoughts on the various airlines I used during my trip to Uganda and back. If I had posted this last Monday night, the tone and tenor would have been much different. Being stranded at an airport after 36 straight hours of traveling, and basically being blown off by the people who *should* be helping you does not a rational state of mind make!

On January 11, I boarded a plane in little ol’ Abilene, and hopped over to Dallas, and then on to Houston with American Airlines. Thanks to all the travel I do for work, I have achieved Elite status with AA, and while this seems insignificant now, file that away. It becomes important later.

In Which I Describe The Outward Journey:

In Houston I boarded an Emirates Airlines Boeing 777 bound for Dubai. At this point, let me just say that Emirates was the cheapest fare for flights from the US to Entebbe, beating the European carriers by anywhere from $600 to $1200. This was my primary reason for going with them. Otherwise, I don’t think it makes much sense to fly 15 hours to Dubai, and then another 8 hours to Africa, when you can go though any of the European airports (London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Brussels, etc.), and only be stuck in a small seat for 8 hours, before connecting through to Africa. To my economy-class brain, 16 total hours of flying time is much preferred over 23 or more. [Note: If you are one of the privileged few who can afford the Business or First Class service of Emirates, then this does not apply. Of course, a fold-flat seat in Business, or a private suite in First would make the extra hours worth your money…I think).

So, we arrived in Dubai roughly 25 hours after we left Houston (factoring in the time zone changes…we left Houston at 6:35pm Friday, and arrived 7:35pm Saturday), where Emirates was nice enough to put my friends up for the night, but left me to wander the insanely bright hallways and concourses until I could find some reasonable lodging. After the 13-hour layover, it was on to Entebbe, with a brief fuel stop in Addis Ababa, and the trip was mostly uneventful.

In Which I Praise Emirates’ In-Flight Entertainment:

Here I must add that Emirates’ award-winning I.C.E. system (I.nformation. C.ommunication. E.ntertainment) really came in handy on the long haul from Houston to Dubai, and back. This personal seat-back system plays an insane amount of music, television and movies, ON DEMAND. Let me reiterate: ON DEMAND. YOU get to pick when you start watching 3:10 to Yuma, and can pause it when nature calls. And then you pick right back up when you get back to your seat. What a great feature! That’s just the “E” part. The “I” part included the very cool in-flight moving map (so you know when you look down that that’s Iran or Azerbaijan or Denmark you’re looking at), as well as two external cameras. If you’ve never seen the neighborhoods of Addis Ababa surrounding the airport from 2,000 feet, at 300mph, here’s your chance! The “C” part was cool, too. For $1 (USD) you could text-message anyone on the ground, and you could pay for the use of the satellite phone system. The coolest part was the ability to IM people in other seats, provided you knew their seat number.

So that’s the good stuff.

In Which Things Get Ugly:

Here’s the meat of this post, the Jeers if you will.

Previous to this trip, I had heard such excellent stuff about this airline, that I had no worries. Should any issues arise, these guys will take care of me. After all, they are rated one of the top international airlines in the world, and customer service is a priority.

So, when we sat on the plane for over an hour at DBX, not moving, I didn’t panic. Being over an hour late to take off, and finding out that, even over the course of a 16h36m flight, the pilot could not or would not make up the difference, I didn’t get too antsy. I knew the airline would sort it out. When my connecting flight to DFW took off out of Houston, and I was sitting on a 777 at 32,000 feet somewhere over Ohio, I didn’t worry, because I knew this company would make it right.

In Which Disillusionment Sets Up Shop In My Soul:

Imagine my utter disbelief and frustration when I land in Houston, and disembark, only to be issued an “apology” over the loudspeaker, conveying Emirates hopes that the delay had not caused us any inconvenience. Inconvenience? Landing after your connection had taken off (the last connection of the day, mind you, that would make sure you got home), no…not inconvenient at all.

Still believing the airline would help me get home, I collected my bags, and cleared customs, and went to see the Emirates’ rep in the connections terminal. I explained that my flight arrived late, causing me to miss my connection, and asked them to rebook me on some other flight, so I could get home. At this point, I had been traveling since Sunday afternoon, or about 36 straight hours, including a sleepless, meandering 9 hours in the Dubai airport, because I couldn’t afford the $50/hour hotel room they offered.

The lady from Emirates looked at her computer, and while I’m sure her exact words were a little more polite, she basically said, “This is not our problem.” She directed me the other airline, the one whose connection I had missed, and wished me luck.

In Which I Issue A Technical Aside:

A technical aside: Yes. She was right. Technically, the part of my ticket to get me from Houston to Abilene was not officially an Emirates ticket. So, technically, it was not their problem. Their being late, their inability to make up the lost time in the air…that was their problem. So, while they weren’t obligated, technically, to do anything, this is where you’d think award-winning customer service would kick in. They would apologize for the inconvenience, and work with Continental airlines to get me on the flight that would get me home. Surely, they would NOT say, “This is not our problem.

But, they did. They sent me to Continental, and when I explained the situation, the Continental rep basically said the same thing: hey, we’re not the reason you missed your connection. Go back to Emirates and get them to book you on Flight XXXX which is the last flight of the day to Abilene. It will mean they need to pay roughly $150 to change the ticket, but it’s their fault you were late. Good luck.

I imagine you are picturing a vast terminal, chock full of helpful employees and no lines. You are wrong. Each of these hand-offs involved moving to the back of whatever line I needed to be in, shuffling forward at a snail’s pace, and then getting to the counter only to have to explain the situation again. And again. And again.

This time, the Emirates rep basically said, “No, really, this isn’t our problem. Just buy a new ticket for that flight, and you’ll get home fine.” I realize Emirates may be used to dealing with rich sheiks to whom $150 is nothing, but I was unwilling to go this route. Not just because of the money, but the principle of the thing. Dang it, you made me late, you eat the ticket change fee!

So, back to Continental, who essentially said the same thing: Oh, we can get you on the flight, but I need to see a major credit card and some photo ID.”

In Which Hope Floats:

By this time, I was beyond pissed off. I was beaten down. I was tired. I just wanted to go home. In my phone, I had a number for American Airlines, and thinking they were my last option, and a real long shot, I dialed it. American was supposed to be my last flight…a short hop from DFW to Abilene, so they were only tangentially involved in this whole debacle.

I got on the phone to a rep, who listened to the 13th retelling of my sad tale, and when I heard her say, “Hold on Mr. Kendall-Ball, we’re going to get you home tonight,” I thought I had misheard her. She put me on hold (during which the classical music almost lulled me to sleep), and came back, saying “Okay, head over to the Continental desk, and they should have a boarding pass ready for you.”

I think I cried.

Here I am, stranded in Houston, abandoned by the people who were supposed to help me, punch drunk on my feet from 38 hours of traveling with no sleep, and American Airlines, who was in NO WAY responsible for the missed connection (which resulted in the other missed connections), picked up the tab for me to hop on the last flight home, on another airline.

In Which I Conclude:

Now, I realize my Elite status on AA might have come in to play here, but the customer service I received from AA, especially in such stark contrast with what I had received from Emirates, amazed me. I had sort of been forced into using AA because of the whole Abilene situation, but I am such a big fan now, that they are my airline of choice for domestic travel. They have certainly impressed me. Emirates should take a leaf from their book, and take a good long look at how they handle problems like this in the future. If I fly Emirates again, it certainly won’t be for the service.

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