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National Post
29-05-2025
- General
- National Post
Flight attendants and gate agents reveal 11 things you should never do when flying
Article content From cutting in line to swapping seats at the last minute, poor travel etiquette has a way of testing everyone's patience. We asked flight attendants and gate agents to spill the tea on the habits that drive them (and your seatmates) up the cabin wall. Here's a flight plan for cultivating mile-high manners that can make flying more pleasant for everyone. Article content Article content Licence to fly Article content Article content That panicked pat-down of empty pockets at the check-in counter is an airline agent's recurring nightmare. Airlines require a valid government-issued photo ID matching your ticket name precisely — not your nickname, maiden name or creative spelling variation. Article content Article content While airlines can typically correct minor name misspellings (often up to three characters), anything more might incur fees. Expired driver's licences don't fly, passports need six months' validity for many destinations and countries like the U.K. and Australia require pre-approved digital travel permits. Article content The golden rule of air travel documentation? Check everything twice before heading to the airport. Without a valid government-issued photo ID with your full name and date of birth, there's very little the airlines can do to help. Article content When passengers arrive at the airport unaware of their fare's baggage allowance, it creates a domino effect of delays throughout the boarding process. Gate agents forced to explain policies, process unexpected payments and tag last-minute checked bags are pulled away from other pre-departure tasks. Article content Article content Having to deal with a passenger who has blown way past their baggage allowance can be 'incredibly frustrating and has consequences,' said one gate agent working out of Calgary International Airport, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Article content What begins as one passenger's confusion can result in a pushed-back departure time, affecting everyone's connections and plans. Understanding your specific baggage allowance before arriving at the gate helps ensure a smoother journey for all.
Forbes
29-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Best Airlines For Wheelchair Users, New Study Suggests
A new study says JetBlue Airways ranks No. 1 among 10 U,S. airlines in wheelchair accessibility. (Photo by) Congested airports and narrow airplane aisles are just some of the challenges faced by airline passengers traveling in wheelchairs. A new study says JetBlue Airways ranks No. 1 in wheelchair accessibility for airline passengers, and Delta Air Lines is No. 2. The study by travel insurance company InsureMyTrip analyzed wheelchair accessibility at 10 U.S. airlines during 2024. The company established a 0-to-10-point scale, using Department of Transportation data that shows reviews by passengers using wheelchairs and the number of mishandled wheelchairs and scooters. JetBlue was given the highest score—7.4. Of 29,147 wheelchairs and mobility scooters JetBlue boarded in 2024, only 464, or 1.6%, were recorded as mishandled, InsureMyTrip says. JetBlue also had the highest percentage of positive reviews from wheelchair users. Delta Airlines ranked second with a score of 6.9. The airline had the lowest percentage of wheelchairs and mobility scooters mishandled—0.6%. With a score of 6.7, Alaska Airlines finished No. 3. The airline transported more than 35,000 wheelchairs and mobility scooters in 2024, and only 547, or 1.5%, were reported as mishandled. 'Air travel should be accessible for everyone, but that's far from the reality,' says Sara Boisvert, Insure My Trip's marketing director. 'We hope this study shines a light on which airlines are getting it right and which have room for improvement, so wheelchair users can make an informed decision when booking a flight.' Frontier Airlines had the lowest score—2.2—and American Airlines' 3.3 score was second lowest. Frontier did not respond to a request for comment. American responded with a written statement. 'American has a long-standing commitment to serving passengers using wheelchairs,' the airline wrote. 'Just last year, American invested over $175 million in service, infrastructure and training to improve the travel experience for customers traveling with wheelchairs or other mobility devices. These investments are improving the experience for our customers. Since 2022, American's mishandled wheelchair and scooter rate has reduced by more than 30%. And our rate of wheelchair delays improved more than 50% year over year.' More than 5 million people in the U.S. use wheelchairs while traveling, and they face 'unique challenges,' Boisvert says. The challenges include inaccessible restrooms and aisles and risk of damage to, or loss of, mobility devices, 'which can cost thousands of dollars and significantly impact quality of life.' In 2024, new federal rules were implemented to strengthen protections for wheelchair users while flying. The rules also mandated that airlines would be responsible for reimbursing passengers for wheelchairs damaged while flying. Major airlines are challenging the rules in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
Travel Weekly
17-05-2025
- Travel Weekly
A funny thing happened on the way to Athens
Robert Silk On a trip from Denver to Athens, I encountered a customer service failure that I'm certain occurs far too often on bookings that involve partner airlines. I had booked my own ticket -- Denver to Munich and on to Athens -- on the United website using MileagePlus points. The leg connecting Denver and Munich is a United-Lufthansa joint venture and codeshare route on Lufthansa aircraft. For my girlfriend, Holly, we booked the ticket via the Lufthansa website because it was less expensive, and we paid a seat selection fee. On United, per its policies, I was able to select a seat adjacent to Holly without paying a fee. After airport check-in (I wasn't able to check in remotely with United despite booking with them, but that's a separate integration problem for another day), I saw that I was not sitting in the seat I had selected. Instead, I had been moved from an aisle to a middle seat for the nearly 10-hour flight. And I was no longer anywhere near Holly. When I attempted to rectify the situation at the gate, the Lufthansa agent suggested I call United. On that call, United told me Lufthansa would have to deal with the situation, as it had made the change and was operating the flight. I was patched through to a Lufthansa agent who explained that I had been moved because I had not paid to select a seat, as is Lufthansa policy. My seat had been assigned to someone who had. United ultimately gave me 5,000 Mileage Plus points for my inconvenience. "Seat assignments can change unexpectedly due to aircraft swaps, schedule changes or other unforeseen circumstances. Still, I understand how disappointing it can be not to sit in the seat you requested," a customer service agent wrote to me. Airlines and airline alliances often talk about seamlessness when discussing partnerships. It's a major topic of conversation among the Star, SkyTeam and Oneworld alliances each June when I go to the IATA Annual General Meeting. Each aspires to make cross-partner bookings and multi-airline itineraries as easy to manage for customers as when they are dealing only with a single carrier. Few airline partnerships are more substantial than the one between United and Lufthansa. The two global carriers were founding members of the Star Alliance in 1997. And since 2013 they have been transatlantic joint-venture partners, collaborating on scheduling, marketing and operations. So, when a partnership as robust as that one can't properly work together on something as basic as seat assignments, it makes me realize how far the airline world is from achieving true cross-partner seamlessness. For another perspective, I spoke with airline industry technology analyst Henry Harteveldt. I wondered why United would present a seat map with free seat selection if Lufthansa isn't committed to honoring those selections. Harteveldt said that in this example, the issue is a commercial one rather than a technological one. Though he mostly blamed Lufthansa for not fulfilling the seat assignment booked by its partner, he also said that both airlines shoulder responsibility. "If the two airlines' business policies are not aligned, they clearly need to sit down and say, 'How are we going to manage this,'" Harteveldt said. "It shouldn't be a complex process. It's not like two countries negotiating tariffs." He added that the situation I encountered is just one example of the fallacy that airlines offer seamless travel with their codeshare and alliance partners. Unfortunately, I'm inclined to agree.
