They say flying is no fun anymore. You have to pay extra for the food now and even for your luggage on some airlines. I am not sure if Delta Airlines is one of them, but one thing I do know is that their idea of customer service sure has taken a dive.
I talked to my brother today on the telephone and he shared with me the story of his recent drive from his home in Massachusetts down to JFK airport in New York City to rescue a couple of stranded passengers.
His sister-in-law, a military spouse, by the way, was flying from Dallas, Texas
to New York City, where a connecting flight was scheduled to take her to Boston. Oh, I almost forgot: She was traveling with her 9-month-old baby. Just her and her baby, on the way to Massachusetts to visit family.
When she arrived a JFK in New York City, she was greeted with information that a traveler in her position certainly does not want to hear: Her connecting flight was canceled.
No explanation was offered for the cancellation. She was offered what amounted to a stand-by ticket to Boston that "might" get her in a flight to Boston the following morning, but that was it.
No offer of a room or a meal or anything. I guess she was expected to spend the night in an airport terminal with her baby and if she was lucky, she might be able to catch a flight to her destination in the morning.
When my brother got word of this last evening, he volunteered to drive down to JFK and pick her up. He’s the kind of guy that tends to be quite the night owl, and staying up most or all of the night is not at all unusual for him.
He left for JFK around 11:00 PM and arrived back home around 7:00 AM. Fortunately, the trip was a safe and uneventful one.
I realize the airlines are struggling these days due to the high cost of fuel, kind of like the rest of us, I guess. Still, if that is Delta’s idea of customer service, perhaps they ought to just close up shop and sell off their fleet. There really is no excuse for treating a paying customer like that.
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