Plane Conversations

Recently, I had the opportunity to travel to Illinois for a business trip which I parlayed into a mini high school reunion (thank you, Facebook); to Denver, Colorado, to evaluate the conditon and value of a fleet of aircraft; to Orlando, Florida, for a convention and to visit family; and, finally, to Puerto Rico and Florida for business (just business!…right!) 

While I’ve not had the pleasure of living in any other country in the world other than the United States, I still have an appreciation for the freedoms that we enjoy, as if I’ve had to live without them.  Do you relish the freedom we have to travel, or are you caught up in the frustration and inconvenience of it?  Now be honest.  After all, it’s just you and me talking here.  Tell the truth, does the slow, clueless driver in the left lane make you nuts? Does a child kicking your seat from Birmingham to Seattle drive you around the bend? I absolutely believe that we should have expectations and judge our travel service providers based on what we pay and relative to their promises.  But, do you realize the unprecedented ability we have to get from point A to B?  Let’s look at the airlines and how they do it. 

I’ll never forget the Delta Air Lines advertising tag line of the mid 1980s - Delta Gets You There. This was one of the most honest advertising campaigns that I can recall.  They did not claim to get you there on time, happy, on the same day or the same month that you departed!  They didn’t promise that you would arrive with your luggage or that you would make your connections!  There was no promise not to trap you on the ramp for hours without air conditioning, smile at you, feed you, or even suggest that you might want to fly Delta again!  Just that, “hey, whaddyawant?…we get you there don’t we?”  Well, guess what. I can walk, ride my bike, drive or ride my unicycle and “get there”. (Okay, I used to ride a unicycle and still believe after 20 years and I still can…so please just roll with me here.)  My point is that we should expect more from the airlines.  It seems to me that we just take whatever they throw at us. 

At the moment I’m at 36,000 feet on a high profile airline that shall remain nameless (okay, I’ll only say that they are an AMERICAN airline).  And just moments ago I witnessed two flight attendants having a little “spat”.  Nothing instills more confidence in me than overhearing a disagreement between two people whose main purpose is to work as a team to help save my bacon in the event of an emergency.

Here’s what I believe: It’s okay to have expectations of being treated like a human rather than a quiet and helpless zoo animal when you ride the airlines.  Realistically, however, aren’t you just setting yourself up for frustration?  Really, I want you to help me out and answer here.

I think that we should relax, leave early, bring a book, an iPod, the Xanex and demand more, but be realistic about what the airlines are able and willing to deliver.  Appreciate the travel freedoms that we enjoy but keep them in context.  It will keep you calmer, happier and help you appreciate the opportunities that we experience within the boundaries of the airlines’ limited desire to satisfy over their desire for profit.