Hey, we're passengers, not data points

anytime is too long- SUPPORT THE Flyers Bill of Rights as part of FAA Reauthorization in the Spring- this should have been passed last week but the airlines lobby so much its really difficult to get by that-

This is really crazy that we have to have a bill passed to simply be allowed to get off of a plane, have food, water, air, and a toilet that works available- the basic necessities of life require a bill in Congress- this organization has done a great job but its very hard to win over the money that the airlines spend- PLEASE HELP GET THIS PASSED IN THE SPRING WHEN CONGRESS RETURNS!!!! MAKE IT PART OF THE ELECTION - CANDIDATES SHOULD HAVE TO TAKE A POSITION ON THIS BILL!

Perhaps the best way to deal with this LONG TERM ISSUE is to require ALL GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS (especially Congress (both houses) that currently travel on USAF or other USGOV planes (or private charter or who knows....maybe they have their own Lear??? (excluding of course POTUS and the VP) travel on commercial flights. That is the easiest, most cost effective way to see changes in the airlines industry occur in a "very" quick fashion. Short of that...the $$$ of the airlines lobbying will continue to strike down any attempt for a realistic "passenger's bills of rights"....strange....that we lose out U.S. Constitutional rights on a plane...but that's another issue (or is it. :) )

Do any watch the TV show, "Airplane?" It does not present a positive view of about <5% of flyers. Drunk, obnoxious, smuggling animals, hidden rotten food , body odor, foul language, always late, oversized carry-on, etc., etc.... It doesn't make a difference; they all demand their "rights," and are quick to whip out the "racist" card, or the blatantly false, "I'll contact my lawyer," threat. The more than 95% of flyers, have to put up with the small minority of stupid passengers. I have seen folks demand hotel rooms because of snowstorms, for goodness sakes!

Perhaps a flyers' responsibility/conduct/dress-code law would be more effective in improving a flying experience?

My error, the TV show is "Airline."

It really only takes a few to ruin it for the rest. You see, I'm paying more and getting less. I'm just not sure how that is fair! How long is too long to stay on a plane that isn't taking off? If they know they're going to be delayed, deplane the passengers. You see, by charging too much, giving less than the kind customer service, trying to get through the gate Nazi's, and then being treated like trash on a plane, you're not going to find nice friendly people. If we must have all this, at least go back to regulation. Then life will be good again. You see, regulation worked!

"..You see, regulation worked!"

I well remember my first flight on a jet airliner in 1960. I was flying coach; yet I received a very nice steak dinner, with silverware and crystal, on a flight from Houston to NY, and back.

Airlines are following buses, in regard to customer service. Just as restaurants, hotels, and all public facilities are doing.

The degradation of public behavior has now become common, and unfortunately, accepted.

"We've proposed that the airlines be contractually bound to let passengers off after 'X' number of hours," says DOT General Counsel D.J. Gribbin, which would entail codifying their contingency plans in their contracts of carriage. Assigning a specific value to X — two hours, four hours, whatever — will likely be left up to the individual airlines.

I'm sorry, but isn't the DOT a REGULATORY AGENCY?????????????????

Last I checked they are the "policemen" of the transportation (in this case airlines) system.

Sorry to yell but ITS YOUR JOB TO REGULATE AND ENFORCER RULES ON THE AIRLINES. You are supposed to be the impartial people to "protect and serve" the public interest, NOT BUDDIES OF THE AIRLINES.

In other words, YOU tell the AIRLINES what is needed and safe, not ask them "what would you like to do".

As an excellent example, would a police officer let a person "decide" how much is considered drunk driving, how to do the tests, and on its on "interpretation of the rules" to how to be punished? HELL NO.

Sorry to get slightly off target, but maybe (just maybe) if the DOT had had this attitude before 9/11 the airlines would not have provided (and set the guidelines) for the airport security, put on and locked armored doors to the cockpit (like the Israelis had been doing for 10 years previous), and high tech devices ALREADY IN USE to stop silly rules like "only 3oz" (so that water that was 99 cents outside the airport and not allowed, but the same for $3 brought in by a deliveryman after security is ok (THE SAME DA@@ WATER)).

I think its time to FIRE ALL DOT ADMINISTRATORS and start fresh with new people who are interested in doing the job the DOT is supposed to, not just another mouthpiece/subsiderary of the airlines.

Isn't holding someone against their will kidnapping?  Can you even imagine them holding you on board for more than a couple hours?  Lord - would the lawsuits fly!!

WANT EVERYTHING, willing to pay for NOTHING.

We want to be treated like a Learjet passenger,whilst PAYING LESS THAN A SURFACE BUS TICKET! You get what you pay for.

You go from place to place at 500mph for 1/4 the price of a rented Yugo.One hour on a

plane equals 10-20 hours on the road (depending on terrain). You think you can do better?

Go for it.

  I am ALL FOR re-regulation. I want to return to the times when flying was BETTER and 80% of the 'traveling public' spent 7 days each way in the station wagon to visit back east.

What most people are asking for is to be treated as a human being.  No matter how low the cost to fly the airline is still making money and dependant upon the traveler to stay in business, so they should treat them with respect and dignity and not like cargo that can sit on the tarmac for hours.  If they know the take-off will be delayed, then wait to board until you are close to take off time and then load the plane.  If the airports and airlines had a good system in place based on scheduled take off time, no other plane would be able to cut in front and delay others, then there would be no need to sit on the tarmac for hours.

It's not our right to have a usable toilet?

For God's sake.

I fly 100,000 miles a year and it has always been my expierience that if I'm stuck anywhere for three hours I've already missed my connection.

If someone, anyone holds me longer than three hours on a tarmac against my will there is going to be a problem. I could have already found my own way out of the mess they have got me into.

Get real - find something important to spend your time on. The airlines do a fabulous job of getting you from A to Z a lot faster than your feet or your wheels, at a lot lower cost, under extraordinary pressures. Thou who hath chosen the cheapest fare regardless of airline, can not expect a bejeweled coach with silver service.

The airlines do hold a fair amount of responsibility in deciding when to change policy, in that it is up to the Captain to decide when to call a flight off, and to turn his or her passengers back over to the care of the airport.

I am surprised that there has been little mentioned about the responsibility of the airport.  Let us not lose site of the fact that it is the airport who is in charge of the facilities which would allow a passenger passage between the aircraft and the world. 

If there is no gate available, the airport should have the authority to permit equipment to go out to the aircraft (while in the US, it is usually equipment owned by the airline or a service contracted by the airline).  In the case of snow, the airport has the authority to assign snow equipment to clear a path to the standing aircraft so air stairs can be sent out, thus allowing the passengers to disembark.

I refuse to believe that the airlines, their appointed Captains, and the airport can not arrive at a solution to this.  The DOT should be a catalyst to progress, not the passive messengers. 

How long is too long?  Sit on the tarmac and find out.  What some people tend to forget is while “in line” on the tarmac the passengers are not allowed to get out of their seat – for any reason.  This means no bathroom breaks, no getting your IPod out of the over-head, no getting a blanket (if you can find one on an airline now a days)… just sit there and be grateful you are being treated like cargo.

Most times you sit on the tarmac it’s either waiting for take-off due to weather or after landing and waiting for a gate.

Waiting for an available gate is the biggest joke.  You look out the window and see 2 or 3 gates available but dispatch will not change the paperwork required to change a gate #. 

Waiting for take-off is another rule of laziness all together.   I can turn on CNN or the weather channel on my PDA and see that the weather won’t move through the area for at least an hour or more – the pilot knows it and dispatch knows it.

Basic rights are things we would give to our dog but not to the flying public.  The airlines know best according to the task force – just like Wall Street and Worldcom knew best.

As a very frequent flyer who rides up front and in the back, sitting and waiting and sitting and waiting for hours is getting old.

You ask how long is too long – Major airports like ORD, ATL, MIA, LAX, SFO, SEA… 2 to 3 hours.

For the smaller airports like Wichita, KS – no waiting is too long.  There is no reason why they should have left the gate.

Sadly customer service is NOT part of what the airlines offer, end of story.  They attempt to get you where you want to go at a convenient time for THEM.   The employees of the airlines and the airports do not seem to enjoy their jobs.  It used to be considered part of the service industry but as another poster said SERVICE is no longer part of the service industry.  In a restaurant the wait staff act as if you are bothering them and that because you entered the establishment you MUST tip them whether or not they gave you good service.  Hotel and Motel housekeeping expect a tip. 

I have been a waitress, bartender a housekeeper and worked in retail.  Unfortunately these days the people in these jobs have forgotten that the reason they have that job is because people come to the establishment.  In todays society people seem to deem eating out almost a life requirement as opposed to a treat.  They have become more like your utility companies(something required to live) as opposed to a once in a while thing.  These industries have followed suit....the electric companyt has you by the you know what...you have no choice....and they in turn treat you as such and the airlines are following that same path.  Until no one can stand it or can afford it these industries will continue to treat its customers with distain.

As ususal, the fox is watching the hen house. I seriously doubt any of the industry people on this board have ever had to wait on a tarmac for hours with out the courtesy of even being allowed to use the bathrooms. Recently a mother with 3 small children waited as long as she could before getting up to take her toddler to the bathroom. Of course one of the guards, err stewards got on the intercom to yell at the lady and that it might cause the plan to get out of line. That in turn caused several passengers to yell at the lady and the kid. That is just total BS and every airline that can't learn to treat their PAYING customers with some dignity and respect in that kind of situation should get out of the business!

Believe me, we need airline regulations back!  Both banking regulations and airline regulations need to be part of America! As we all know, deregulation is nonsense!

The airline does things for us when the plane is in the air: drinks, some snacks, decent rest rooms.  I don't think its too much to ask for those things to be provided from the time the door is closed until its open again. 

It appears to me that there is a lot of "flat world" thinking here. I agree that at worst flying is the quickest and usually the cheapest way to travel but there should be a better way to handle departures and arrivals. Why should airliners be allowed to enter the queue when the possibility of take-off is hours away? The control tower could keep this whole issue under control if it gave flights take-off slots before they were ever boarded, allowing the flight to be boarded at an appropriate time to have only a few planes ahead of them on the tarmac.  Wouldn't it be a lot more comfortable waiting inside the terminal than sitting on the tarmack in a to-small seat -- wondering if you will ever go anywhere?

The know they can do it because people just are to lazy and are willing to give up our rights. The government is on buisness side bought and paid for. Till america wakes up we lose and the way it looks is america is to stupid to notice.

I have flown 2 times since 9/11, and only because my company paid for it... There is no way on this precious earth that I will give the airlines any of my money!!!! There are no other businesses that I can think of that charge you a bunch of money to provide a service as horrible as the airline business...THEY ARE ALWAYS OVERBOOKING, OVERCHARGING, DELAYING AND CANCELLING FLIGHTS...and of course losing your luggage, or going thru it to see if there is anything worth stealing..I HATE AIRLINES AND I HOPE THEY GO BANKRUPT..

AND THE WORST PART IS, IF YOU GET UPSET AND TELL THEM LIKE IT IS...YOU WILL PROBABLY BE ESCORTED OUT IN HANDCUFFS...THANKS ALOT HOMELAND SECURITY....PEACE/OUT

Another screw job of the American public by our "leaders" - dominated by the airline industry.   How much $ was spent on this "study" which only issued voluntary guidelines and will result in no chage (of course not, it was designed by the airline industry).

Flying has become a nightmare; I go out of my way to drive to avoid the lowsy and rude service, crowded airport terminals, delays and other misery.  

I enacted my own passenger bill of rights.....I don't fly.