Comments
by Bob Brandon....
I think we've all been the victims of dizzy customer
service...sitting for what seems like hours in the drivethrough, only to
find the stuff in the bag bears no resemblance whatsoever to what you ordered...or
being sentenced to voicemail hell. Press 8 to kill yourself.
We've all been treated poorly...but
I'll be willing to bet you've got nothing on the passengers of United Airlines
flight 1806 last Friday at O'Hare in Chicago. About 200 mild
mannered, unsuspecting travelers boarded the flight, scheduled to take
off for our nation's capital at 1:44 in the afternoon. Remember that
time.
Meanwhile, a line of severe
thunderstorms began to slow air traffic all along the east coast, with
hundreds of flights suffering delays. But none of them as long as
flight 1806...It finally took off, more than eight hours late, at 9:53
in the evening!
Word is that O'Hare, being
the world's busiest airport is stacked tighter than Tina Turner.
Air Traffic controllers say the only open flight path was through St. Louis,
and all the available slots were already taken by flights in the air.
For some reason, they couldn't make a single other flight wait a minute
or two so these human beings could take off.
Instead, the plane was forced
to return to the gate twice, once to refuel! and once to change crews,
since regulations prohibit crew members from being on duty that long.
But there's nothing in the rule book about subjecting poor unsuspecting
travelers to a full day of delay, without even any food on board.
The only snack available was granola bars.
Somewhere along the line,
these people ceased to have rights, and were reduced to mere pawns on someone's
political agenda. What happened to the brain power that is necessary
to operate a large airline?
If I were one of those passengers,
I'd be pissed as hell, and looking for retribution. Too bad the people
who have the power to correct this injustice are completely unreachable.
Of course you could leave a message on his voicemail. Then press
*# for delivery options, or just hang up and forget the whole thing. |
