How far do you let it go?

Roger Roger said:
With how consistently front seat passengers fail to open the Cherokee copilot door after we shut down, I kind of figure that their brains shut off the second the pilot starts talking.
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Well, that's the front of the plane. That's like first class right? :p
 
ppragman said:
It has other perks too. I was on a flight where some guy sitting adjacent to me in the exit row was bitching to the FA while she was giving us the "are you comfortable being in an emergency exit row" mini-brief. The guy was just being rude, interrupting and started getting nasty about "overpaid sky-wenches" or something to that effect. I told him to pay attention, shut his mouth, quit being a dick, and he could get into his laptop bag in 4 seconds after she finished. He was miffed but he shut up. After sticking up for the FAs, they constantly brought me free beer for the whole trip.
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Not the same thing, but a similar situation.

My wife and I went to Munich and Salzburg for our honeymoon. I was on reserve at the time, so we bought tickets so that we could be sure I would be able to get back the day before I started a trip. We were to fly from MUC-CDG on Air France and then CDG-ATL on Delta. We spent the night before at the hotel that is literally in the terminal at the Munich airport. So we get up to go check in only to find out that our flight to Paris was cancelled because of a really bad snow storm. I guess the grains of snow were so fine they were even shutting down trains because they were clogging up the intake.

So we found ourselves in this ridiculously long line of people waiting to be rebooked. The first people in line were tour guides from either Japan or China who were of course re-booking the entire group. Lots of people were getting frustrated at the ladies behind the counter, the biggest • of all was some fat American guy wearing a beret complaining about how he needed to get to the west coast, there was a flight to Amsterdam he could get on that would get him there in time for the AMS-SEA flight on Delta. Unfortunately it wasn't his turn in line. Finally he made a big enough stink they pulled him aside, rebooked him on the flight to AMS, and told him he had 5 minutes to make it through customs and security (no way in hell that was going to happen.)

So we get up to the front of the line. People were being very rude to the poor lady behind the counter. We were pleasant, made a little small talk, told her we were out here on our honeymoon AND it was my wife's birthday. She thanks us for being very understanding and I tell her that I work in the industry and completely understand. She tells us to hold on, gets on the phone in the back room. Comes out, hands us our rebooking, apologizes that she won't be able to get us out today, but that we were now booked on the last two seats in business on the Delta flight directly to ATL the next morning.

tl;dr: Not being a toolbag can lead to great things, especially when everybody around you is behaving like an idiot.
 
MikeD said:
In a similar vein, it's always annoying to see someone sitting in an exit row who's "too busy" to take a moment to either answer the question of "are you willing and able", as well any pax who can't seem to take a moment away from whatever they're doing to pay attention to the emergency safety brief, especially the ones in the exit row. Since, if something were to go down, their dumb asses better be able to be a help and not a hinderance.
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When I deadhead in uniform, I always pull out my safety card and follow along when told to. Its mostly a game to see who all is watching me and decides to do the same.
 
ChasenSFO said:
UGH do NOT even get me started on how UAX ramp/ops/gate agents deal with weight and balance limits. Typical chain of events:

90% of Ops agents: "Hmm...booked to 25, I'll do limits for 25 even tho there are 7 standbys".
90% Gate agents: "Hmm...25 and 750 huh? How many bags is that? Screw it, 25 it is".
90% of pilots: "Hey, do you have anyone else up there we can take 3 more?"
90% of rampers: "Uhh...(hasn't even talked to gate on the radio)...no."

Aiyaaaaa.
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In IAD its "Ops, we're limited to 47 and 50. Can you let the gate agent know?"
"Copy copy. I'll let them know."

Flight attendant comes up with a load distribution form that says 50 on it. "Those bastards...." Then they're like deer in the headlights when they have to come out and remove passengers.
 
On the private jet tip...I always felt like I'd gotten the bad end of the deal flying the Bitchjet. Way too many "just barely rich enough to be in a jet" jackwagons. Much as I might loathe them in the broader, socio-political sense, the finance guys in the NYC area were always quiet, pleasant, and subdued with "the help" (me and the other guy), because they "made" (out of thin air, but that's another thread) enough money that they didn't feel the need to prove to anyone how much "better" they were. They treated us with the same sort of friendly condescension with which one imagines they treated their maids or chauffeurs. And they tended to tip, which sort of fits in, sadly.

On the other side of the coin were moderately successful attorneys or accountants off to see the Big Game or bringing the little domestic disaster they called a family back from a skiing holiday in Eagle. They rented a Bitchjet, but they apparently thought it was a Gulfstream...or maybe a C-130 based on the luggage they thought they could squeeze in. One sort of imagines that your new friend was one of the later...except not even quite that. That's gonna look bad on his country club application! To quote a distant, but quite wealthy family member: "Nothing smells worse than New Money!"
 
pilotmg1501 said:
I once had a Captain tell me that our goal was to take all of the non-revs. If we took all of the non-revs, that means everybody's day was going well, we had all of our pax, all of the bags, and everybody who was trying to get to/from work. It always stuck with me.
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THIS! Short of having them sit in my lap, this was always my policy. Get your fellow crew members home or to their job. It's the least you can do.
 
Thanks guys for the support and info, im better equipped to handle the situation next time it may arise. Sadly im sure it will happen again.
 
A Life Aloft said:
THIS! Short of having them sit in my lap, this was always my policy. Get your fellow crew members home or to their job. It's the least you can do.
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Absolutely.

With not being physically attached to a get bridge where I'm 10 seconds from the gate agent, I always tell people jumpseating to specifically ask to speak with the captain if the station gives them any problems.

I'm normally really nice to the station agents, but if they deny a fellow crew member (especially OAL) access to my jumpseat or I leave non-revs at the gate with space and time available to get them on the airplane, somebody is going to have some explaining to do.
 
Screaming_Emu said:
When I deadhead in uniform, I always pull out my safety card and follow along when told to. Its mostly a game to see who all is watching me and decides to do the same.
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"A reminder that not only does our awesome flight attendant have a stunning smile, but she's here for your safety and to that end will have some very important information about this Brasilia - so please, give her your full and undivided attention..."
 
Say nothing and don't argue it isn't a fight you're going to win. Let the FA and PIC know after the flight and if the DB keeps it up during the flight

I've had it happen before but had a paid ticket and the pax was speechless when I showed him the full fare ticket.

Those seats all belong to the lead FA and PIC and they can put whoever they see fit in an empty seat.

I seen people get pissed about Military being bumped to first. WTF is wrong with some people.
 
SeanD said:
Ill second gate agents being the worst. Mainly the UA folks in ORD. By far the worst in all of the galaxies Ive explored. Im convinced most of them enjoy being complete aholes.
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Thats is why I try my hardest to avoid IAH like the plague!

Story time:

Trying to get from MSP to SAT. Missed the last direct flight and the only flight that could get me home that night was through IAH. If the flight was on time, I had 25 min to make the connection. Unfortunately had to gate check my bag, flying on the ERJ145. Made it to IAH a couple mins late and jump out to get the gate agent to ask her if she could call the other gate agent, let them know I would be running. Turned out, the other gate was on the total opposite side of IAH. (arrived A terminal, departing E terminal) The SAT gate agent at the E terminal said they'd wait. GREAT!! So like an idiot, I go sprinting through IAH at about 1045pm at night, on memorial day.

I get to the gate, and everyone is gone. I walk around, thinking to myself, "damn, almost made it." Out waddles a 300lb woman asking if I was jow blow commuter. I said I was and she replied, and I quote. "Oh, I took you off the list and pushed them 10 early." o_O "Well, thanks lady. Did the crew know there was another non-rev trying to get home on the last flight of the night." Well, that sent her size 49 panties into a twist and she started going off. I just smile, say "Happy Memorial Day from a Vet" and turn around to walk off. Right about then, the manager walked in, we had a nice chat and she apologized.

United gate agents, in every commute I've been apart of, are by far the worst..
 
bkey79 said:
Thats is why I try my hardest to avoid IAH like the plague!

Story time:

Trying to get from MSP to SAT. Missed the last direct flight and the only flight that could get me home that night was through IAH. If the flight was on time, I had 25 min to make the connection. Unfortunately had to gate check my bag, flying on the ERJ145. Made it to IAH a couple mins late and jump out to get the gate agent to ask her if she could call the other gate agent, let them know I would be running. Turned out, the other gate was on the total opposite side of IAH. (arrived A terminal, departing E terminal) The SAT gate agent at the E terminal said they'd wait. GREAT!! So like an idiot, I go sprinting through IAH at about 1045pm at night, on memorial day.

I get to the gate, and everyone is gone. I walk around, thinking to myself, "damn, almost made it." Out waddles a 300lb woman asking if I was jow blow commuter. I said I was and she replied, and I quote. "Oh, I took you off the list and pushed them 10 early." o_O "Well, thanks lady. Did the crew know there was another non-rev trying to get home on the last flight of the night." Well, that sent her size 49 panties into a twist and she started going off. I just smile, say "Happy Memorial Day from a Vet" and turn around to walk off. Right about then, the manager walked in, we had a nice chat and she apologized.

United gate agents, in every commute I've been apart of, are by far the worst..
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Delta and Continental agents have never done me any favors when trying to Jumpseat.
 
Non mainline gate agents seem to do the best work for getting people on flights. I do not know if it has to do with them not caring and being on a power trip or they being so new to the game.
 
These are the moments that I like to pretend to be deaf. Really. I pretend to be deaf, and ask him, very loudly, to repeat himself in the way that deaf people talk. "I um suuurrry. Can you reeeepeat urself? I am deaf. Please speak up."

Bet he doesn't say a word the rest of the flight. You get a story to tell, and he feels like a jackass. Win win scenario.
 
BobDDuck said:
Depends on how often you a) bother the FA b) bother the passengers around you and c) put your bluetooth earpiece in and start talking really loudly about synergies and how you have to be back in Topeka for a meeting right after you get done in New York that afternoon.
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I'm in business class again here in about an hour. Not only will I do all these things, I'll also crowd the gate with my Zone 1 ticket. :)
 
Bandit_Driver said:
Delta and Continental agents have never done me any favors when trying to Jumpseat.
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Yep. I watched a half empty Delta flight leave without me at ATL one night. I was at the gate 30 mins early, but had the absolute rudest agent I've ever come across. He told me "SkyWest doesn't have a jumpseat agreement with Delta", and blew me off. Fortunately I was able to walk over to AirTran, where I was treated well and even upgraded to business for a flight that got me home a little later.
 
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