Quote:
Originally Posted by Seahawk
Air travel has been a roast, a least in steerage, for a long time.
...the whole commercial flight experience a complete grind and the TSA and the airlines have all been complicit, including charging for luggage which has people trying to take more crap into the cabin area than Hannibal took over the Alps.
I also know a number of airline pilots and they tell me everyone is on edge, "you can sense it..."
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Quite right about the back of the bus. When we moved to Hawaii at gvt expense, I paid for the upgrade to 1st (literally cost me $50 each for the 4 of us). Then the GOV decided while in Hawaii that I needed to go to a course in Florida, again I paid for the upgrade. A few years ago our family of 4 went to London for a Christmas vacation and flew 1st.
The difference between coach and 1st is a vast chasm. No issue with amount of luggage, food is gratis, seats are large enough for humans. The big difference on those long distance hauls is feeling refreshed upon arrival vice like you got there by hanging onto the tail of the aircraft.
The other gigantic difference is that the gate agents, ticketing agents, flight attendants, and pretty much everyone involved treat you like a human being. Heck, even at most airports a 1st class ticket gets you to a special line for TSA type stuff, Heathrow certainly has a special place.
I'm no stranger to flying in back though. But highly recommend 1st/business for trans-continental or to the middle of the Pacific.
If I were king and could fix this mess, I would recommend to the airlines and TSA to just start treating people better. Some folks just won't notice and keep taking everything they own on the plane while wearing their PJ's but it would be a start.
A guy that used to work for me said while we were talking about this: the airlines have 1st, business, and coach. They need to have a Human class and treat people accordingly.