Why do People get so Upset with Flight Delays??

[on-ramp]

I don't get it, maybe I'm being too rational. Why do people get so upset with flight delays?? would they rather get on a plane and then go down in a heavy snow storm? or would they get on a plane with mechanical problems and have the plane break up in flight?

Whenever my flight (and I rarely fly) gets delayed, I think, that's fine. no problem. better late than dead.

[on-ramp]

damn, wrong forum - please move.

[Nape75'911T]

they are in a situation that they have no control over....I have no issue with delays that are mechanical in nature, or weather related....but I was flying out of DFW on March 29, and there was a mother of a thunder storm coming.....we were in the plane and the pilot was asking us to hurry up and get settled so we could get out before the storm grounded us. We were all ready, but there were 3 wonderful people who checked luggage, but were not on the plane.....@!@$#@!.

We got lucky, they got their luggage off in time for us to take off, and 20 minutes later......we would have been grounded for hours....at least that's what we were told.

I think the issue really is after you have been scanned, searched, questioned, checked and had your shoes x rayed.....if you are delayed for any significant length of time, you are hostage to crappy overpriced food and drinks, and really with nothing to do.....plus, most people are in a hurry to get somewhere better, or in the "I am ready to get home" mindset, so the delays seem personal some how......

I do agree, rather be safe than a plaque somewhere.....

[BeyGon]

If you are just going from point A to point B it is one thing. But if you have connecting flights between A and B, you can really get screwed.

Dean

[Jims5543]

My flight was delayed last summer (July 5th) as I was leaving my family to go defend myself in a county commision hearing. I was not being charged but I knew if I was not there the man charged was goign to throw me under the bus.

I paid over $1000 for round trip tickets so I could leave my family while on vacation to attend this hearing. My connecting flight in Atlanta was delayed 3 hours causing me to miss the hearing.

The accused did as expected and used the hearing to build a case against me. Even though I have done nothing wrong. He is a lawyer and played his game.

Now I have had to retain a lawyer to defend me and it will costs me well over $10,000. And loose sleep because the legal system is not about common sense and fairness its about who has the meaner lawyer.

All because my flighht was delayed. Was I irritated? You guess.

[gprsh924]

It seems like my dad has a flight delayed every other week. He doesn't get so much frustrated at the airline, just at the situation itself that he has to waste more time on the road. Look at it this way. If you left the house at 4am every monday morning and were gone until thursday night almost every week, how much would you like having your 6pm thursday evening flight consistently delayed to 7 or 8 or 9? I don't think you would.

[Joeaksa]

I do not get paid to do my job, I get paid to use my years of experience and say no at the worst possible times...

99% of all flight crew do everything that they can to make the flight work but when weather or a safety issue pops up, its up to us to look at everything and when its not looking good, to say "no, we are not going to take the bird off in this situation," no matter how much trouble it will cause anyone.

Facing the passengers who are perturbed is much better than taking off and pushing the limits and ending up getting beaten up by weather or even worse going down. Some of them are not appreciative of it at that time, but they need to remember that we are in the pointy end of the jet and its usually the first part of the plane to hit the ground. We want to get to the destination just as much as the pax do.

I will get your a$$ there safely and on time if at all possible but if I say no, then its best to listen to me and lets all find another way to work things out.

I plan on dying in bed at age 82 with a 20 year old girlfriend, not in an aluminum mailing tube that just shedded its wings in a thunderstorm...

[Porsche]

It's only an issue with me if I have a connecting flight to catch. That can extend the delay to an extra day.

[adamred]

Try flying into Newark Liberty with any regularity when flights are delayed for no other reason then that they ran out of slots for planes to land and take off...I fly from small markets back home through Newark 3 times per month and I am never, I mean never on time...last night my flight from Milwaukee was supposed to get in at 7:30 PM we landed at 12:45 AM with a stop in Allentown to refuel b/c we circled Newark for so long...trust me that will make you extraordinarily frustrated...

[Zef]

Because time = money...!

[on-ramp]

I've always had a high degree of respect for these airline pilots (Joe, you are included in this group as well) because they are responsible for the safety of everyone on-board. And if they make a decision to cancel a flight , I would trust that they are making a sound decision, despite the temporary frustration it may cause...every time I fly and we land safely, the captain is usually standing at the front of the aircraft saying goodbye to everyone as they walk off the plane. At that moment , for some reason, I feel like giving them a great big hug. The best feeling is walking off that plane knowing you got to your destination. But as I commented earlier, better late than dead.

[pwd72s]

Originally posted by zefsuper911
Because time = money...!

I recall a column written by Brock Yates some years back...he made a very good case that a journey of 500 miles can be made faster by car than by taking a commercial flight. No time spent getting to and from airports, no time at the car rental counter, etc.

He wrote this column before 9-11-01 and the new security hassles also taking time. All depending on the destination, of course...but driving can very well be faster, with the added benefit of having your own car to take you when & where you please.

[imcarthur]

Anybody that has ever owned igaunas, knows that they go into a 'zone mode'. Calm & relaxed & ignor everything around you. That's what I do in airports. Find a spot away from the rabid children & zone. Just read my book & zone.

I travel a fair amount & this year has taken the cake for flights delays. In the last 3 months: One overnight weather diversion that put me home a day late. 2 or 3 five hr delays. Too many 1/2 - 1 hr delays to count.

Zone.

Ian

[jriera]

- Because is something I pay good money for and I expect a level of service that I normally don't get ...

- Because I cannot smoke anymore in most airports and going thru security is a major pain ...

- Because they don't tell me why we are delayed (the truth please) or how long (really) is going to be ...

To me is all about the (lack of) service and communication. I do understand about mechanical failures, illness, etc. but why on my money?? If I try to do the same with any of my clients I will be out of business very soon.

[BeyGon]

Joeaksa
99% of all flight crew do everything that they can to make the flight work but when weather or a safety issue pops up, its up to us to look at everything and when its not looking good, to say "no, we are not going to take the bird off in this situation," no matter how much trouble it will cause anyone.

I don't see the weather as the problem, I think most people understand when you can't fly because of weather.
The problem is we as passengers usually have no idea why we have to wait an extra hour or some time six or eight hours. All we get is "flight delay" , I don't think it is always the weather.

[pwd72s]

Originally posted by BeyGon
Joeaksa

The problem is we as passengers usually have no idea why we have to wait an extra hour or some time six or eight hours. All we get is "flight delay" , I don't think it is always the weather.

I could leave my home in Lebanon, Oregon...driving. And in "6-8 hours" be a couple of hours or less out of San Francisco...a distance of around 600 miles. I rest my case for driving over flying, depending on the destination. Dunno about Amtrack, which could pick me up approx. 15 minutes from my home.

[Joeaksa]

Originally posted by jriera
To me is all about the (lack of) service and communication. I do understand about mechanical failures, illness, etc. but why on my money?? If I try to do the same with any of my clients I will be out of business very soon.

Jordi,

What really pisses me off is when an airline airplane is half or less than half full and the airline has a "technical" on the bird and grounds it.

Folks, in reality quite often there is nothing wrong with the airplane in many cases, but they would be losing money by flying it half full, so they ground this flight. That way the airline rebooks the pax on THEIR next flight going out, which fills up the next airplane (or three) and their profit improves.

This does not happen all the time but more often than people know about.

Dean,

I am also a licensed aircraft mechanic. Many times the airplane pulls in the gate with an issue, or the fresh crew powers up the bird and a new problem pops up. If they do not have spares at that airport then they have to "counter to counter" spare parts in to fix the airplane. Many times thats why people are kept waiting while the bird is at the gate. Seen this often and they are doing the best that they can in this case.

A "flight delay" can also be caused by a flight crew that has run out of duty time. We can fly 10 hours in the air, and 14 hours on duty. Not 10 hours and 5 minutes, but we drop dead at 10 hours, so if the crew had to fly around weather or sat at another airport waiting for a tire to be changed and they will exceed their duty time by taking the second flight, then the airline must, by law, get a new fresh crew in to fly that flight. This causes delays as well, especially due to weather or mechanical issues.

[cstreit]

If you fly once or twice a year, big deal, but for those of us that fly every week it happens waaay too much.

Spend 2, 3, 5, EIGHT hours on the runway some time and you'll hate every delay. I came damn close to jumping out the emergency exit a few times while we waited for hours on the tarmak for a slot. Couldn't get up, no water, couldn't pee, etc...

Then there are those flights that are aways delayed. My office is in Cupertino, my home in Chicago. The Friday 1:30 United flight from San Jose to Chicago has been delayed 17 out of 20 times to my count. Tell me THAT wouldn't piss you off. My borther in-law flys from Chicago to Toronto every week. His return flight is delayed easily 50% of the time.

[LeeH]

I can understand being upset if your flight is delayed. That's no fun. What I don't understand is passengers who take out their frustration on the flight crew. Chances are good that the crew did not cause the delay.

[rattlsnak]

There is a saying in aviation:

It's better to be on the ground wishing you were in the air, then in the air wishing you were on the ground.

I fly out of the busiest airport in the world,. ATL. I can tell you stories you wouldnt believe. And trust me, the crews are the last to know whats going on in most cases, other than MX. Its much different than part 91 or 135. Part 121 can fly as many hours as needed to finish their scheduled day as long as they dont go over 16 hours. ATC is the primary reason flights are delayed in the ATL system. They have flights landing on three runways every 1.5 minutes in VFR days, all day long. If weather moves over the airport for 30 minutes, guess how many flight are now going to be delayed simply because there is no room for them, hence the 'ground stop', or holding. If anyone wants more info let me know...
I could go on and on....