Two Big American Airlines News Stories Today

[EZEtoGRU]

1. The AA pilots union have voted to accept the company's last contract offer effectively ending years of labor strife between American and it's pilots. This likely paves the way for AA to exit bankruptcy within 6 months.

 

2. USAir have made a formal offer to merge with AA. The AA pilots back such a merger. However it isn't clear how the AA management or creditors feel about a merger between the two carriers.

 

Personally, I would prefer American not merge with USAir but anything is possible at this point. http://news.yahoo.com/pilots-approve-contract-american-airlines-193918233--finance.html?.tsrc=yahoo

[gallahadesquire]

I recently went to Jamaica on USAir. The entire experience was quite pleasurable.

 

I assume that USAir would fall to AA's level of service, and not the other way around?

[EZEtoGRU]

I recently went to Jamaica on USAir. The entire experience was quite pleasurable.

 

I assume that USAir would fall to AA's level of service, and not the other way around?

 

US has kind of been the butt of jokes in the industry for many years. They were famous for trying to charge $ for getting a glass of water on-board and also for serving wine in plastic glasses in first class (in flight not pre-departure-beverage). US also have still not yet successfully merged various union groups between the East and West divisions which resulted from the merger between USAir and America West in 2005. Seven years after the merger, US Air is effectively run as two separate carriers although all the planes are painted in the same livery. In the last 10 years, USAir has attemped to merge with both United and Delta and was firmly rejected on both accounts.

 

Some flyers say that US have improved their on-board service in the last 3-5 years. Others still feel they are a bit of a joke. I have not been on them in a long time so I cannot say. I do know that US no longer offer International F service on longhaul flights (only economy and business class) whereas AA still have first class on the 777 aircraft.

 

On balance, US seems to need this merger much more than AA. Time will tell how this plays out.

[Doe Be Doe]

To my recollection I have flown AA only once - Atlanta to Dallas. It was years ago and not a pleasant experience; but it was New Years and all was crazy.

 

I flew US on Christmas Eve Eve about 7 years ago: New York to Atlanta. It was hell. We changed in DC around 3 in the afternoon only to be told that there were no pilots so the flight was cancelled and there were no more flights until after Christmas. I finally convinced them to put me on Delta but it took several hours of arguing. I swore I'd never fly them again. Well, never say never. I flew them again a few months ago because it was a last minute trip and their fare was considerably cheaper. It was one of the most enjoyable flights I've had in a long time.

[+ Charlie]

I first flew USAir back when it was Allegheny Airlines, with its headquarters in Pittsburgh. In the 70's, they had a deal which allowed one to fly to any cities within its network in a short timespan (one week?) for a very low price, so I bought the package a couple of times. Once I flew PHL-STL-ORD-PHL over four days; another time I did PHL-MSP-IND-SDF-PHL in the same timespan (I was trying out the gay bathhouses in every city). As the airline expanded, however, absorbing various other lines (Piedmont, Northeast, etc.), their service fell apart. A few years ago, their new baggage service at their PHL hub collapsed completely. I have used them rarely since then, but two months ago I flew them on a couple of old AmericaWest routes, and was surprised at how smooth the service was, better than any other airline I have flown recently.

[KMEM]

Actually Northeast was absorbed by DL. I rode on it at least once in ME. Piedmont was headquarted in Winston Salem, NC and was indeed absorbed by Allegheny to become US Air. Why am I thinking Solent Green when I write this? I once tried to ride on Mohawk which was an Allegheny commuter (imagine little Allegheny with a commuter) but they were "trying" to strike then and one never knew when the next flight would actually happen. Some of the pax on Allegheny thought the cabin attendants were PA farm gals from looking at the size of their hands and their general demeanor. Nothing negative, just an observation.

 

Those were the days. No speed limits, no TCA's nee Group B airspace and, mainly, no TSA.

 

Best regards,

KMEM

[KMEM]

Christmas Eve. One Christmas Eve I was in BAL, now BWI, trying to get home to MEM. The weather was bad all over the eastern half of the US and flights were cancelled by the dozen. My flight was cancelled. Some of us refused to go to a hotel (again, the good old days with the airline paying for the hotel) and the agent finally said all you who want to go to PIT go to this gate and see what happens. We went to the gate and to PIT. After languishing in PIT for about 4 hours the crew of our flight to MEM said we have to leave now or our duty time will expire. So, after loading one more group at the very last moment we departed for MEM about 3 AM. This last group was a bunch of HS kids who had gone to London on a senior trip. They sang carols for over an hour and cheered everyone up. We arrived at MEM about 5 AM so I did get home for Christmas one more time.

 

Best regards,

KMEM

[Guest]

Some flyers say that US have improved their on-board service in the last 3-5 years. Others still feel they are a bit of a joke. I have not been on them in a long time so I cannot say. I do know that US no longer offer International F service on longhaul flights (only economy and business class) whereas AA still have first class on the 777 aircraft.

Well, I'm a very loyal customer of US Airways'. Although I live in the SF Bay Area, I got tired of racking up hundreds of thousands of miles on United and never being able to upgrade. On USAirways, I get upgraded all of the time. In fact, I'm about to fly them first class from the East Coast back to SFO tomorrow. While they don't have three classes on their international flights, they've now converted all of their Envoy Class seats to flat beds, I believe. Earlier this year I was on a code-share flight on a United plane from Tokyo to SFO. Not only were the business class seats not flat, but half of them, including mine, faced backwards, and many didn't have direct aisle access. On USAirways' Envoy flights, not only are the seats all flat, but all have direct aisle access (1-2-1 configuration, in little "cocoons" ). The meals and service on USAirways Envoy Class are also better than I experienced in the United's business class from Narita to SFO. Although I have to usually make an extra connection when I fly USAirways, I have never regretted switching loyalty. Also, the flight attendants don't have a bad attitude I often find on United. The one negative is that trans-continental flights don't have movies (only if flying to HI, AK, Europe, Tel Aviv, or South America), but it seems that most people can play movies on their laptops or smartphones if they really want to see a movie these days.

[gallahadesquire]

My personal gripe is actually with AA. My last AA flight was DIRECT Bos - DFW - PHX [Phoenix]. They CANCELLED the outgoing flight, DFW-PHX.

 

I was travelling first class, or so I thought. It was a Y-up fare. It was also the only fare available for "first class". The next outgoing flight put me in seat 37E. I don't remember the equipment, but it was not a first-class seat. And they had already filled First Class.

 

I waited five hours until they could get me into First Class. That was a bit of a struggle - I don't know if it was an equipment problem or personnel, but that flight was an hour late. I do remember calling AA reservations to check on the flight status and they told me it was up to the Gate Clerk, and that person was clueless and refused to find out the information.

 

Like SABENA - Such A Bad Experience, Never Again, Or ALITALIA - Always Late In Takeoff, Always Late In Arrival: Some airlines shouldn't be in business.

 

The USAir to Jamaica was in first class, and the flight attendants were nice and sociable and available.

 

My two cents.

[Guest]

Like SABENA - Such A Bad Experience, Never Again, Or ALITALIA - Always Late In Takeoff, Always Late In Arrival: Some airlines shouldn't be in business.

 

My two cents.

 

?? SABENA has been out of business for well over a decade...

[EZEtoGRU]

Well, I'm a very loyal customer of US Airways'. Although I live in the SF Bay Area, I got tired of racking up hundreds of thousands of miles on United and never being able to upgrade. On USAirways, I get upgraded all of the time. In fact, I'm about to fly them first class from the East Coast back to SFO tomorrow. While they don't have three classes on their international flights, they've now converted all of their Envoy Class seats to flat beds, I believe.

 

I'm not going to try and defend United. I am currently stuck in Anchorage at the airport after UA cancelled the 5:00pm departure to Seattle. I'm hoping to get on the 12:40am departure to Seattle and then onto something into Houston on Sunday. I thought Continental were quite good before but its all gone downhill since the merger with United.

 

In my view AA is a much better carrier than United.......and always has been. AA treat their elites much better than UA do. I cannot really speak for USAir personally as its been ages since I flew on them (7-8 years). US do not enjoy a very good reputation generally but they do have their fans and some people insist the USAir of today is much better than it was 5 years ago.

 

I still hope AA remain independent and do not merge with US.......but I have no control over it so what will be will be.

[gallahadesquire]

I remember, as a student going home on the $25 "student standby" ticket for the holidays, that I got on a United flight. When they got around to serving breakfast [!], the stewardess said to me "Oh! You're on standby. You only get the cold cereal." So much for consumer loyalty.

 

for years I was dedicated to AA (BOS-ORD and v.v.). Then my interests in the country changed and I went over to Delta. No regrets!

[bluboy]

Jamaica...as a gay man? How was it?

 

I recently went to Jamaica on USAir. The entire experience was quite pleasurable.

 

I assume that USAir would fall to AA's level of service, and not the other way around?

 

I know off topic but tangentiallly raised. How was jamaica as a gay man? Where did u stay? Male companion in tow?did u sample local flavors? Very curious about jamaica. Blu

[KMEM]

Two quick "standby" stories.

 

Once when flying standby business on UA from ORD-LHR on a 777 I got on OK but when they were taking meal requests the crew person made a point of saying I would get what was left. Tacky.

 

I really enjoyed when Sir Freddie Laker "opened" the Atlantic to standby travel. The participating airlines really didn't know how to treat us so they actually treated us pretty well. But, DL in particular, when they opened Gatwick to ATL in their L1011, gave standbys business class service meaning a passenger who paid maybe 1/4th for one way of what a cattle class paid for R-T got a better seat and better food + the head set and unlimited drinks. All that was not standard at the time.

 

All my flights were one way so this saved me a lot of money + DL cut 8 hours off my travel time to MEM from England, a real blessing.

 

Best regards,

KMEM

[Lankypeters]

I remained loyal to Continental for years because their service was decent and the chance of upgrades was likely. Then they merged with United -- became United, really -- and service has declined markedly. On a recent flight from Scotland to New York in business, they ran out of meal choices by the third row. Service was perfunctory. (I had a dreadful time working on my tickets with someone from Bangladesh who was scarcely intelligible.) The flight to Scotland on coach was, pure and simple, steerage. I sat front of plane in what is deemed "coach plus." "Coach minus" is more like it.

 

I don't think there's one "good" or "reliable" airline, at least not an American line. I've heard good things about Virgin. I think it's come down to "luck of the draw" and if you happen to be on a flight when several factors converge for a comfortable time, fine.

 

How are flights on British Airways these days? They used to be terrific. Any recent experiences?

[+ deej]

All airlines have good years (eras?) and bad ones. Any information/experience that's more than five years old is probably outdated.

 

When EWR was my home airport, Continental was practically unavoidable. One weekend, on a flight home from Norfolk, three flights/rebookings in a row were cancelled due to mechanical problems and everyone sort of took it in stride because it wasn't all that unusual. One day I lucked into a flight on United and it was head-and-shoulders above Continental in all ways.

 

A few years later when my home airport was ORD it was United that was unavoidable, but they'd changed. (That was about the time some friends started telling me they wouldn't fly on anything other than Continental. Irony there, huh?) Somewhere along the way I tried American and it was vastly superior. This was around the time AA introduced their "a little more room in coach" campaign and that little more room made a world of difference! Plus, the flights tended to be on time.

 

When I was routinely flying between LAX and DEN, I was sticking with AA and never had a problem. On one flight, UA had a better departure time so I decided to try them. Big mistake. My flight was canceled and I sat in the lounge watching TWO AA flights take off for DEN before my rescheduled UA flight left. My hotel in DEN had a contract with UA for stranded passengers and crews. They had up to 150 guests every night of the year on United vouchers.

 

I hope this merger doesn't diminish AA, but mergers do tend to reduce both companies to the lowest common denominator. It wouldn't be unusual for them to struggle through it, and they're due for "adjustment" in the general ebb and flow of things.

[Lankypeters]

During the '80s, Continental was dreadful for so many reasons. Then they somehow got it together and became the airline many preferred. Now in the United lounge at Newark there's a lot of grumbling. The business lounge in Edinburgh Scotland has become as crowded and littered as the waiting rooms, out front, which are on a par with those of a bus station.

[MsGuy]

Two quick "standby" stories...

 

Best regards,

KMEM

 

And best regards to you too.

 

Welcome back, KMEM.

[jimboivyo]

I hope this merger doesn't diminish AA, but mergers do tend to reduce both companies to the lowest common denominator. It wouldn't be unusual for them to struggle through it, and they're due for "adjustment" in the general ebb and flow of things.

 

american hasn't accepted anything yet. as of now, there's no merger happening. it's all talk

[+ deej]

american hasn't accepted anything yet. as of now, there's no merger happening. it's all talk

 

Are they healthy enough (post-bankruptcy) to stave it off? I honestly haven't been following.

[jimboivyo]

Are they healthy enough (post-bankruptcy) to stave it off? I honestly haven't been following.

 

this article makes things a little more clear. http://atwonline.com/airline-finance-data/news/american-airlines-says-merger-decision-nearing-1208

 

it look like american will be the lead and us air would take the rear (if it happens)

[EZEtoGRU]

Are they healthy enough (post-bankruptcy) to stave it off? I honestly haven't been following.

 

Depends what the AA creditors group have to say.

[gallahadesquire]

... This was around the time AA introduced their "a little more room in coach" campaign and that little more room made a world of difference! Plus, the flights tended to be on time.

 

Okay, help me with the arithmetic. Let's say a plane has 36 rows. Minus 4 for first class, leaving 32 rows 3 and 3. Legroom 31 inches. If you remove three rows, you get 93 inches of legroom, distributed over 32 rows. That's almost two inches per person.

 

Now, as some who (1) doesn't fly too much, and (2) flies business / first when I do fly, I'd go back to AA in a minute if they'd left the bigger legroom. Jetblue doesn't have first class, but it does have a few rows with 38" pitch. That, by the way [as I'm sure you all know], is the pitch for "first class" on most American airlines.

[EZEtoGRU]

Okay, help me with the arithmetic. Let's say a plane has 36 rows. Minus 4 for first class, leaving 32 rows 3 and 3. Legroom 31 inches. If you remove three rows, you get 93 inches of legroom, distributed over 32 rows. That's almost two inches per person.

 

Now, as some who (1) doesn't fly too much, and (2) flies business / first when I do fly, I'd go back to AA in a minute if they'd left the bigger legroom.

 

AA eventually eliminated MRTC (more room throughout coach) but have recently announced they will re-introduce it. This time, they won't increase the legroom in all of economy class seats but rather in the first 5-10 rows of coach.....kinda like UA do.