Kinglobjaw's Blog

Posts Tagged ‘PHL’

Is Delta:

a) D+?  b) Disgusting? c) Delayed? d) Dumpy? e) ALL OF THE ABOVE?

How about F- All of the above and more?

This past weekend I was practically forced to fly Delta Airlines. It’s a city that only offers Delta service. I won’t complain, I was able to book the ticket just 8 hours prior to the actual flight. Throughout my travel “career”, I have never bought a ticket this close to departure, so the experience was interesting, a little chaotic, but I was very enthusiastic. At the end of the day, flying is flying and techinally, I should tell myself that I am excited regardless of the airline, right? Wrong! I will keep reminding you readers, the airline is key to flying experince. Flying is more with a certain airline!

Friday morning started out with the usual. Go to the airport, print boarding passes at the kiosk and clear security. The Grand Forks airport is tiny, so it’s foolish to arrive more then 15 minutes prior to boarding if you are flying without bags. Interestingly enough, Delta offers Breezeway boarding, which is the equivalent of a United red boarding carpet for elite members. Not that many elites on the 5:10AM Pinnacle CRJ-200. A few minutes later, mechanical! Off the plane, rebook myself on Delta.com website since the Delta reservation number is temporarily disconnected. Next attempt at flying: a DC-9 to Minneapolis. Flight full, very full. Sold out full. Last row on the DC-9. I’ve never been on a DC-9, but I know Northwest has 3 versions- this was the 2 flight attedant version of the DC-9. Missed my connection to O’Hare. Minneapolis airport? Nice, very nice. Except- not a single  Delta Red Coat all the way from C to G. For those who ask what is Delta Red Coat? It’s one of Delta’s iniatives at better customer service. It’s a portable gate agent. He or she can rebook you, print boarding passes and vouchers. Still, as nice as it sounds, it’s absolutely irritating to walk throughout the aiport and not be able to find a single one.

 The only thing in red was a Delta Amex credit card hawker who told me Delta does not offer special services counters. I think to myself- “and people actually complain about US Airways in Philly”?! What I do like about Delta is their computer rebook system. You scan your boarding pass at this kiosk type device and it lists the flights you have been rebooked on. Of course, I managed to learn about one of these machines, because the gate agent would not assist me until he saw me play around with the machine for a “decent’ amount of time. Made it to Chicago about 5 hours late.

Return was interesting. Chicago to Minny was an A319. I got exit row and ”flew into” FlyerTalker td_in_training. He was one of the nicest FlyerTalkers I’ve met so far. Delta actually did good on this flight. Aside from it being over an hour late, coach cabin was provided a full beverage service and even tiny bags of peanuts. I do miss peanuts on US Airways flights. I had enought time to make the connection back to Grand Forks, ND, although G to C is a bit of a schlepp, but the people movers are a nice touch. The Grand Forks flight didn’t even beging boarding, so I was thrilled about the prospect of not missing class the next morning. Had myself an exit row on this CRJ-200. Only about 60% full. Quick taxi to de-icing pad and then something unexpected,  yet something probably expected from Delta. While rolling down the runway, at about 40-50 knots, the plane comes halting to a complete stop and exists the runway utilizing the closest taxiway. Apparently, a warning light lit up in the cockpit indicated a problem with the apu/engine generator. Taxi back to gate, but not let off the plane, the mechanics end up fixing the problem. A few more minutes of paperwork and we’re on our way. The flight attendant, Athena was excellent. While in the air, she provided a full service on this rather short flight and even comped alcoholic beverages. I just had water. No ice, no lime.

Overall, I found Delta very poor, and I’m excited to say I’m only stuck with them for a few more months. I’m in the process of matching my US status to Delta, which should make me Delta Gold Medallion, so we’ll see if my experiences improve for the few remaining months. Flight attendants are much, much better at US Airways. I cannot wait to fly with US Airways again next month. Only have to deal with Delta on Grand Forks to Denver via Minneapolis!

Three positives about the trip: 1) FlyerTalker 2) F/A Athena on Minny to Grand Forks 3) Delta’s rebooking machines are pretty cool

Proudly flying with US,

-Kinglobjaw

I was able to hold my US Airways flights for my trip to Phoenix & Los Angeles. Those are the “positioning” flights for my African journey in July! I’ve decided to stop in Phoenix for a few days to enjoy the 120+ F temps in Scottsdale. I have to say, the outbound is a little bland in terms of creativity.

I’m on the 5:15AM nonstop from Chicago to Phoenix. It’s a very convenient flight and gives you the whole day in Phoenix, but it’s just unbearable. I have to get to Prescott, AZ by 10AM as I have an appointment there, but I detest that morning flight! The good thing- upgrades, they’re so easy on that flight!

A few days in Phoenix, then on to L.A. Again, another boring nonstop flight. Still I shouldn’t complain- there’s always Southwest to complain about. I’m taking the nonstop flight, because it’s the responsible thing to do. I really can’t afford to miss my Frankfurt connection on Lufthansa.

Saving the best for last… Return is interesting. I was able to find a ‘U’ fare through a very odd connecting city on my way from L.A. back to Chicago- Raleigh-Durham! Can you believe it? I’m flying Los Angeles-Phoenix-Raleigh/Durham-Charlotte-Chicago! Triple connect! The first two return legs are West flights, followed by two mainline East flights. I haven’t been to the Raleigh airport yet, but fortunately I hear there is a nice club there. Better check it out now before US Airways switches terminals and and finds itself Clubless. My other option is to fly L.A-Phoenix-Washington-Philly to Chicago, but mixing DC and Philly in one day is too much to handle- especially on a Republic E-170 with summer weather delays.

I have to ticket this over the phone as I’m using an old US Airways Air Check Plus (E-TUV) voucher, but a recent US Airways memo now waives fees for all voucher related ticketing both over the phone and the ticket office locations. By ticket office I mean airport counters and the Company Store ticketing location at the US Airways Headquarters in Tempe, AZ.

Have a nice clicK life,

-Mark

Beginning this week, US Airways and Qatar Airways will begin codesharing on certain flights. The respective “Airways’ will only codeshare on international services between Europe and their local gateways.

For details, please visit http://airlineroute.blogspot.com/2009/05/us-airwaysqatar-codeshare-begins-this.html.

It’s a shame they are not codesharing beyond Philly and Doha. I would like to see a US code on a Doha-Maldives flight and a QR code on a Chicago-Philly flight!

Have a nice clicK life,

-Mark

Delta’s 4X a day Philly to Boston service ends on August 18, 2009 and personally I believe it was inevitable from the get go! Funny thing is, even AirTran held onto the route for a longer period of time than “Premier Global Airline”. Haha- I just had to say that!

With AirFrance soon putting the “cork on the wine bottle” on the Philly to Paris route, Delta takes over with a 757. I don’t see that lasting either…

About time Delta rolls back to their domestic ops and moves back to the domestic terminal at Philly. Enough trying to “Premier Global Airline” in Philly, Delta! Philly already has US Airways.

Have a nice clicK life,

-Mark

At approximately 7:50PM local Philadelphia time, a US Airways Boeing 757 should begin boarding. The flight? A nonstop service to Oslo, Norway. US Airways press release here.
As with all the other US Airways transatlanic B757 services, there are 12 Envoy seats upfront and 164 in the back. Duration of the flight is approximately 8:00 hours and Great Circle Mapper tells us all it’s 3776 miles.

Philly to Oslo, Norway- 3776 miles, 8 hours in-flight on a US Airways B757

This is the third of four new transatlantic services US Airways launched since April:

• Charlotte, NC to Paris commenced April 21, 2009
• Philadelphia to Birmingham, UK commenced May 12, 2009
• Philadelphia to Oslo, Norway begins this evening

That leaves us Philadelphia to Tel Aviv which commences on July 2, 2009.

One last interesting tidbit. The flight (US788)  from Philly to Oslo is the continuation of the inbound flight from Ft. Lauderdale. That segment is operated with a B734.

Have a nice clicK life,

-Mark

As of right now, US Airways flight US726 has just under two hours left until it arrives in Birmingham. Water salute on arrival? Maybe!

Anyway, the flight which is a seasonal service operated by an ETOPS 757 seems to have to gone out with two empty Envoy seats and a rather light load in coach.

The flight is operated five times per week (doesn’t operate outbound on Mondays and Wednesday, thus no returns on Tuesdays & Thursdays). We all know what the means, right? It means tonight’s crew gets an extra night in Birmingham!

Personally, Birmingham, UK sounds interesting as it might be getting some heavy “action” in the upcoming months with an A380 service planned to/from the Middle East and a Greek airline possibly starting 747 service into the airport. When it comes to North American nonstop services, the only other airline- Continental, flies year round from Newark.

Hope US does well on the route.

Have a nice clicK life,

-Mark

If you remember posts from my blog from over a year ago regarding Hawaiian airlines, you’ll know that I was generally happy with them. Friendly service with smile? Check! Miles earned with US Airways Dividend Miles program? Check! No hassle baggage policies + interlining (passing of bags between carriers)? Check!

I don’t know if it is because Aloha Airlines no longer flies, or there is growing hostility toward Go! airline, but Hawaiian Airlines has taken a turn for the worse. And it has nothing to do with closed counters to which customers are still directed to, poor signage that to forces you to change lines three times or agents that won’t check you in, becuase you’re not flying First Class all the way.

When we were checking in with Hawaiian for the Honolulu to Chicago via Lihue, Phoenix and Philadelphia (HNL-LIH-PHX-PHL-ORD) portion of the trip, we were fully aware of baggage fees. It was explained to us from the beginning- since we were flying interisland on Hawaiian, we were only responsible for the 2nd bag fees.  Immediately after arriving, the “kind” lady barked at me saying I have to pay for each and every bag I am checking. “Doesn’t matter what reservations or US Airways told you, you have to pay for all the bags you check. I simply don’t care that it’s on US Airways stock or their rules. You’re on Hawaiian Airlines and we decided what we do with you!” Here’s the juicy part. A supervisor and a second agent sided with me. They told me I would only have to pay the bag fee for the second bag since I’m flying US Airways back to the mainland. A few minutes later as the supervisor’s shift ended (or maybe he just took a break), the original agent told me I would still have to pay up since she couldn’t get in touch with the supervisor and that the supervisor didn’t go into the record. She also told me the second agent that sided with me was not a supervisor and she couldn’t listen to him. Funny she said so. Isn’t she just a regular agent? So why can she make rules, but the, the second agent can’t? I keep telling her I want to talk to the supervisor in front of her. She says he’s gone, puts her hand in the air covering the area face and direct vision at her and storms of for five minutes.

After about five minutes, she returns in a slightly better mood and says she has a special deal for me. I thought, what, a bribe? She says she’ll only charge for the second bag as the rules state, but she will only tag it to Lihue where I have to leave security during my connection, pick up all bags and re-check with US Airways. Ha! This is after I told her that my Mom lost her only photo ID and that she would need about 30-40 minutes of additional screening time. In the end we had to pay the $55 dollars since there’s no arguing with a lady which probably finished drinking some acid. She was pure spite! Of course, while gathering information about the supervisor, second agent and her, all I got was first name. No last name or initial or badge number. Agent should have been fired on the spot.

Erase the friendly service with a smile and the no hassle baggage policies on the spot. Also erase the automatic miles postings. I had to contact a USAirways.com live chat agent in order to get the miles posted. I am going to write a complaint letter to Hawaiian Airlines, but I’m also going to try and question the charges with the credit card since techinically “I was charged for a service I did not use/request”. We’ll see where that takes me.

There is good news however which is what the second half of this post is dedicated to. While “arguing” with the agent, I noticed a new airline  nearby with a small counter- Mokulele Airlines. I did some research after I returned from my trip and I’m thinking if they do well, they could be the next Aloha Airlines. Mokulele Airlines has their own website. I also emailed them with a few questions and here’s what I can tell you so far without flying with them.

• First Class- 2 bags free of charge on each flight, Coach Class- first bag free on all fares, second bag $17
• Fleet of 3 Embraer 170’s and Cessna Grand Caravans 208 B’s
• Complimentary juice/water in coach, alcohol/soft drinks/juice/water in First Class
• Working on a in-flight snack program for sale
• Operate two lounges (one in Honolulu, the other in Kona)- annual membership costs $79.95 + tax
• Each flight will earn you 500 Alaska Airlines miles
• No additional charges for passing bags two two interline carriers, Alaska Airlines and Continental Airlines (more to be added in the future)

What’s neat is that with only three EMB-170’s they still offer a generous amount of flights between the different islands. The Cessna’s add to the experience by offering service to smaller destination, and for aviation enthusiasts, a nice “ride”.

I am seriously considering switching to Mokulele Airlines for all my future inter-island travel. I’ll likely miss out on my 500 miles, but I’ll be able to see which “pineapple” tastes better! Cause we’re not comparing apples to oranges here.

Have a nice clicK life,

-Mark

For those who haven’t heard yet, US Airways was one of two airlines chosen for the new 2009 Q2 Brazil air services. That means, US’ service from PHL via CLT to GIG will commence in October 2009! Nice!

US is planning to use a 767 for this service, however there is a possibility of an upgrade to the A332 if all goes well and profitable.

Of all the carriers flying to GIG, I think Delta and United should fear the most. US Airways’ proximity of the CLT hub will most likely affect Delta’s ATL-GIG. United’s route from IAD will probably loose some passengers who will prefer to fly from DCA and connect through CLT instead of going out all the way to IAD. Fact of the matter is, DCA is so much more convenient than IAD and everyone knows it!

Again congrats and best of luck to US Airways on the route. May it do well an open up the possibility of new South American routes!

If you’d like to know what I think about US Airways opening an Envoy lounge in CLT, look here: http://www.usaviation.com/forums/index.php?s=&showtopic=45319&view=findpost&p=675396

Have a nice clicK life,

-Mark

This is just in. I might be going to HAJ for 3 nights towards the end of March 2009 to see some friends. I’m brining along a friend, so the routing should be fairly simple. Hopefully after this trip, she’ll be more keen to fly crazy Kinglobjaw style routings.

This is what I’m looking at. ORD-PHL-FRA-HAJ and back on US to FRA and LH to HAJ. Of course, I was able to price other routings for the same base fare price, such as ORD-CLT-PHL-FRA-HAJ-LHR-PHL-BWI-ORD on US/LH/BD/UA. There’s also the option of flying via a triple connection on LH/US only: HAJ-FRA-PHL-CLT-ORD. I haven’t ticketed yet, so we’ll see what happens. Maybe I can convince her to earn more miles. She’s a statusless frequent flyer with United so at least she will earn miles. Maybe that will convince her to satisfy my need for jet lag, more flights and more miles! =]

I didn’t share the fare price yet. It’s not mileage run material, but nonetheless a decent deal- $489.60 roundtrip including all taxes & fees. US Airways was by far the lowest fare, followed by SAS which was roughly $200 dollars more roundtrip.

Interesting thing about the flights is that thie FRA-HAJ-FAR short hop is operated with a Lufthansa A320. Just 175 miles. Neat! I wonder if they offer a service on the flight. Probably do, they’re Lufty!

Have a nice clicK life,

-Mark

A few weeks ago, I posted about US Airways pulling the plug on the PIT-EWR route.

Turns out, that same day (March 7, 2009) US is starting a single PHL-EWR flight. It will be operated by US Airways Express- Piedmont Airlines. After that, starting on March 8, 2009 there will be 4 flights in each direction.

Schedule is as follows:

US4534 PHL (9:30AM) - EWR (10:29AM)
US4536 PHL (1:30PM) - EWR (2:29PM)
US4552 PHL (4:10PM) - EWR (5:15PM)
US4556 PHL (8:50PM) - EWR (10:00PM)

US4505 EWR (6:45AM) - PHL (8:00AM)
US4525 EWR (11:20AM)- PHL (12:35PM)
US4527 EWR (2:59PM) - PHL (4:19PM)
US4539 EWR (5:45PM) - PHL (7:05PM

Have a nice clicK life,

-Mark