Kym’s disabled mother was going to move in with her a few weeks ago. She purchased tickets for her mother and four nieces to fly to Kym’s city from a major hub airport about two hours away from their town. Instead of getting on their flight, the family ended up stuck in the airport for six hours, then had to hire a car service to drive them back home. What happened? Garden-variety airline delay? No, Kym writes: AAA sold her sister standby tickets without letting her know. The stress of the experience has affected Kym’s mother so much that she still hasn’t been able to make the flight. [More]
airtran
Some Airlines Jettisoning First Class Seats
By 10.20.10
Global austerity has lead some airlines to chuck first class seats out the air lock. [More]
AirTran Fined $500,000 For Lousy Wheelchair Service
By 8.31.10
The Transportation Department has served AirTran a $500,000 civil penalty for repeated failures to accommodate disabled travelers, reports Associated Press. The airline was also cited for not providing adequate responses to customers who complained, and for not properly filing complaints with the government. The biggest issue, however, was that it doesn’t always provide wheelchairs to disabled passengers in a timely manner. AirTran says it’s working on implementing a wheelchair tracking system at its hubs. [More]
Tiny Turtle Makes AirTran Return To Gate, Girls Forced To Get Rid Of Pet Before Reboarding
By 6.25.10
Maybe it was Michelangelo and they were afraid he would eat up all the in-flight pizza. A 10-year old girl’s teensy turtle posed enough of a risk to an AirTran flight that the plane was forced to turn around and return to the gate. The girl and her sisters were told they could not get back on the plane with the turtle. [More]
AirTran Makes Fun Of Southwest Seating In Commercial
By 3.31.10
If you’ve ever been part of the mad dash for seats on a Southwest Airlines flight, you might find this video from AirTran funny. In it, mooing passengers race down the jetway while a Southwest employee makes ridiculous jokes. Meanwhile, AirTran serves its assigned-seat passengers Kool-Aid. Wait, now I’m confused about who’s being mocked here. [More]
You Accidentally Forget You Don't Live In Baltimore, And AirTran Fixes It
By 10.26.09
Here’s a heartwarming email from reader Joy. She accidentally booked tickets from Baltimore instead of Philly and AirTran not only fixed this mistake — they didn’t charge her extra.
People Love Airplane Wi-Fi, But They Don't Love Paying For It
By 8.28.09
The WSJ’s latest “Middle Seat” column is about that holy grail for all internet-lovers — airplane Wi-Fi. It turns out that people love, love, love it… but pay for it? Nah.
Breaking Down Airline Safety Records
By 8.28.09
The Daily Beast says it has determined which airlines in the U.S. are the safest by comparing the global statistics for the 25 airlines with the best safety records and those with the worst. Which is the safest? The answer may come as a surprise, since this methodology showed that AirTran is the safest national carrier.
One Man's Publicity Stunt Is Another's Vision Of Hell
By 6.5.09
I mentioned comedian and filmmaker Mark Malkoff in passing in a post about Starbucks last week, not knowing that he would embark on a new project this week. He’s making a career out of bizarre feats of consumer endurance, such as visiting all 171 Manhattan Starbucks outlets in one day, and living in the Paramus, NJ IKEA for a week. Now, as part of a campaign to publicize AirTrain’s new in-flight wi-fi, he’s living on an AirTran plane for 30 days and posting his adventures on the Internet. Yes. That’s an entire month. Most of which will probably be spent on the tarmac in Atlanta.
AirTran Removes Muslim Family From Flight, Refuses To Reseat After FBI Clears Them
By 1.2.09
AirTran removed a Muslim family and their friend from their flight, had them questioned by the FBI, and then refused to re-seat or rebook them after they were cleared by the FBI.
Top 3 Most and Least "Fee Crazy" Airlines
By 8.27.08
Airline fees are a controversial topic these days, so we look a look at the fees that airlines were charging and picked the top 3 most and least “fee crazy” airlines. Avoiding fees is hard, so why not try to avoid the airlines that charge them instead?
AirTran Agent Screams, Curses At Travelers While Supervisor Looks On
By 8.25.08
Forget about those dowdy old-school Olympics. What we need is an international competition to see which airline can suck the most, since everyone is getting so good at it. In the category of Random Rudeness, this AirTran agent and her equally hostile supervisor would have a good shot at the gold—especially since they aimed their hostility at a honeymooning couple.
Oil! Airlines Issue Open Letter Asking You To Help Them Lobby Congress
By 7.10.08
In a letter signed by 12 CEOs, the US air travel industry has called upon you, their customers, to help them lobby congress. What’s the problem that they need help solving? Oil speculation. Read the letter inside.
The Ultimate Airline Bankruptcy And Merger Cheat Sheet
By 4.15.08
Thinking of taking a trip but can’t remember which airlines are bankrupt and which ones are part of Delta? We know it can be difficult—that’s why we’ve put together a little cheat sheet to help you get through this time of uncertainty.
Stranded After AirTran Never Bothered To Announce The Flight
By 3.13.08
Reader Thomas was waiting for his delayed AirTran flight…. and waiting… and waiting. Turns out that AirTrain never made an annoucement that the delayed flight had arrived and it left without Thomas and a few other passengers.
People Who Buy First-Class Tickets On Discount Airlines Are Like…
By 12.24.07
benpopken: Well let’s kick it up a notch. Let’s say that a guy buys a first-class ticket on AirTran, and then when the steward is asking all the first-class passengers what they want to drink before take-off, he asks for a Grey Goose and cran…
AirTran's Disingenuous "System-Wide Summer Sale"
By 6.19.07
Monday, AirTran announced a so-called “System-Wide Summer Sale.” FareCompare.com looked at the price history and found that instead, AirTran had raised prices, then lowered them, calling the delta a “sale.”
AirTran Charges $15 For Exit Row Seat Assignment, Makes Customers Sad
By 6.7.07
Kristen
AirTran’s email inside.
