[monyck]

Thank you for making a normal flight to go back home into a nightmare! (I hope you get the irony in this line)
Let me start with sincerely thanking to those who individually actually did something to improve in some way this terrible experience. It is nice to know there are sounded people out there knowing that they can do better. Apart from that small group of 2 people total, the rest of the administration, customer service on the phone and at the counter crew were a total deception.
First, generally my normal day when I fly starts with checking in and printing my boarding pass. When I travel for work I only have a carry-on bag. On September 17th, nothing started normal. Airtran’s web page was having issues already. I tried to get my ticket in the morning and didn’t have any luck. Because, I was in a whole day event at the FED-Atlanta I decided to try later. Around 2pm, I decided to focus only on getting my ticket for my 8.50pm flight from ATL to MSP (direct flight). This never happened. I was not able to check-in nor print my boarding pass using Airtran’s web page. I thought it was a problem with my hotel’s internet connection and decided to go directly to the airport. Once in the airport @4.15pm, I went directly to the self check-in area right out of MARTA’s exit, and after the 5th try in different machines I am convinced that something is wrong. Why wasn’t I worried after the 2nd or 3rd try? Because the customer service person right in front of me didn’t say anything after seeing me trying in so many computers. I had to be the one approaching him asking for directions. Then, this is when things really starting to go downhill. He recommended to go directly to ticketing. Surprise! There is a line on Airtran and nothing is moving. No one is being attended because the system is down. It is now quarter to 5pm.
There are many things that frustrated me from yesterday, but be sure that the actual issue that the system was down is not on the top of the list. What actually bothers me is the way things were handled (or mishandled) during this stressful period.
1. There was a complete lack of leadership and communication among the crew working that afternoon/night and with the public at the Atlanta airport ticket counter.
a. Several different people were talking and given contradictory information from “the system will be back in 30min-1hr”and “you should go and rebook your flight on the phone” to ‘’ the system is just coming back” and “well, if you leave how do you prove you were not a ‘no show’”. Obviously, these kind of mixed information kept the line getting longer and people in there tired and worried.
b. Once the issue was still present after the 1hr threshold, they updated to one more hour and so on. This claim actually never stopped until 10pm when they noticed that we didn’t believe it anymore (they didn’t even believed it anymore). At some point there were also rumors that the day before Airtran delivered hand written tickets and TSA was not allowing that anymore. This was the reasoning behind why they were not going through that process right after system went down (or so we were told) in the afternoon.
c. Miraculous, at 8pm a white hair lady who has been around come out of the offices with lists of names of passengers and flights saying “we are going to take 9pm flights”, but while she was going around with that in mind others were saying go back home and reschedule your flight on the phone while others were saying the system will be back. This was for me my turning point. They randomly picked a time (later moved to 9.30pm so people with 9.20pm and 9.25pm were not able to check-in/board) and left those who already lost their flight and those who were still on time for their flight (because there was enough time to get them to their flights and even more there were many flights that got delayed at the end like mine) helpless losing their flights and minds!
d. During the chaotic moment of the ‘list’, a good Samaritan (smart person) from southwest was able to hold one of 8.50pm flight. I was ready to check in with the people boarding that flight at that time, but what is my surprise that they both were going to Columbus OH and not Minneapolis MN. The lady checked them in with bags and walked them to the security area and the flight. This was happening parallels to other people of the crew denying the check-in of 9.20pm and 9.25pm people. Even in my case, no one else wanted to take the time to check my flight and all the time their answer was no. Until finally someone said “Your flight is actually delayed, but we cannot do anything because only 9.30pm and later flights will be processed”. How can they say that to me when I witnessed how this two costumers were checked in and walked through their flights even thought their flight was at 8.50pm? I asked for a supervisor. I got someone who claimed to be the customer service supervisor. She was NO help at all. She did not understand my frustration of having gone through that experience of seeing how passengers were treated differently depending on things that weren’t clear to me. Maybe because I’m Latina I did not deserve the same treatment? That is how I felt right at that moment. Her main point for not offering a solution to me is that she has to be fair to everybody and she couldn’t offer me something different than what she can offer to others. Her point, of course, was invalidated by her crew. They offered and helped these two customers so they were able to catch a flight that was departing at the same time as mine. In addition, people who had a flight just 30min after mine were able to board their flights even though by the time they decided to offer manual tickets there was enough time for me to catch my flight. Is this what the airline would classify like equal treatment and fairness? I cried of desperation in front of her! I think it was a combination of tiredness, hunger, and complete frustration!
e. At this point, they were playing at getting people tired. There was not earl opportunity to make sure the rebooking process was going to work on the phone because system was still down. It is now 9.30pm and people are losing their patience. They came up with solutions like using other carriers when it was pass 10.30pm, even though 10 minutes before they were insisting on people to leave. But what about those who doesn’t live in ATL? A voucher for discounted hotel was offered around 11pm, but this discounted rate actually meant a final cost of $80+ (including taxes). Also, it was getting late that by the time you get to the hotel you would need to get ready to come back to make sure you can get a seat once system is back on.
All the previous points show the serious issues in the management of the ticket counter at Atlanta airport. The real manager never showed her face to customer. I was able to see her once when a TSA representative and a baggage claim manager were asking for her because they just noticed the irregularities of the baggage tickets and flights. I saw her only that time because I was next to the representatives. Otherwise, like the rest of the people in line I would have never seen her. The next time she was outside she immediately went inside when she saw costumers were approaching the counter. Terrible behavior and treatment also from the crew.
2. On top of my personal odyssey, when I move to a side to re-evaluate what I am going to do after being in the airport and in line for almost 6 hours I noticed an elderly woman crying on the side next to a young guy who looks like an airport employee. They were talking in Spanish. She had lost her flight to LA because her DC flight departed late. They departed at 6pm, at a time they already knew she was not going to make her ATL connection. However, they still let her go and never tried to contact her family members or even find a Spanish speaker translator (in Washington DC!!!). It was heartbreaking to see the 75 years old lady from Guatemala crying because she is all alone, doesn’t know the language nor anybody around. I decided to talk to her (in Spanish) and let her know I will stay with her until she gets her flight next day. She was told she was going to be able to get into the 6am Southwest flight to LA, so we seated right in front of the counter on the benches surrounded by wheelchairs. I gave her a hug to show her support and couldn’t stop crying with her. During the long night we talked and I offered a sweater because it was getting cold. No blankets nor pillows were even offered.
3. By 3 am the system is back in the web page and I called to 1-800-airtran to tryto change my reservation but they were saying their system was still down. From there I started calling every 5 minutes. The treatment from the customer service people on the phone was very poor. When system was back, I even had a lady saying on the phone that it was not back at all. I had to hang up and call again right away to get someone else. That someone else, even asked me the reason of me changing an already lost flight. I actually told him: Are you kidding me? Do you know what has been happening at your workplace? Really? Nobody at Airtran knows what is happening here? I end up getting a flight with a stop in Milkwakee because the non-stop was already full. I was able to get this ticket because I did not sleep during the entire night checking every 20-30min if the system was back.
In summary, Airtran’s incidence created a lot of physical and mental distress for me. I was supposed to be back home to work and teach at my university. I had to cancel meetings and classes and to reschedule activities in the middle of the night because AirTran forced me to loss my flight. I had to stay awake and seating in a metal bench during the entire night to be able to be there at the time the system was open. I didn’t have dinner because during the entire time the mixed information was also creating hope and confusion. So it felt that if you were not there you would be blamed for missing your flight. Also, I had to act as a Spanish guide for a 75 years old lady because the airline left her alone in the airport after missing her connection to LA because of Airtran’s lack of organization.
I request you analyze these issues and consider a good way to compensate me for the stress generated by Airtran’s own fault and my handling of what was supposed to be Airtran’s job on helping the elderly woman during the entire night. There was no fault on my part! I was on time (4.15pm for a 8.50pm flight), I paid for my direct flight ticket and I waited in line for more than 6 hours. However I was forced by the airline to miss my flight and ended up flying the following day in a flight with a stop. I deserve not only a formal apology from the airline but also a considerable compensation. Money back for my ticket, day job lost, stress generated by staying in line for 6hrs plus and lack of sleep, unfair treatment (leaning almost towards discriminatory), and finally receiving a no-direct flight to my final destination.

[jimworcs]

AirTran had a meltdown when their servers failed. Totally with you on the handling of the crisis. There are numerous media reports of AirTrans failure to manage the situation adequately. However, to suggest there was a racial element or your treatment was discriminatory is ridiculous.

[monyck]

Sorry, Were you there with me? How do you call different treatment based on observable differences? How do you call leaving an old lady alone and not even try to find her a translator along the way when they do have that service for elderly people? That I feel their treatment was almost leaning towards discriminatory is something that you cannot dispute because that is exactly how I felt. I do not think that I have to prove my feelings to someone who did not experience what I did.

[jimworcs]

Because YouTube, social media and other outlets have tons of stories about this event, and you can see them all being treated badly, regardless of ethnicity. The mis-treatment if ALL their passengers is there for all to see. There is a Fox news report of a white, male frequent traveller being stranded and asked to buy new tickets. There are literally thousands of tweets, Facebook postings etc? You provide no detail to support your assertion... So I called it like I see it... Bull

[monyck]

Dear Monica,

Thank you for contacting AirTran Airways. On behalf of AirTran Airways, I offer my sincere apology for any inconvenience you experienced during your recent travel. On September 17, 2013, AirTran Airways suffered a power outage at the company that handles reservations and airport check-in systems for several airlines is disrupting flights across the country. The power outage happened at Navitaire, a reservation technology company with a facility in Minneapolis. It is unclear how many flights were affected, but the major airlines affected were AirTran, Spirit and Toronto-based Porter Airlines.

Unfortunately, the airline began experiencing passenger check-in problems throughout the day that caused rollover delays into the following day. This resulted in long lines at a number of airports, primarily Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Our objective is to operate our flights in a safe, reliable and timely manner, which will allow our customers to reach their destinations as scheduled. Occasionally, factors outside of our control hinder our efforts.

Nevertheless, when an irregularity occurs, we understand the frustration it causes and we regret any inconvenience incurred by our passengers. Your comments will be forwarded to the appropriate department heads for review and correction in order to improve our future performance.

To ensure consistency, it is necessary to place guidelines when issuing compensation. In keeping with industry standards, our airline does not offer restitution for flight delays that are caused by matters out of our control. I regret any disappointment this response may cause you.

We thank you for including AirTran Airways in your travels and your continued support is important to us. We hope to have an opportunity in the future to regain your confidence in our airline.



Sincerely,

Frances, AirTran Airways

The file reference number for your e-mail is 216745213381.

[monyck]

Dear Airtran,
This matter/issue was not out of your control! It was actually you lost of control what created the major issue. There were ways to solve the situation faster but there was not managment to do so. People were able to catch their flights using hand written tickets, while the system was still down. Was this out of the airline control? NO, if it is out of control you cannot offer solutions during the permanence of the issue. If system is still down, you should not be able to check people in, but you DID. Therefore, you were able to control the situation (late but you did)

Do these people of Airtran think we are all stupid?

[jimworcs]

Dear Monica,

Thank you for contacting AirTran Airways. On behalf of AirTran Airways, I offer my sincere apology for any inconvenience you experienced during your recent travel. On September 17, 2013, AirTran Airways suffered a power outage at the company that handles reservations and airport check-in systems for several airlines, disrupting flights across the country. The power outage happened at Navitaire, a reservation technology company with a facility in Minneapolis. It is unclear how many flights were affected, but the major airlines affected were AirTran, Spirit and Toronto-based Porter Airlines.

Unfortunately, the airline began experiencing passenger check-in problems throughout the day that caused rollover delays into the following day. This resulted in long lines at a number of airports, primarily Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Our objective is to operate our flights in a safe, reliable and timely manner, which will allow our customers to reach their destinations as scheduled. Occasionally, factors outside of our control hinder our efforts.

Nevertheless, when an irregularity occurs, we do our best to exploit the situation by taking the opportunity to racially abuse our minority customers and treat them less favourably than other customers. Of course, we work hard to hide this fact and we are very impressed you were able to detect our dastardly plan, even though we also inconvenienced thousands of other passengers in the hope that this would disguise our true motives.

We fully understand the frustration it causes when our customers discover our secret plans and we regret any inconvenience incurred by our minority passengers. Your comments will be forwarded to the appropriate department heads for review and hope in future to improve our performance so we don't get caught out by highly intelligent passengers such as yourself.

To ensure consistency, it is necessary to place guidelines when issuing compensation. In keeping with industry standards, our airline does not offer restitution to minorities for flight delays. I regret any disappointment this response may cause you.

We thank you for including AirTran Airways in your travels and your continued support is important to us. We hope to have an opportunity to abuse you in the future.

Sincerely,

Racist Randy