Spirit article by a writer who gets it
06-15-2010, 07:39 PM
#1
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Spirit article by a writer who gets it
Blog: Travel Diva: Spirit Airlines' jilted customers get exactly what they paid for | freep.com | Detroit Free Press
Spirit Airlines' jilted customers get exactly what they paid for
BY ELLEN CREAGER
Free Press Travel Writer
Spirit Airlines stranded thousands of passengers over the weekend and will continue to do so as long as a pilot's strike continues. All flights through Tuesday have now been cancelled.
But do outraged passengers really have a legitimate beef? After all, they took the risk when they booked Spirit, the tiny super-discount airline with some of the least customer-friendly policies around.
The big shock to passengers is this: Unlike mainline airlines, Spirit has no reciprocal arrangements with other carriers. When flights were cancelled in this strike, agents didn't book passengers on a competitor. No competitor will honor a Spirit ticket.
The only recourse is a refund or a credit for future flight.
Spirit flies only 4% of flights out of Detroit, but down in Fort Lauderdale, where they fly 20% of the flights, the Sun Sentinel reported Sunday that passengers were crying, begging for help, even shouting when they found out Spirit wouldn't help them get home.
But what do people expect when they pay $9 or $29 for a plane ticket? Did they take time to read Spirit's rules, which clearly state its stingy policies in case something goes wrong?
I'm not a Spirit fan. I'm not sticking up for their way of doing business. In fact, they are in this pickle because they are such cheapskates they pay their pilots 40% less than other budget airlines pay their pilots.
But passengers also have a duty to read the fine print when they travel. Spirit is a cheapo airline with few customer protections. If you fly Spirit, you should buy travel insurance so you are covered if something goes wrong, because the airline ain't gonna help you.
Here's what they will do:
•Spirit is giving passengers on cancelled flights an automatic fare credit plus an additional credit of $100. The credit is good for a flight valid for one year from your original booking date.
• If you would rather have a refund, call 800-772-7117. A Free Press check of the system Sunday found a wait of greater than 30 minutes on hold to talk to an agent.
• If you bought travel insurance for your flight, you may be covered. Contact the insurer.
Spirit flies out of Detroit Metro non-stop to Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Atlantic City, Los Angeles and Cancun, but many Detroiters use Spirit to travel further on to Caribbean or Latin American destinations.
Those with tickets this week should monitor http://www.spiritair.com to check flight status. Just don't expect the ultra-budget airline to be generous with the passengers they jilt.
Spirit Airlines' jilted customers get exactly what they paid for
BY ELLEN CREAGER
Free Press Travel Writer
Spirit Airlines stranded thousands of passengers over the weekend and will continue to do so as long as a pilot's strike continues. All flights through Tuesday have now been cancelled.
But do outraged passengers really have a legitimate beef? After all, they took the risk when they booked Spirit, the tiny super-discount airline with some of the least customer-friendly policies around.
The big shock to passengers is this: Unlike mainline airlines, Spirit has no reciprocal arrangements with other carriers. When flights were cancelled in this strike, agents didn't book passengers on a competitor. No competitor will honor a Spirit ticket.
The only recourse is a refund or a credit for future flight.
Spirit flies only 4% of flights out of Detroit, but down in Fort Lauderdale, where they fly 20% of the flights, the Sun Sentinel reported Sunday that passengers were crying, begging for help, even shouting when they found out Spirit wouldn't help them get home.
But what do people expect when they pay $9 or $29 for a plane ticket? Did they take time to read Spirit's rules, which clearly state its stingy policies in case something goes wrong?
I'm not a Spirit fan. I'm not sticking up for their way of doing business. In fact, they are in this pickle because they are such cheapskates they pay their pilots 40% less than other budget airlines pay their pilots.
But passengers also have a duty to read the fine print when they travel. Spirit is a cheapo airline with few customer protections. If you fly Spirit, you should buy travel insurance so you are covered if something goes wrong, because the airline ain't gonna help you.
Here's what they will do:
•Spirit is giving passengers on cancelled flights an automatic fare credit plus an additional credit of $100. The credit is good for a flight valid for one year from your original booking date.
• If you would rather have a refund, call 800-772-7117. A Free Press check of the system Sunday found a wait of greater than 30 minutes on hold to talk to an agent.
• If you bought travel insurance for your flight, you may be covered. Contact the insurer.
Spirit flies out of Detroit Metro non-stop to Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Atlantic City, Los Angeles and Cancun, but many Detroiters use Spirit to travel further on to Caribbean or Latin American destinations.
Those with tickets this week should monitor http://www.spiritair.com to check flight status. Just don't expect the ultra-budget airline to be generous with the passengers they jilt.
06-15-2010, 08:32 PM
#3
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Mar 2008
Position: Stagnant..
Posts: 438
The part I really enjoy is people who booked a $9 ticket and went on their ' dream cruise ', only to show up on sunday after a day of striking and multiple announcements of said strike on all media servers and internet blogs/news sites/etc ( yes, cruises DO have internet/TV ) and be completely befuddled as to why/how a strike is going on and pleading ignorance when it comes to the fine print and details involved in the entire process in case something goes wrong. If i'm on such a trip I would be all over that info to make sure i'm covered either way; plus, have some respect for the situation these Spirit pilots are in and the honor and integrity in their presenting a strong, unified front that denies scabbing and is purely out for what is rightfully due to them. Bravo Guys !
06-16-2010, 03:11 AM
#4
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Joined APC: Oct 2006
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Blog: Travel Diva: Spirit Airlines' jilted customers get exactly what they paid for | freep.com | Detroit Free Press
Spirit Airlines' jilted customers get exactly what they paid for
BY ELLEN CREAGER
Free Press Travel Writer
Spirit Airlines stranded thousands of passengers over the weekend and will continue to do so as long as a pilot's strike continues. All flights through Tuesday have now been cancelled.
But do outraged passengers really have a legitimate beef? After all, they took the risk when they booked Spirit, the tiny super-discount airline with some of the least customer-friendly policies around.
The big shock to passengers is this: Unlike mainline airlines, Spirit has no reciprocal arrangements with other carriers. When flights were cancelled in this strike, agents didn't book passengers on a competitor. No competitor will honor a Spirit ticket.
The only recourse is a refund or a credit for future flight.
Spirit flies only 4% of flights out of Detroit, but down in Fort Lauderdale, where they fly 20% of the flights, the Sun Sentinel reported Sunday that passengers were crying, begging for help, even shouting when they found out Spirit wouldn't help them get home.
But what do people expect when they pay $9 or $29 for a plane ticket? Did they take time to read Spirit's rules, which clearly state its stingy policies in case something goes wrong?
I'm not a Spirit fan. I'm not sticking up for their way of doing business. In fact, they are in this pickle because they are such cheapskates they pay their pilots 40% less than other budget airlines pay their pilots.
But passengers also have a duty to read the fine print when they travel. Spirit is a cheapo airline with few customer protections. If you fly Spirit, you should buy travel insurance so you are covered if something goes wrong, because the airline ain't gonna help you.
Here's what they will do:
•Spirit is giving passengers on cancelled flights an automatic fare credit plus an additional credit of $100. The credit is good for a flight valid for one year from your original booking date.
• If you would rather have a refund, call 800-772-7117. A Free Press check of the system Sunday found a wait of greater than 30 minutes on hold to talk to an agent.
• If you bought travel insurance for your flight, you may be covered. Contact the insurer.
Spirit flies out of Detroit Metro non-stop to Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Atlantic City, Los Angeles and Cancun, but many Detroiters use Spirit to travel further on to Caribbean or Latin American destinations.
Those with tickets this week should monitor Spirit Airlines - cheap tickets, cheap flights, discount airfare, cheap hotels, cheap car rentals, cheap travel to check flight status. Just don't expect the ultra-budget airline to be generous with the passengers they jilt.
Spirit Airlines' jilted customers get exactly what they paid for
BY ELLEN CREAGER
Free Press Travel Writer
Spirit Airlines stranded thousands of passengers over the weekend and will continue to do so as long as a pilot's strike continues. All flights through Tuesday have now been cancelled.
But do outraged passengers really have a legitimate beef? After all, they took the risk when they booked Spirit, the tiny super-discount airline with some of the least customer-friendly policies around.
The big shock to passengers is this: Unlike mainline airlines, Spirit has no reciprocal arrangements with other carriers. When flights were cancelled in this strike, agents didn't book passengers on a competitor. No competitor will honor a Spirit ticket.
The only recourse is a refund or a credit for future flight.
Spirit flies only 4% of flights out of Detroit, but down in Fort Lauderdale, where they fly 20% of the flights, the Sun Sentinel reported Sunday that passengers were crying, begging for help, even shouting when they found out Spirit wouldn't help them get home.
But what do people expect when they pay $9 or $29 for a plane ticket? Did they take time to read Spirit's rules, which clearly state its stingy policies in case something goes wrong?
I'm not a Spirit fan. I'm not sticking up for their way of doing business. In fact, they are in this pickle because they are such cheapskates they pay their pilots 40% less than other budget airlines pay their pilots.
But passengers also have a duty to read the fine print when they travel. Spirit is a cheapo airline with few customer protections. If you fly Spirit, you should buy travel insurance so you are covered if something goes wrong, because the airline ain't gonna help you.
Here's what they will do:
•Spirit is giving passengers on cancelled flights an automatic fare credit plus an additional credit of $100. The credit is good for a flight valid for one year from your original booking date.
• If you would rather have a refund, call 800-772-7117. A Free Press check of the system Sunday found a wait of greater than 30 minutes on hold to talk to an agent.
• If you bought travel insurance for your flight, you may be covered. Contact the insurer.
Spirit flies out of Detroit Metro non-stop to Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Atlantic City, Los Angeles and Cancun, but many Detroiters use Spirit to travel further on to Caribbean or Latin American destinations.
Those with tickets this week should monitor Spirit Airlines - cheap tickets, cheap flights, discount airfare, cheap hotels, cheap car rentals, cheap travel to check flight status. Just don't expect the ultra-budget airline to be generous with the passengers they jilt.
stingy passengers deserve stingy restrictions....do the passengers really expect for $9-29 tickets to have "benefits" with that.
06-16-2010, 03:47 AM
#5
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Feb 2008
Position: FIRE ALPA
Posts: 3,100
For $9 I would expect the passengers to be rudely tossed into the baggage hold and their bags to be pleasantly greeted and seated in the cabin. After all the people are paying MORE for thier checked bag than their fare. Either way $9 isn't getting you very much these days.
06-16-2010, 04:29 AM
#6
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Joined APC: Sep 2008
Position: hmmmm.....
Posts: 193
Despite the fact I have switched carriers I still pay allot of attention to the industry. I make it a point not to fly on any airline that is attempting to screw its pilots through long drawn out contract negotiations. My reasoning is 1. Why give my money to an airline who does not care about its pilots. 2. If they don't care about there workers then they don't care about me...the passenger! For a good ammount of time I have been advising friends and family to avoid Spirit.I have flown Spirit before and had great service from professional crews. Good luck Spirit Pilots!! P.S.....Stupid people get a hint...if you pay more for you baggage then your ticket you should not expect anything...just feel lucky you have a seat to sit in! And sorry for any spelling I'm typing well walking.
06-16-2010, 04:35 AM
#8
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Mar 2010
Posts: 218
Well honestly the customers not being aware of it, I am not that surprised. You really check news sites when you are a cruise? You don't know how to relax then 
Additionally, the strike has barely been mentioned on any news sites I frequent... I wouldn't know about it if I just relied on news sites.
Additionally, the strike has barely been mentioned on any news sites I frequent... I wouldn't know about it if I just relied on news sites.
06-16-2010, 04:46 AM
#9
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Joined APC: Mar 2006
Position: in front of a computer screen
Posts: 712
Well honestly the customers not being aware of it, I am not that surprised. You really check news sites when you are a cruise? You don't know how to relax then
Additionally, the strike has barely been mentioned on any news sites I frequent... I wouldn't know about it if I just relied on news sites.
Additionally, the strike has barely been mentioned on any news sites I frequent... I wouldn't know about it if I just relied on news sites.
06-16-2010, 04:46 AM
#10
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Sep 2008
Position: hmmmm.....
Posts: 193
Well honestly the customers not being aware of it, I am not that surprised. You really check news sites when you are a cruise? You don't know how to relax then
Additionally, the strike has barely been mentioned on any news sites I frequent... I wouldn't know about it if I just relied on news sites.
Additionally, the strike has barely been mentioned on any news sites I frequent... I wouldn't know about it if I just relied on news sites.
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