I hate airlines.

[TitanDiddly]

I booked airline tickets to go home after the summer semester- depart June 21, return July 9 for more summer session credits. I found out after I booked that one of the courses I need isn't offered- my other courses are either online, or last only 2 weeks. Great, I can change my ticket and go home in about 2 weeks. I was expecting a change fee of $100, okay. That's excessive, greedy, and wrong, but okay. It's a sooner flight, so there'll be a price difference too. Turns out that is $30. Grr. Then, priceline has to get their cut in for $30. Overall, I'm paying $160 over and above the $320 I already paid just to bump up my flight a few weeks. It's greedy and wrong.

Okay, I'm looking for alternatives- a one-way flight out on the date I want to go is $150. That's still a terrible price, but hey. I can do that. I mention it to the priceline lady while we're waiting for a price to come back, and she tells me that if I'm not on the departing flight, the returning flight is automatically cancelled. Okay, that's to be expected, a bit inconvenient, but hey. I'll just call the airline and tell them not to cancel the returning flight. I mean, it doesn't cost them anything- heck, now that they know I'm not going to be on the departing flight, pocket the double fare. Hell no- $100 service fee just for them to let me go on the returning flight without being on the departing one. That makes no sense- they can charge somebody $160 to take the seat I'm vacating, then charge me $100 for the honor of being sodomized? No thanks.

And they wonder why people go postal and shoot up company HQs. It's moneygrubbing policies like this. People are so dishonest these days, it makes me want to kill whoever made this rule.

In short: American Airlines, I hope you die.

 

[Phoenix86]

You could have purchased a refundable ticket, but decided to save on one that is only changable?

 

[D1gger]

Airlines pay many people to sit around and study all of the angles to ensure that they get the maximum revenue from every single passenger that flies and make sure there are no loopholes that available.

They are certainly not the most customer service oriented business around and I too hate them with a passion.

 

[SampSon]

Here is the real problem.
You (and not just you, but most of America) are a bunch of cheap skates that use services like priceline and orbitz to get moronically cheap rates and stick it to airline companies.
Cutting all the corners you can while bitching about horrible service and extra fees. Makes sense...
It's amazing that any airlines can actually stay afloat, let alone turn a profit with these bargain hunting services everyone flocks to these days.

You can thank these sites and the consumer demand for unrealistic, unsustainable fares that require airlines to cut every corner possible and apply incredible fees like these.
Flying shouldn't be cheap, I don't understand why everyone expects it to be.

But anyway, that sucks, next time deal directly with the airline and cut out the middle man.

 

[TitanDiddly]

Originally posted by: Phoenix86
You could have purchased a refundable ticket, but decided to save on one that is only changable?

Neither me, nor my parents, have any money laying around to spare. Maybe some people on this board have lived to a higher standard than I have, but I took the cheapest ticket there was, because paying more on a fare that I didn't foresee changing doesn't make sense. Sure, now the situation has changed, and it would have been better to get refundable tickets. However, I didn't know that then.

 

[TitanDiddly]

Originally posted by: SampSon
Here is the real problem.
You (and not just you, but most of America) are a bunch of cheap skates that use services like priceline and orbitz to get moronically cheap rates and stick it to airline companies.
Cutting all the corners you can while bitching about horrible service and extra fees. Makes sense...
It's amazing that any airlines can actually stay afloat, let alone turn a profit with these bargain hunting services everyone flocks to these days.

You can thank these sites and the consumer demand for unrealistic, unsustainable fares that require airlines to cut every corner possible and apply incredible fees like these.
Flying shouldn't be cheap, I don't understand why everyone expects it to be.

But anyway, that sucks, next time deal directly with the airline and cut out the middle man.

I can't afford new shoes. I'm going to buy the cheapest ticket. I wouldn't go at all, except that my brother is joining the air force, and if I don't see him now, I won't for a long time- God forbid something happens to him and I never see him again. Also, my mother is depressed from not having seen me for a year.

 

[Pepsi90919]

flanders could you give me some cliff's

 

[SampSon]

I can't afford new shoes. I'm going to buy the cheapest ticket. I wouldn't go at all, except that my brother is joining the air force, and if I don't see him now, I won't for a long time- God forbid something happens to him and I never see him again. Also, my mother is depressed from not having seen me for a year.

I can't blame you. Though the reality is that greedy consumers drove the prices of airline fares down, and now they are seeing the reprocussions of that.

Good luck to your brother.

Hell, take a bus if you have to, or a train. That's what people did before airlines were "affordable".

 

[Yossarian]

Originally posted by: SampSon

I can't afford new shoes. I'm going to buy the cheapest ticket. I wouldn't go at all, except that my brother is joining the air force, and if I don't see him now, I won't for a long time- God forbid something happens to him and I never see him again. Also, my mother is depressed from not having seen me for a year.

I can't blame you. Though the reality is that greedy consumers drove the prices of airline fares down, and now they are seeing the reprocussions of that.

Good luck to your brother.

Hell, take a bus if you have to, or a train. That's what people did before airlines were "affordable".

your argument is ridiculous. it is no more greedy for a consumer to want the most value for their dollar than it is for a company to want to maximize their profit.

 

[TitanDiddly]

Originally posted by: SampSon

I can't afford new shoes. I'm going to buy the cheapest ticket. I wouldn't go at all, except that my brother is joining the air force, and if I don't see him now, I won't for a long time- God forbid something happens to him and I never see him again. Also, my mother is depressed from not having seen me for a year.

I can't blame you. Though the reality is that greedy consumers drove the prices of airline fares down, and now they are seeing the reprocussions of that.

Good luck to your brother.

Hell, take a bus if you have to, or a train. That's what people did before airlines were "affordable".

Wasn't is AA, or some other airline, that just gave their CEO a 302 M$ retirement package?

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Well, if you'd stop flying with batteries jury-rigged into your laptop, they might be nicer to you

- M4H

 

[Ika]

http://www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net/c.cgi?u=orbitz_blows
best "airlines suck" article ever. since its maddox. and he owns.

 

[Dunbar]

This is one of the nice things about Southwest, no change fees. You could of cancelled your first leg and used the funds towards another flight. I use Orbitz to compare prices but try to book directly with the airline to avoid the extra change fees.

 

[dullard]

I fail to see why you can't just keep your original dates.

 

[TitanDiddly]

Originally posted by: dullard
I fail to see why you can't just keep your original dates.

It costs me $55 per week to stay here, so at some point it becomes cheaper to pay the stupid fees.

 

[FoBoT]

you aren't supposed to change.
that is how it works

if you want convienance, then drive or pay for full fare/fully changeable flights

 

[SouthPaW1227]

I've quickly learned that SampSon is a total moron.

 

[dullard]

Originally posted by: TitanDiddly

Originally posted by: dullard
I fail to see why you can't just keep your original dates.

It costs me $55 per week to stay here, so at some point it becomes cheaper to pay the stupid fees.

If you really needed to take summer courses to begin with, then just take them. The $55 here or there is minor compared to NOT taking courses in the summer you need and then requiring an extra semester in college to take them later. Now, if you didn't need them and money was so precious, why'd you even consider signing up in the first place?

 

[iamwiz82]

Originally posted by: SouthPaW1227
I've quickly learned that SampSon is a total moron.

Because he is right? You want the cheapest possible fare then you have to deal with the restrictions. The airlines are hemmoraging money because of consumers expecting everything for nothing. The only ones really surviving are basically flying hostels, which is damned depressing because I don't want to be on those flights and am willing to pay more not to be.

 

[K1052]

Originally posted by: TitanDiddly

Originally posted by: SampSon

I can't afford new shoes. I'm going to buy the cheapest ticket. I wouldn't go at all, except that my brother is joining the air force, and if I don't see him now, I won't for a long time- God forbid something happens to him and I never see him again. Also, my mother is depressed from not having seen me for a year.

I can't blame you. Though the reality is that greedy consumers drove the prices of airline fares down, and now they are seeing the reprocussions of that.

Good luck to your brother.

Hell, take a bus if you have to, or a train. That's what people did before airlines were "affordable".

Wasn't is AA, or some other airline, that just gave their CEO a 302 M$ retirement package?

You are about three zeros to high and the money came from stock options.

 

[TitanDiddly]

Originally posted by: dullard

Originally posted by: TitanDiddly

Originally posted by: dullard
I fail to see why you can't just keep your original dates.

It costs me $55 per week to stay here, so at some point it becomes cheaper to pay the stupid fees.

If you really needed to take summer courses to begin with, then just take them. The $55 here or there is minor compared to NOT taking courses in the summer you need and then requiring an extra semester in college to take them later. Now, if you didn't need them and money was so precious, why'd you even consider signing up in the first place?

I am taking two. One will be over next week. To stay the rest of the time is stupid.

Edit: Been on hold with priceline for 20 minutes.

 

[fbrdphreak]

Originally posted by: iamwiz82

Originally posted by: SouthPaW1227
I've quickly learned that SampSon is a total moron.

Because he is right? You want the cheapest possible fare then you have to deal with the restrictions. The airlines are hemmoraging money because of consumers expecting everything for nothing. The only ones really surviving are basically flying hostels, which is damned depressing because I don't want to be on those flights and am willing to pay more not to be.

:thumbsup:

And because of your input, Southpaw, I've quickly learned you're a dipshit who wears his ass for a hat. :roll:

 

[dabuddha]

Originally posted by: SampSon
Here is the real problem.
You (and not just you, but most of America) are a bunch of cheap skates that use services like priceline and orbitz to get moronically cheap rates and stick it to airline companies.
Cutting all the corners you can while bitching about horrible service and extra fees. Makes sense...
It's amazing that any airlines can actually stay afloat, let alone turn a profit with these bargain hunting services everyone flocks to these days.

You can thank these sites and the consumer demand for unrealistic, unsustainable fares that require airlines to cut every corner possible and apply incredible fees like these.
Flying shouldn't be cheap, I don't understand why everyone expects it to be.

But anyway, that sucks, next time deal directly with the airline and cut out the middle man.

$320 for a roundtrip ticket is nowhere cheap.

Tip for the OP. I use the search engines all the time to purchase my tickets and when I do find one that's really cheap, I buy it directly from the airline's website. Last month, I got roundtrip tickets from DC to Texas for $103 + tax each.

 

[SampSon]

your argument is ridiculous. it is no more greedy for a consumer to want the most value for their dollar than it is for a company to want to maximize their profit.

No, it's not ridiculous. You're missing the point. The comsumer expect, hell they even feel entitled, to fares so low that airlines cannot even stay afloat. Sure consumers should get the most bang for their buck, but they shouldn't be able to fly across the country for $99 round trip. The consumers demanding unsustainable fares and the loads of websites that cater to this mentality by searching all flights by the lowest fare first. Then when the service sucks, or they get hit with fees, or the food sucks, or the whole experience just "isn't what it used to be", they actually have the gall to bitch about it. Well you get what you pay for, you want to pay next to nothing to fly, expect next to nothing.

I've quickly learned that SampSon is a total moron.

Why? Because you're carrying a grudge when I was arguing with you in another thread? I do throughly apologize for being correct while you are wrong too many times.

$320 for a roundtrip ticket is nowhere cheap.

Tip for the OP. I use the search engines all the time to purchase my tickets and when I do find one that's really cheap, I buy it directly from the airline's website. Last month, I got roundtrip tickets from DC to Texas for $103 + tax each.

No, $320 roundtrip is a realistic price for airline fares. At $103 per ticket, that airline is losing money everytime that jet takes off. The only reason they offer it is because people demand incredibly low prices and there will be someone there to offer low quality product for low prices (think Wal-Mart). So the consumer starts a price war that causes airline companies to lose massive amounts of money just to draw in customers. Sounds like a great deal for the consumer, if you want to fly like cattle.

 

[TitanDiddly]

Originally posted by: dabuddha

Originally posted by: SampSon
Here is the real problem.
You (and not just you, but most of America) are a bunch of cheap skates that use services like priceline and orbitz to get moronically cheap rates and stick it to airline companies.
Cutting all the corners you can while bitching about horrible service and extra fees. Makes sense...
It's amazing that any airlines can actually stay afloat, let alone turn a profit with these bargain hunting services everyone flocks to these days.

You can thank these sites and the consumer demand for unrealistic, unsustainable fares that require airlines to cut every corner possible and apply incredible fees like these.
Flying shouldn't be cheap, I don't understand why everyone expects it to be.

But anyway, that sucks, next time deal directly with the airline and cut out the middle man.

$320 for a roundtrip ticket is nowhere cheap.

Tip for the OP. I use the search engines all the time to purchase my tickets and when I do find one that's really cheap, I buy it directly from the airline's website. Last month, I got roundtrip tickets from DC to Texas for $103 + tax each.

Nice. How far in advance?

Update- just did my change directly through AA. $170.