Best/Worst Airline

[Chigworthy]

I have to book a flight in the next few days. One of the options that comes up is a Frontier flight on a similar type of aircraft to that one that went swimming in the Hudson. I don't like the name "Airbus". Who's got recomendations on best and worst airlines & aircraft? Also, what is the preferred broker site online, or are they all the same?

[ToiletCrusher]

I like jetblue.

[Marc with a c]

quantas has never crashed.

[underdog]

I worked around the airline industry for over a decade. I know all their secrets and what airlines to avoid.

Continental has the best employees. They actually care about their company and job.

AirTran is a disaster, but its cheap. But its really and truly a disaster.

JetBlue is also cheap, but they also have pretty new planes and television. So that's good. Their employees suck, for the most part, though.

If you never want to see your luggage again, fly British Airways.

Where are you flying to and out of? The destination of the plane makes a HUGE difference on the airline. Flying to Chicago? AA is fantastic. Flying to Miami? Stay the fuck away from AA.

[Ritalin]

US Air sucks.

[K.C.]

Southwest.

But only because I own the stock (unfortunately).

[Tall_James]

Oceanic isn't so hot.

[drusilla]

AirTran is a disaster, but its cheap. But its really and truly a disaster.



worst airline ever. hate it. never willing to fly it again.

it's cheap for a reason.

[underdog]

US Air sucks.

I agree.

If you have to fly through Philly on US Air, DON'T. Especially if you'd like to see your luggage again.

My favorite / least favorite of working at the airport happened with US Air. They "accidentally" left off an entire airplane of luggage around Christmas time from Philly to Boston. Instead of slowly sending those bags with the next few planes of luggage, they filled the next plane with the forgotten luggage and left that plane's luggage off. And then did it again. And again. This literally went on for FOUR DAYS.

Instead of having one plane of missing luggage, they had FOUR DAYS STRAIGHT of every plane missing every piece of luggage they checked.

[Chigworthy]

I'm flying to Denver.

[underdog]

I'm flying to Denver.

United would be great.

Frontier was also a pretty great airline to deal with.

[Tenbatsuzen]

I second continental. Great service. The only problem is, they have some of the smallest seats on their planes.

Jet Blue is awesome. Comfy seats, excellent entertainment options, and their terminal at JFK is phenomenal.

However, why do you have an issue with Airbus and mention 1549? If anything, that's a testament to the aircraft, not a negative factor.

[Chigworthy]

United would be great.

Frontier was also a pretty great airline to deal with.

I was thinking United. The only Frontier flights are the airbusses. Are those things any good, or do they alway run into birds?

[Chigworthy]

However, why do you have an issue with Airbus and mention 1549? If anything, that's a testament to the aircraft, not a negative factor.

True.

[drusilla]

I agree.

If you have to fly through Philly on US Air, DON'T. Especially if you'd like to see your luggage again.

My favorite / least favorite of working at the airport happened with US Air. They "accidentally" left off an entire airplane of luggage around Christmas time from Philly to Boston. Instead of slowly sending those bags with the next few planes of luggage, they filled the next plane with the forgotten luggage and left that plane's luggage off. And then did it again. And again. This literally went on for FOUR DAYS.

Instead of having one plane of missing luggage, they had FOUR DAYS STRAIGHT of every plane missing every piece of luggage they checked.


that might be one of the most awesomeist things i've ever heard

[underdog]

that might be one of the most awesomeist things i've ever heard

US Air has hourly flights from Philly to Boston. The least expensive delivery of the lost luggage would be $12. Every flight was about another 100 - 120 new deliveries. From 6am - midnight. Every hour. For four days.

I was shocked when they had to file bankruptcy.

[Kris10]

Tell me about Spirit

[Heather 8]

Tell me about Spirit

It stinks.

Very disorganized, flights are constantly delayed 2+ hours without any explanation, and the flight attendants are the biggest twats on the planet. We only flew with them because it was a cheaper flight to Orlando, but the misery was not worth the money saved.

[drusilla]

US Air has hourly flights from Philly to Boston. The least expensive delivery of the lost luggage would be $12. Every flight was about another 100 - 120 new deliveries. From 6am - midnight. Every hour. For four days.

I was shocked when they had to file bankruptcy.

i used to fly the shuttle back & forth when i went to school in boston. the tickets were $45 for a 2 hour trip door to door. i dealt with them for the price. one time i decided to check my bag it showed up on the carousel with a giant tear end to end with my bra sticking out. good times.

[Chigworthy]

i used to fly the shuttle back & forth when i went to school in boston. the tickets were $45 for a 2 hour trip door to door. i dealt with them for the price. one time i decided to check my bag it showed up on the carousel with a giant tear end to end with my bra sticking out. good times.

I'm sure some baggage-handling goon didn't masturbate angrily with your bra.

[underdog]

Tell me about Spirit

I know little about them, so that's a good sign.

I'm sure some baggage-handling goon didn't masturbate angrily with your bra.

A bag once broke open in the back room of Northwest and it was filled with whips and leather and bras and panties. So all the ramp guys ran out to see who would grab the bag and it was some 50ish year old balding man. It was fantastic watching so many people be so disappointed at the exact same time.

[Devo37]

for anyone planning on flying to Ireland:

AerLingus used to be the premier (and only?) option, but their service has become unbearable.

on my last flight, they canceled my afternoon return flight a week in advance and re-scheduled me on a flight that left ireland at 6am without notifying me. if i hadn't called to confirm, i wouldn't even have known!

my flight out of JFK to Ireland got canceled day-of because of "mechanical problems", which (from what i heard) actually translates into "we had 2 flights that that day which were only half-full, so we decided to combine them into one flight to save money." instead of taking off at 6pm as originally planned, we took off at 11:45pm!

in-flight services that used to be free (ex. wine with your meal) now cost $7.

F' You, AerLingus!!! Delta provides 1000% better service for the same price!!!!!!!

[underdog]

F' You, AerLingus!!! Delta provides 1000% better service for the same price!!!!!!!



I always loved aerlingus, but that was only because every 6 months they'd bring in brand new, hot, Irish chicks to work there.

[RobotPilgrim]

Jet Blue, best. If you can avoid US Air, do so. Continental has high quality service, newer fleet. Overall quality. If you have a choice of JFK, LGA or EWR, fly out of JFK.

[Chigworthy]

I always loved aerlingus.

Me too, but only if it's reciprocated.

[KingModem]

There is no reason not to fly frontier. They have cheaper beer & in flight television for a fee, have very nice employees, and you fly direct to Denver since all Frontier flights go through DEN.

Get over your fear of "Airbus" because about 50% of domestic airplanes are Airbus.

Save some money for the 55 dollar taxi into downtown if you dont have anyone picking you up!

[KingModem]

....And they take credit cards! (Might not be a perk for most of you, but the Minnesota and NWA fliers appreciate that small luxury)

[led37zep]

Virgin America is the best airline I've been on within the United States.

Great drinks, Great food...both of which can be ordered at anytime and the RED system really helps the flight swing by (if you're not using the in flight wifi)

[Devo37]

I always loved aerlingus, but that was only because every 6 months they'd bring in brand new, hot, Irish chicks to work there.

not any more, apparently. my last flight (3 weeks ago) had some pretty bad flight attendants (2 of them were male). there was one good looking one who was working first-class, so she only passed down the aisle when she needed to get something from one of the galley.

still, something about a flight attendant that makes them seem hotter than they would look otherwise.

[yojimbo7248]

Best: Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines

Worst: Roumanian Air, Bulgarian Air

[Fez4PrezN2008]

There is no reason not to fly frontier. They have cheaper beer & in flight television for a fee, have very nice employees, and you fly direct to Denver since all Frontier flights go through DEN.

Get over your fear of "Airbus" because about 50% of domestic airplanes are Airbus.

Save some money for the 55 dollar taxi into downtown if you dont have anyone picking you up!
Agree 100% KM. They are HQ'd in Denver so its their home turf. You'll be fine Chig. Don't worry about the planes, its like asking is that a Blue Bird bus or a Collins? Doesn't really matter, they both get ya there. Have a good trip.

I used to be a Delta fan, but meh... Also I often found better prices on travelocity then our own company travel dept could get !

[razorboy]

I usually go Continental or American if I have a choice. More often than not, Continental.

[drusilla]

I'm sure some baggage-handling goon didn't masturbate angrily with your bra.

that shit went right in the trash

[KingModem]

Agree 100% KM. They are HQ'd in Denver so its their home turf. You'll be fine Chig. Don't worry about the planes, its like asking is that a Blue Bird bus or a Collins? Doesn't really matter, they both get ya there. Have a good trip.

I used to be a Delta fan, but meh... Also I often found better prices on travelocity then our own company travel dept could get !

Cheers. That is all this gentleperson needs to know.

[~Katja~]

Lufthansa has never failed me, Continental is also great and they often have the best last minute deals online on their own site. I would pick Continental for domstic flights.
Air France is the worst, 2 out of 2 for lost luggage and weeks delay in returning it.

[Jujubees2]

I flew Frontier to California (with a stop in Denver) two summers ago and it was fine. The flight attendants were great and they even gave my family free TV since we were nice enough to move our seats to accomodate someone with an injury who needed the front row.

And the different animals they have on the tail of each plane is cool.

[A.J.]

Best: Qatar Airways.

Worst: Saudi Arabian Airlines. No booze, no pork.