Frequent criers: Elite fliers are ruining air travel

Obviously there are occasional spoiled psychos like Naomi Campbell in first class. And of course they have to follow the rules. But they are, in fact, paying a preposterous premium for their "free" booze and steak. I've been to many fancy restaurants, and have yet to pay $2,000 for a fine steak and a great bottle of wine.

I've occasionally flown first class, but usually fly coach. And every time I fly either, I desperately wish there were something in between the cost-is-the-only-factor steerage and luxury-at-any-price fantasy cabin options. Why isn't there an airline that charges twice the coach price for roomy seats and a decent sandwich? For every seat on the plane? I'll pay for my own booze, thanks.

And as for boarding first, I completely fail to see the allure of sitting in first class while the entire coach cabin sullenly parades past you and bumps you with their carry-ons. Boarding first is not a perk. Leaving the plane first is a perk.

I believe so - although bad behavior certainly isn't limited to first class - they just throw more "refined" temper tantrums. If they are willing to pay more, why not charge them more, and give us back some of the amenities we've been stripped of? They should be more concerned to lose economy class business than first class business. There are fewer first class seats, so their main revenue source is pretty obvious - and those are the people being treated like luggage. Pushing out the bottom level of flyers, the people they've come to rely on (the majority of the seats on any given commercial airplane), does not seem like the smartest business move. If they continue nickel and diming the "steerage class," they are going to stop flying... and then they'll be left with the first class... Are they going to support the airline business alone?

I am an elite passenger on a major airline and I never seen them serving Steak. Contrary to what the author said the food in first class getting worst everyday. I don't know what airline the author is referring to when he is talking about the steak in the first class.

Because of my elite status I have mostly flown in the first class but I have also sat in economy class in other airlines where I don't have any status and many times and I don't think the behavior of the person changes if they are sitting in first class or economy class. You find good and bad people in every class. I don't think the person becomes rude as soon as they reach elite status. I connect the person's attitude to how he or she is brought up.

As some one mentioned getting first on the plane is not a perk and it is only getting first off the plane is a perk.

If I am traveling on business every week I would like to have certain privileges for giving them repeated business and also help me save time anywhere I can.

If I am an occasional traveler I don't mind standing in line for extra fifteen minutes.

One thing I don't agree with airlines is not allowing the passengers to use the restrooms located close to where they are sitting. I think the reason why they are doing that is to not to put up with the hassle of people standing in front of the airplane. I don't think they are doing that for the love of passengers in the first class.

It seems that columnist Christopher Elliot has issues that need to be addressed by the Airline industries, as opposed to the "first class passengers" referred as "the elitist". Their services have been declining to the point that they nickle and dime customers, while the ticket prices keep going up. Like other reviewers, I fail to see the benefits of paying more and being labelled elitist as sometimes paying the extra money doesn't necessarily mean getting the preferential treatments that are advertised. Let's face it... when you're 36000 miles up in the sky, there's barely anything that can make one more comfortable or safe. The benefits of flying first class on domestic commercial airlines is for those so-called Hollywood gang so that they can be branded as environmentalist, eco-friendly, blah blah blah... Right on the dot for Mr. Leonardo DiCaprio, Ms. Madonna, Ms. Barbara Streisand. They board the first class commercial airlines once a year, and then off to their private jets and yet still have the faces to demand us mere mortals with economy budget to be environmentally friendly, to compensate on their carbon footprints all over the world.
With that said, is Christoper Elliot recommending that there shouldn't be any difference in services between the customers who pay more specifically for the preferential treatments (a.k.a first class passengers a.k.a the elitist) and the folks flying economy class? That's hardly fair, don't you think? Let's all stand united and demand changes in the airline industries. Paying $15 for each checked in luggage on top of the ticket prices, only to be stuffed and treated poorly in the economy class or first class is hardly fair.

The other point I would make is that many of those so called "elite" travelers are not paying the extra premium for those seats! First class is full of frequent flyers who have received free upgrades or who have passed those upgrades on to their friends or family members! I have no problem with airlines rewarding their most loyal, frequent customers, but lets be clear that very few of those first class travelers actually paid first class fare for their seat!

Why do you think that first class seat was given to the frequent fliers, Kathy? You think it was free? Yes about every 4th time I fly I get a "free" seat...but that is because I fully paid for the others! So, it is not free. And yes, on international travel, I more often pay full fare for my business class seat. So, excuse me if I get a little insulted about being a plantinum frequent flier with Delta and occasionally getting a free perk. That being said, I agree with others that "elite" status does not grant you the right to be rude or condescending to others. "Elite" status simply means that you have flown a lot and spent a hell of a lot of money on one particular airline...and that airline has decided to reward and "keep" your loyalty by granting you certain benefits. Anyone who has owned a business could see the wisdom of this logic.

Well, Christoper Elliot had two points. 1) that the Airlines are removing things from the coach flyers, which is definitely true, but not a problem of the "elite flyers". That is something the people should step up and say "No, I don't agree" by NOT FLYING that airline. I fly one ariline, because it's the "best' out of the worst. It's not always the cheapest, but I fly that airline nonethless. If consumers actually DID this, then the airlines wouldn't be so quick to remove the "amenities".

Second, he points out the attitudes of the "elites". I'd like to say that those people are spoiled REGARDLESS of flying first class. There are plenty of well behaved first class flyers, as well as coach flyers. Those few who are "attitude" flyers are not attitude flyers, but PEOPLE with ATTITUDE.

As an elite flyer, I do expect better service, ie toilet for first class flyers, decent food, etc etc, because I AM paying much more than a coach flyer, so in essence I am PAYING for the better service. If you as a coach flyer want that better service, then feel free to spend the extra money, no one's stopping you and if the coach service isn't up to your standard, fine an airline that meets your standard, even if it costs a 'little more' or if it only flies from an aiport a bit more inconvienent. (Ie Jet Blue, ViginAtlantic USA)

Don't just complain, let your $$ do your talking for you.

Fly SWA, period! Everybody is treated the same way. They recently introduced Bussiness Preffered, which for $25.00 more than full fare, lets you get on the plane first, but once on and seated, your the same as everyone else.

I expect that the bumbling fools operating the major US carriers will eventually figure out that SWA is slowly but surely taking over more and more airport gates, buying more Boeing 737's and will someday become the dominating US carrier.

Who knows, SWA may one day swing international routes (Latin America).

The writer does cite a few anecdotal cases of first class flyers behaving like spoiled children. However, my experience has generally been there are jerks among all groups of passengers, from the once-every-ten-years flyers to the 250,000 mile-per-year super elites. In fact, if anything, I have noticed that the frequent fliers seem to be more tolerant and understanding of delays and cancellations, and less hostile towards airline employees during such situations.

I move in and out of low-medium tier "elite" status with certain airlines as my level of travel fluctuates from year to year. I appreciate some of the perqs that such status brings . . . e.g., occasional upgrades, boarding first (not because I am in a hurry to sit in an aluminum tube, but rather to guarantee overhead bin storage space), FF mile bonuses, preferred seating, and perhaps most importantly the simple message that the airline appreciates my business. I don't think these perqs are outrageous or ostentatious or worthy of scorn from those who fly less frequently.

I'm an elite on Continental, and believe me the perks aren't all what some are making them out to be. You get to board first, you get a shot at some better seats, and you might get an upgrade occasionally, but that's about it. Like the vast majority of travelers, I buy the cheapest bucket rate I can find. You can't even upgrade those. I actually find the boarding first bit to be an advantage when sitting in coach. With everyone trying to jam their steamer trunks in to the overhead, there's a good chance you're not going to find room when you get to your seat.

I fly first class about 25% of the time, and that's only when I can accumulate enough miles to get one for "free." There are jerks in all of the cabins, but I would agree that proportionately there seems to be a lot more jerks in first class. I love wearing my ratty backpacking clothes when sitting in first class. The looks of "you don't belong here" are priceless. But if I'm jammed in to coach on a flight, and I'm feeling jealous about the perks the people up front are getting, I remind myself that those people (most of the anyway) likely paid $5,000 for a ticket when I only paid $1,500. I figure if they're shelling out that kind of money, they deserve a few perks. By the way, never had a steak in F either, but had one of the best hamburgers in the world up there. ;-)

I mostly fly coach, but have flown business or first class. When I fly coach, I try to do what I can to make the trip go more quickly (usually intracontinental trips) and remain polite. When I do fly "elite," again, I try to be polite and do what I can to make the trip more comfortable to myself and to my fellow passengers.

That being said, I've found there are passengers who can be rude, lewd and/or crude in coach, business and first class. It's more the person than the class in which the person flies.

Oh, and when I do fly international, I try to do all I can to fly business class because I prefer being comfortable for 8+ hours. I also try to do it gratis with frequent flier miles. That means it's cost me quite a bit to get that free $8000+ ticket and I feel I'm entitled to some pampering. As I said before, that doesn't mean I get to be a pain in the butt ot wards other passengers.

If it bothers you so much that first class passengers get treated differently than coach then fly Southwest, Jetblue, etc that don't have a first class cabin and you won't have to deal with us getting onboard before you.

As a Platinum Elite member on Continental I EARNED the right to sit up front and eat steak by being away from my family for 48 weeks out of the year commuting around the globe. Apropos there is nothing from stopping you from sitting up front with us too! Simply put in your dues and fly all the time or open your wallet and pay for the privilege. If you are unwilling to do either then simply deal with your $15 boxed lunch in coach and stop whining. It's not like people are picked for First Class according to race or how good looking one is! First Class is open to anyone at anytime.

I wonder if you whine when you pass a neighborhood with bigger houses than yours or a person driving a more expensive car than yours?

You would probably be happy living in Communist North Korea where I am sure there is no first class to make you feel inferior.

Starving?

You must have been on an African Airline. I've never noticed any starving passengers on any flight I've been on. Is it something unique to America where we consider going 2-4 hours without food to be the equivalent of starvation?

There are rude people.

Sometimes they fly first class, sometimes they fly coach and sometimes they fly coach and whine about which bathroom they can use.

Bring a bucket of KFC chicken on your next flight and stop whining that the airlines aren't feeding you. How hard is it to plan ahead a bit? It's an airplane, not a chow hall.

As someone who for many, many years held the highest of elite statuses on American and United, but now have lost almost all of that status, I can tell you that while I yearn for being treated equally to the "elite fliers," the honest truth is (1) I am not economically equal to them (and the US is a free market, not socialist economy) and (2) traveling as much as you need to to achieve the highest level of status is BRUTAL AND DEMANDING and deserves some perks. Now, if I am in coach, even the first row, I go to the back to use the restrooms, even though I endured YEARS of "entitled" economy fliers violating the stated policies of the airlines and coming into first class to use the facilities there.

Your extreme examples of "bad behaviour" are indeed bad, but very few and far in between and are inflammatory rhetoric at best.

I agree with the guy who responded at the luggage carousel -- if you want to be treated like a first class traveler, pay for it!

Are you suggestion there should be no class/fare differences on airplanes (or trains for that matter?) Certainly you are against frequent diners at a restaurant getting a great table or perhaps you oppose restaurant reservations all together?

Come on...

Is flying first class REALLY worth 10x the price of a coach seat people??? I flew to and from the Bahamas in May, on ALL of our flights, we were directly behind first class. yes, they get their drinks earlier...did they have "meals" NOPE, did we use their restroom, YES, did they get "extra" snack...YES, and it was actually funny, because while we got our pretzels and soda, a flight attendant was carrying a basket of "goodies" for the first class passengers. One of the passengers seated near us asked her "hey, can I have one of those" her reply, after hesitation I might add was "sneak up here, I can't bring the basket back there". The curtain was NEVER closed during ANY of our flights.

My first thought getting on, and I've flown alot, including privately many times in a private yet was....how fun it must really be on flights that don't have first class separated, to have all those people walking by...I don't think it's fun! Only one of our 4 flights had first class to the left, and coach to the right, however....part of the seats to the "left" right behind first class, were our seats...so we didn't have to watch everyone walk by either! And...I bet, no..I know, I paid nothing for our seats compared to the first class passengers.

My feeling is if someone has the money, likes to blow money, likes to be considered "above" the rest....go spend your money on a first class seat, if the alcohol, the food, the extra room, blanket and pillow are REALLY worth that much money! For me, it's not worth it....whether I have it or not!

I wouldn't fly first class if I wanted to :-)

I cast my vote for the person who pays the high price, or earns the upgrade, gets the better seats, food, etc. I look at flying as getting from one place to the next. If I can save a few hundred or thousands, then I have more to enjoy on the ground. This isn't new, anyone see the Titanic? Now that was a class system. Good story and discussion, thanks.

I fly a lot internationally for my work, and the company buys business class for us. They pay a lot, often $4000-$5000 USD per trip. For that amount of money, there should be perks. If I counted the number of red-eye flights I've done, the Saturday nights to arrive in time for Monday morning meetings, and the vast time away from my family, there darn well better be some perks for it. Anyone who flies 100,000+ miles/year for work knows how grueling and demanding that schedule can be. I'd quit if I had to do 17 hour flights in coach and then be expected to go to work a couple hours later and be effective. Business class/first tickets are available to all who want to pay for them.

As far as bad behavior goes, I've never seen any bad behavior in business class. Ever. People are polite and quiet. People are too tired from working to cause trouble. I can't say the same in coach, when some drunk seatmates made me get up 10x in a 3 hour flight to use the bathrooms and were so loud and misbehaved it was unbelievable.

Do you also complain against other industries that offer benefits for repeat customers or additional amenities to those willing to pay more money? Also, there are airlines that do not have first class and other upgrades and put all customers what you describe as "steerage" class. You didn't mention that type of airline and that passengers have a choice of airlines. Also, I would ask if any steak dinner inside a flying bus is really worth $1995 more than the boxed meal served in the economy cabin. I would be happy to charge you $2000 for a steak dinner if you would pay it. As for lack of manners, tantrums and other bad behavior, I don't believe this is due to having special elite airline status, as I have observed this behavior in all classes of service. Do you have any quantitative data to show which class of airline passenger behaves badly more often?

How about this...Take out half of the coach seats and charge double for that class of passenger and bring some comfort back to flying. Personally, I wish the minimum roundtrip fare was about $500 per seat.

Flying used to be enjoyable, now it is a means to an end. I am a frequent flyer and I enjoy first class for the 100,000 miles I fly every year. As for getting on first, it gives me the opportunity to make that last sales call before the plane closes its doors.

Your average flyer takes maybe one trip in a year. It is obvious in that they don't know the procedures, take extra time thru security, are not quite sure of themselves or what to do. These are the ones that hold up boarding. I am all for loading the back of the plane first, but 6-10 first class passengers are not causing the bottle neck. Furthermore, the entire plane is going to get to its destination at the same time so what does it matter who gets on first?

As far as extras...well if you can let me know what airline serves steak, I would like to know because I would be glad to switch. In first class you get a bigger seat and no middle row. You get refreshments, you may get a hot towl to wipe your face, and you will get a modest meal. And as others have pointed out the ability to get off first. We are professional flyers and pay a lot of money over the course of a year.

I always make a point of having a good meal before boarding and carrying on snacks. For any flight of any length, all the passengers are fed. I would hardly say anyone will starve on a domestic flight.

Bad manners...well...I have yet to see anyone that I have sat with on an airplane first or coach act in anyway described in the article. Hollywood brats are probably not a good example as they complain about everything.

Bottom line is, you have to take responsibility for your own travel. If you know you are going to be hungary, then eat before you board. If you have to take medicine, then bring it. If you are thirsty all the time then bring a bottle of water. Wouldn't you do that if you were taking a trip in your car?

Anytime you get a lot of people hurded together trying to get somewhere there are going to be snags. Don't blame the first class passenger as we are professional travelers. We know how to pack light, we don't rely on plane food for dinner and we certainly are not on board for all of the so called extras. We have business to tend to and our companies pay for the ticket to get us in front of our customers quick and efficiently. We want on and off the plane and could care less what happens in between.

I am happy to share the bathroom and I am in total agreement that elite status does not confer the right to be rude or obnoxious. So don't use a couple of anecdotal examples to cover your not so righteous indignation. We aren't flying to make people jealous or feel inferior. We are flying to work.

What the author of the article, and some of the people replying, does not realize is that you get elite status because you, or most likely your company, has spent a lot of money on that particular airline. And for that you get the occasional perk when you're upgraded, such as larger seats, better meals and free drinks. What most non frequent fliers do not realize is that in order to get that status, you also park your butt into a an airline seat, and all of the great accoutrements of airtravel-airports, security, delays, etc-for a much larger percentage of your life than those who do not.

I fly very frequently, so getting a little extra room and service makes a difference because I'm stuck on planes about 2x/week. If I flew once or twice a year it wouldn't make a big difference to me.

The picture in your story was also misleading. I don't know the exact airline, but that was almost certainly an international flight on an non US airline. Domestic air travel does stink in this country, both economy and first class. Travel internationally, especially on non US airlines, is dramatically better. First class is sometimes a bit outrageous, but even economy is far superior to US domestic service.

Don't try to blame the first class or elite status fliers. We're not the ones who are making air service worse. If anything, we just have to put up with it more often.

I am one of the so-called VIPs, but it is because I travel at least 30 times per year, and I have demonstrated a loyalty to one airline for most of my travel. I am disappointed at the tone of your blog (I refuse to call it a column), and am appalled that MSNBC, a news website, would allow such personal bias and misinformation to be published on their site. What you cite are not typical examples, they are extremes. Most of us "elites" as you call us, behave in the same respectful, professional manner as others, and do not take advantage of our particular situation. Does the airline industry have problems? Absolutely. However, in this particular instance, the airlines are only demonstrating the same loyalty to us that we have shown to them. Write a better article, cite relevant examples, and then maybe your story won't be a blog anymore, but an actual article.

I find Mr. Elliott's column to be ridiculous whether I am an elite flyer or not. Does he really believe that complaining is limited to -- or primarily performed by -- frequent (elite) travellers. I would imagine that the airlines would disagree with his belief. Having flown 2 million miles, my experiences have been that the elite fliers don't hog the overheads, know how to put a bag in wheels first, complain about fewer things because they fly often enough to "get it", and don't constantly threaten to, "Never fly XYZ Airlines again" over a lost bag or a missed connection. Sure, elites have their set of complaints, but in my experience seem more reasonable.

I recall there was a reality show that tracked a day in the life of Southwest Airlines. It was amazing how much people could complain on that show, even without elite status! Which brings up a good point: if people didn't like the status perks (or lack of perks without status) everyone would fly SWA and JetBlue, and no one would tolerate AA or UA letting their preferred customers on first. As a matter of fact, Mr. Elliott should fly those airlines too. He would be happy as a lark and (presumably) have nothing to gripe -- or write -- about.

If Mr. Elliott wants to have a positive effect on the state of air travel today, he should focus his column -- and his readers -- on the issue of over-crowded airports resulting in long delays and unrealistic flight schedules. Getting to one's destination late -- or not at all -- has a far greater effect on the lives of Americans, not whining about who gets to get on the plane first.

It doesn't bother me. They get there the same time I do. OK, they get out 10 minutes earlier go collect their overpriced luggage. And for that u want me to pay how much? Fine, if boss pays, but that's OK, I don't need to feel like elitist.

To begin with, very few of those first class passengers actually paid for the privilege of sitting shotgun out of their own pockets; many of them are traveling on the corporate dime and could never afford to pay $2000 for a first class ticket on their salesman's salary in the first place.

With that said, the rest of them are probably sitting in first class because they hoarded their frequent flier miles that were earned off of a multitude of coach tickets paid for by their employer. Again, few of those passengers actually came out of pocket for the ticket.

Finally, extreme well-to-do people don't usually fly first class because they can afford to charter a private jet, and the rest of the well healed crowd is sitting in coach because they like to hold on to their assets. How do I know all this? I used to be one of those frequent flying road warriors.