I don't get it, maybe I'm missing something

RetiredATLATC

RetiredATLATC

Well-Known Member
Just flew Baghdad to Doha business class (a 2 hour flight) and had an amazing complete meal plus many libations, and still have a 7 hr biz class flight to TXL to come.

Wife is flying economy comfort on Widget airlines to CDG, from ATL, and was just told at the gate that no, meaning not any, food will be provided on an 8ish hour flight....but she could buy something and bring it on board.

Am I missing something? Price was almost identical withing $30 (me business class BGW-DOH-TXL) (wife econ cmfrt ATL-CDG econ to TXL) but she can't even get a basic meal on Widget/AF whereas I've been treated like a king on Qatar.

I don't get it. Maybe it's the subsidies
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Were, and will be again in 14 days. Not a bad place, if you like complacency and lack of drive as far as the Locals go. Got a nice pool and bar however.

Would love to upload some pics but for some reason they all load sideways/upside down.... @Derg am I doing something wrong? (Insert snide comments here ________)
 
A80TRACON said:
Were, and will be again in 14 days. Not a bad place, if you like complacency and lack of drive as far as the Locals go. Got a nice pool and bar however.

Would love to upload some pics but for some reason they all load sideways/upside down.... @Derg am I doing something wrong? (Insert snide comments here ________)
Click to expand...

If you're uploading from a phone, you may have to go to each pic and edit it, reorienting it to upright and saving it. Then try uploading after that. Don't know why, but that appears to work.
 
A80TRACON said:
Just flew Baghdad to Doha business class (a 2 hour flight) and had an amazing complete meal plus many libations, and still have a 7 hr biz class flight to TXL to come.

Wife is flying economy comfort on Widget airlines to CDG, from ATL, and was just told at the gate that no, meaning not any, food will be provided on an 8ish hour flight....but she could buy something and bring it on board.

Am I missing something? Price was almost identical withing $30 (me business class BGW-DOH-TXL) (wife econ cmfrt ATL-CDG econ to TXL) but she can't even get a basic meal on Widget/AF whereas I've been treated like a king on Qatar.

I don't get it. Maybe it's the subsidies
Click to expand...
This is one of the many arguments when it comes to even playing field. It isn't unique to the ME3 several Asian carriers are the same.
 
Is this airline allowed to fly that jet to Europe or the US? Are the crews trained to European or US standards. Is the airline given money for things like fuel hedges or risk investment hedges. If any of these are true, your ticket is not what it actually costs.
 
SFLAX said:
Is this airline allowed to fly that jet to Europe or the US? Yes Are the crews trained to European or US standards, both I believe, but not positive . Is the airline given money for things like fuel hedges or risk investment hedges, don't know. If any of these are true, your ticket is not what it actually costs.
Click to expand...

I'm a simple guy, and probably very naive, and will be the first one to say I have absolutely no idea what US pilots, or airlines, face when it comes to outside competition from foreign carriers that get "subsidies". However at the same time when I buy a tix on Widget, as a fairly high Medallion member, and am told at the gate to go buy my own food on an 8+ hour flight, I find that reprehensible.

Maybe I'm still back in the golden age of flight (WhisperJets and L1011's where service meant something) but being nickel and dimed to death (and I get that the airlines answer to shareholders and are only out to make money as a whole) where as other "outside" carriers still provide a class service without doing said nickle and diming, doesn't give me a warm fuzzy to provide loyalty because it's a US carrier.

As an ATL transplant, and 20 yr ATL ATC which took great pride in making Widget Widget (in whatever way I could) I'd much prefer to stick with Widget and have done so for decades. But if I can get a superior product, much like folks congregated to Toyota and the like during the auto industry downturn, I'm not flying the US carriers out of a National loyalty, just like I'm not buying a Ford just because it's made in America.

Provide me with a comparable product (not even a superior product) and I'll "buy American" every time. Piss on my leg and tell me it's raining and I'll go where my money goes farthest.....because in the long run, it's all about me first.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
A80TRACON said:
Wife is flying economy comfort on Widget airlines to CDG, from ATL, and was just told at the gate that no, meaning not any, food will be provided on an 8ish hour flight....but she could buy something and bring it on board.

Am I missing something?
Click to expand...

Yes, you are. Your wife's misinformed. ALL transoceanic flights have meals served on them.
image.png


If in fact they actually didn't serve anything, PM me the details. I'll see if there was a service failure.
 
Cptnchia said:
Yes, you are. Your wife's misinformed. ALL transoceanic flights have meals served on them.
View attachment 36347

If in fact they actually didn't serve anything, PM me the details. I'll see if there was a service failure.
Click to expand...

When she lands at CDG I will try to get the info. I'm going by what she, and others (according to her) were told by the agent at the gate.

I saw the exact same thing when I checked it on the @Delta app.

Thank you @Cptnchia
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Cptnchia said:
Yes, you are. Your wife's misinformed. ALL transoceanic flights have meals served on them.
View attachment 36347

If in fact they actually didn't serve anything, PM me the details. I'll see if there was a service failure.
Click to expand...

You beat me to it. I looked up a bunch of the ATL-CDG flights as I was shocked to her of a transatlantic without a meal service in the back. Everything I saw had meals and the standard complimentary wine/beer/spirits. Curious to know if the agent was misinformed or where the disconnect occurred.
 
obx said:
You beat me to it. I looked up a bunch of the ATL-CDG flights as I was shocked to her of a transatlantic without a meal service in the back. Everything I saw had meals and the standard complimentary wine/beer/spirits. Curious to know if the agent was misinformed or where the disconnect occurred.
Click to expand...

Well, my wife is a girl, so maybe she had a short circuit somewhere.

She'll land in a bit and I'll find out more. All I know is she went and had to buy food, on my British Airways CC (gratutious plug) because of what she was told at the gate, even though she was flying economy comfort. Maybe she didn't like the cake they were serving, who knows.
 
A80TRACON said:
I'm a simple guy, and probably very naive, and will be the first one to say I have absolutely no idea what US pilots, or airlines, face when it comes to outside competition from foreign carriers that get "subsidies". However at the same time when I buy a tix on Widget, as a fairly high Medallion member, and am told at the gate to go buy my own food on an 8+ hour flight, I find that reprehensible.

Maybe I'm still back in the golden age of flight (WhisperJets and L1011's where service meant something) but being nickel and dimed to death (and I get that the airlines answer to shareholders and are only out to make money as a whole) where as other "outside" carriers still provide a class service without doing said nickle and diming, doesn't give me a warm fuzzy to provide loyalty because it's a US carrier.

As an ATL transplant, and 20 yr ATL ATC which took great pride in making Widget Widget (in whatever way I could) I'd much prefer to stick with Widget and have done so for decades. But if I can get a superior product, much like folks congregated to Toyota and the like during the auto industry downturn, I'm not flying the US carriers out of a National loyalty, just like I'm not buying a Ford just because it's made in America.

Provide me with a comparable product (not even a superior product) and I'll "buy American" every time. Piss on my leg and tell me it's raining and I'll go where my money goes farthest.....because in the long run, it's all about me first.
Click to expand...

The bolded part is where you're already tying it all together. Service meant something back in the golden age because fares and pricing did not - that was completely controlled/set by the government. The only way to attract customers then became product.

In today's "free market" environment (quotes because the government still has a relatively large hand in things), the market has spoken - and price, more often than not, trumps product.

The US3 would argue that the ME3 behave like the regulated US airline industry of yesteryear - their profits are secured by the government, so they spend lavishly on product and charge no premium to make up for it. Makes it tough for US airlines to compete when the product is far superior, and they can charge so little but stay in business. The jury is still out if this is indeed the case, but it's hard not to wonder - the US3 seem pretty adamant about it.
 
A80TRACON said:
Well, my wife is a girl, so maybe she had a short circuit somewhere.

She'll land in a bit and I'll find out more. All I know is she went and had to buy food, on my British Airways CC (gratutious plug) because of what she was told at the gate, even though she was flying economy comfort. Maybe she didn't like the cake they were serving, who knows.
Click to expand...

Well, either way, it sounds as if she was let down by the airline. Either through a miscommunication from the agent or by not being served a meal. I hope her experience improved on board.

I'll be curious to hear if she got a meal. I'm guessing the agent was uninformed or uninterested in correctly verifying the information.

Safe travels to you both.
 
Even during the dark days last decade there were always meals in coach on transatlantic, even in USAirways which was an LcC at the time.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top