What the heck happens during a delay?
Aircraft maintenance delays can range from a frayed seat belt needing a swap all the up to dents in the engine frame. No matter the maintenance delay is causes havoc for everyone involved starting for those of us who work on the aircraft, those that work on the ground (gate agents and ground crew), the airline and of course the passengers.
Yes I'm tired, thanks for asking!
As I sit here on this CRJ 200 aircraft that carries up to 50 passengers, and I thinking about how tired I am. Today is the third day of three-day trip and I’m exhausted. Last night our (captain, first officer, and me) overnight was in the lovely Fort Wayne, IN. Our show time (time you must be at the airport) was 5:34 am EST. Therefore, we left the hotel on the 5:25 am shuttle. I must note, I didn’t get much sleep because there was an event last night in downtown Fort Wayne where they shot out fireworks from 10:00 – 10:25 pm literally right across the street from our hotel. The fireworks started just after I got off to a good sleep. Needless to say after all the boom, I could not go back to sleep. However, I was up at 4:30am getting my day started for what I thought was going to be 3 quick legs. Our schedule was planned as follows: 6:15 am flight Fort Wayne to Chicago, O’Hare; 7:15 am flight Chicago [0RD (this is the airport code which I will refer to the cities by their airport code going forward)] to Wichita (ICT); then 10:27 am flight ICT back to ORD, arriving at 12:27. There we were to be done for the day ending our 3-day trip. Well, it is 10:27 and I am sitting on an empty plane as we speak [write/type]. I can’t tell you the issue of the delay; not because it’s top secret, but because I don’t understand all the details of aircraft maintenance.
Here's what I can tell you about delays...
Now what I can tell you is the scenario of this delay and how this is going to play out. ICT is not a base or hub for aircrews or maintenance. When an aircraft has a maintenance issue outside of a base, the carrier can call a contract mechanic which can be anywhere from being local or as far as three hours away. In this particular case, our operations department prefer our company maintenance team check out our aircraft rather than a contractor. It has been decided to fly out mechanics from our Denver base. The flight from Denver won’t arrive for 3 hours from the time we first arrived ICT then we have to await the results of the repair. This is one of the worse parts of being airline crew. We don’t get paid our normal hourly flight hour pay while on the ground. (Stay tuned for another blog post on how aircrews are paid). This delay wouldn’t be so bad if this were, let’s say day 2 of a 3 day trip for us because usually with a delay lasting this long if we had other flights they would probably get cancelled (or sometimes not) and possibly we end up not working them yet getting paid for them while we sit and wait. In this situation, that is not the case. This is the last leg of our work day and entire trip, so I don’t know what time I’m going to get off. I did have afternoon plans that are now ruined. Since I vowed to share the good, the bad, the beautiful and the ugly truth of this career here are some tips for current or future flight attendants on how to deal with flight delays like this. Never make specific plans on your last day work or on your overnights. Delays on the last leg of the day often times ruin those plans.
Helping customers with the delay process.
You can't avoid delays but there are a few physical and mental adjustments that will make a huge difference in their experience.
- Teach people, that are not in the industry, that they have to be flexible with you; understanding your schedule is not your own while you are working and changes occur constantly.
- If you are a commuter; have at least two to three flight options on getting home. (Stay tuned on a post on commuting) Use this free time to check flights and come up with a contingency plans in the event you can’t make it home as originally planned.
- Keep an updated tv or movies streaming account; or have movies downloaded from iTunes or your favorite way to stream. This is a great time to catch up on that movie you’ve always wanted to watch but haven’t found the time. Have a book, or electronic reading device. If you would rather read a book, the aircraft can be quite cozy without passengers.
- Read the airplane magazine and find your next travel destination. Airplane magazines have great travel tips and ideas on places to visit. I get a lot of my ideas and places to visit from the airplane magazine. I have the beauty of working on United, Delta and American so I get to review all on a regular basis. Use this time to plan your next vacation since you have the benefit of travel.
- Airport appreciation. Not all airports have fun cool places to eat or activities, but you never know. Some airports have museums….not this one. Pull out your walking shoes and take a stroll for exercise. I know this type of situation is very frustrating for passengers. I too have had delays and been on delayed flight as a passengers.
Here are some tips for you to get through extended flight delays.
- PLEASE BE PATIENT – This is more important not only for the gate agents and ground crews but also for you. I do understand you have places to be and connections to make. When you are patient, and calm with the gate agent that person will be very accommodating to you with options.
- Here are some possible options that you could ask for: Catching the next flight to the same city. If that is not an option; consider another city you could connect through to make it to your final destination. For example from ICT, each major carrier comes here and flies direct to their bases/hubs. United goes to Denver, Chicago, and Houston; American goes to Chicago and Dallas; while Delta goes to Minneapolis and Atlanta. Let’s say you need to get to Los Angeles from ICT, you can get to LA from any one of the above mentioned cities on either carrier. In situations like this, if the carrier in which you are flying don’t have any options for you within their own system, they will rebook you on another carrier.
- Remember that is last resort. If you are flexible with your plans, have them put you on the next flight even if that means the next day. If that is the case, you can get the carrier to provide you with a hotel and meal voucher. (As long as it is a maintenance delay. Airlines do not provide compensation for weather delays.) If you are in your home city and can just go back home and travel the next day, you can ask for compensation due to ruined plans.
- I’m sure you’ve all heard of the travel vouchers. In the case of maintenance you can request compensation in the form of a travel voucher. The gate agent will tell you how much they can give based on the situation and your status with the airline (if you are a part of their rewards program). If you are an avid traveler it is safe to stick with one airline and be sure to join their rewards program. In situations like this, if they see you are regular customer, you can get points in lieu of travel vouchers which works just as well for future travel.
- When making flight arrangements, unless it’s a dire need; always plan for delays and don’t schedule your flights around your scheduled deadlines. For example, I had a passenger that was traveling from ORD to Indianapolis (IND). There are multiple flights per day and his meeting was at 2:30 pm. He decides to take the noon time flight. The flight is only about 30 minutes. IND is one hour ahead which the flight was due to land at 1:40. We ended up having a 20 minute operation delay and now this passenger was in jeopardy of missing his meeting; which he inevitably did and deplaned before we even took off. If you can, plan delays in your flying schedule especially if you need to make a connection.
- Please don’t complain among other passengers. When you share your frustration with others that vibe and energy passes along and usually gets others riled up as well. That is not helpful to anyone.
- Offer to get the gate agent a coffee. They are stressed out trying to accommodate everyone. A little kind gesture goes a long way, you’d be surprised.