Comments on: “The worst travel experience I’ve ever had”

By: Wilson

Wilson — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 04:42:13 +0000

lets say you got on the wrong bus…. and went to the wrong place… because YOU didnt pay attention to the SIGN. who’s fault is that?
the bus company’s fault? or your fault?
you think the bus company is going to give you a free stay in a hotel, and free ride back to where you need to go?

By: Steve

Steve — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 11:18:21 +0000

All I can see with all these replies is the blame shifting, okay it was Wendy’s fault for not paying attention as really we are all responsible for our own actions…. BUT … This whole situation shows the inefficiency that is inflicting companies the world over.

People are paid to do their jobs which in my experience they care very little about nowadays, as previously stated customer service is almost non-existent nowadays. The airline companies pay people to ensure they get on the right plane and also to ensure they don’t get on the wrong plane, if someone slips through it is because someone is not doing their job correctly, in this situation it is probably more than one person who is not doing their job correctly. Yet we as the punter get blamed because firms employ incompetent people.

By: Carole Jonas

Carole Jonas — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 02:38:31 +0000

My 2 cents’ worth isn’t much but I’ll add to the sympathy for Wendy and her long ordeal. However, either she’s extremely inexperienced at traveling by air, or she’s just immature and wants to blame others for her lack of due diligence. Any frequent, or even infrequent, flyer *MUST* check the counter and the informational sign when they get to the boarding gate. It will tell you: 1) which airline you’re about to board, 2) what flight number, 3) what time you’ll be boarding/leaving, 4) what your *DESTINATION* is. The last one is key. With boarding areas being oddly numbered in most airports, and so close together, you always must double check where you are and if it’s the right place and time. Wendy did not. She assumed she was but that was faulty thinking on her part, not a problem for JetBlue. Gate departures do change at the last minute and yes, unfortunately she got on the wrong flight. IMHO JetBlue did right by her eventually and she’s being unreasonable, childish and petulant to expect more when it was her mistake. And for all who keep mentioning the scanned boarding pass, JetBlue already noted that Oakland does not electronically scan boarding passes. This is common at the smaller regional airports — Santa Barbara, CA does only manual checks of boarding passes also. So Wendy, I’m very sympathetic to your ruined weekend but you are basically negligent. Let it go and learn by this experience.

By: Wrona

Wrona — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 20:31:35 +0000

I keep seeing comments about 2 flights having miscounted passengers. Actually it’s only 1 flight that had the miscount – the flight to JFK. The one to Long Beach probably assumed that she missed the flight – it is not uncommon for someone to check in, especially with being able to check in online, and not make the flight . For all we know, the crew on the Oakland to Long Beach flight DID notice that one person was missing, and made multiple calls throughout the terminal for the passenger who didn’t make the Oakland-Long Beach flight.

Also, it is not required for domestic flights that a passenger fly on the same flight as their bags. It is only for international flights that they must do a bag match.

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 19:39:20 +0000

Come on, there was no security risk here. All the baggage and passengers are screened properly before either get airside, right? /sarcasm off./ If screening is done properly, there should not be a risk from a person getting on one plane or another.

The reason I believe people are heaping scorn upon Wendy is her request for more compensation. JetBlue put her up in a hotel in NYC, for chrissake, and paid for her return flight yet she wants more. Sorry, Wendy, no sympathy from me here. Nothing more is owed to her for her (bigger) or JB’s (smaller) mistake.

By: bill

bill — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 18:20:26 +0000

the key that only a few people caught is the security issue. planes are not supposed to take off if the manifest doesn’t match the people. this is so that terrorists cannot buy a ticket, check a bomb in and not get on the plane. jetblue missed on two flights.

the gate agent also let on a person without a legitimate ticket, another big security no no. also what happened to the head count by the flight crew. again, jetblue missed on two flights.

while I understand ultimately you are responsible for your own actions, this goes beyond one person’s mistake and affects all of us who fly frequently.

jetblue made a big mistake by letting this get out in the open. I’d have paid to quiet the lady down.

By: Jp

Jp — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 17:53:14 +0000

I am amazed at how insensitive many of the posters here are to the plight of one of our traveling brethren. Anybody can make a mistake. The airlines have turned it into an art form. When you have the confluence of multiple errors, you have a problem like Wendy experienced. Jet Blue did not do their jobs properly. Wendy was not attentive enough. I think her main concern was the rude manner in which she was treated. Many here seem to think it is ok given she received a room and a flight back.
I disagree. For Jet Blue to make her feel poorly because of the situation is unacceptable. We as travelers should not accept anything less that respectful responses to our problems. This forum is excellent in that it tells us all what is happening out in the trenches so we can judge for themselves. I’m keeping my eye on Jet Blue from now on for their level of service. Wendy, I feel your pain!

By: Chuck3rd

Chuck3rd — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 17:19:59 +0000

This is a 50/50 mistake. Half Wendy’s fault for not paying attention and actually matching the flight number on her ticket to the gate that it was assigned to, and half JetBlue’s fault for its agent not reading the incorrect boarding pass before it was too late. Wendy paid her price with her lost weekend, and JetBlue evened up by paying for her overnight in NYC and a free flight home the next day. She should get no more compensation.

Believe it or not, this happens more than you might think. And isn’t it a funny coincidence that in every one of these instances (that I have heard of or had to personally deal with on the “receiving end”), the Flight Attendants and Gate Agents failed to make ANY announcements. The people just herded themselves on board the flight and no words were ever spoken by the airline staff…and the Captain never came over the PA system to welcome everyone aboard, tell them about the weather enroute to NEW YORK, tell them that on the California to NEW YORK flight, they’ll be flying over the Grand Canyon, then the St. Louis Arch, and then over Pittsburgh on the 5 hour jaunt across the nation. Uh-huh.

Yes- the airline screwed up, and the error was probably caught as the tickets were being counted manually, since OAK does not have electronic scanners. When the error was caught (probablly the same group of agents working those 2 gates), the plane was most likely 20 minutes off the ground. It has been my experience that when such errors occur, the station that messed up calls the receiving station to tell and warn them that they had a “misboard”. Yes, it happens enough that there is actually a term for it (and an acronym, with an accompanying triplicate form if you are really hardcore).

Wendy should have learned a lesson from this (and maybe even laugh at it one day!), but as society dictates, if YOU screw up, there is always someone else to blame and sue. The airline…someone even quipped that the airport itself should be sued! Why, Chris, you of all people, would try to escalate this case into anything more than it is, is beyond me and unlike you. Slim ‘pickins in the “choosing battles wisely” department these days? Good job- love your work- but let this one go!

By: Solomon

Solomon — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 08:53:18 +0000

Hello,
I guess everyone is playing the “who’s to blame” game.
What concerns me is the lack of procedures in Jet Blue. (Ms. Cynical pointed us in the right direction). Even if Wendy took the wrong decision this is what should have happened:

Prior to take off the Departure Control System “pre-closes the flight” and creates a Passenger Manifest. In this paper we have written all passenger names and the number of bags they checked in.

It is the airline’s responsibility to COUNT both passengers and bags and match those numbers to what the System is reporting in the Manifest. (Surely you have seen flight attendants walking up and down the plane with a counter in her/his hand).

When all the numbers match the Manifest is signed by the Captain of the flight. This is extremely important because he/she is responsible of weight and balance to make the airplane take off and land safely.

Then the flight is “closed” in the system and we can go have a safe flight.

This procedure is not a new stupid security fad. This is done since the early days of aviation and shouldn’t be ignored. I don’t care who is to blame in this case or if Wendy gets more money from the carrier. The airline has to be fined for not following procedures. Their counts were off by one passenger in 2 flights and if she checked bags the correct flight had to be stopped and searched to unboard the extra bags.

By: ESP

ESP — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 06:12:09 +0000

Unfortunately, this sounds like she’s at fault, period. Yet another case of a person trying to blame someone else instead of taking responsibility for his/ her own actions, mistakes included.