Boarding without assistance

More on this later, after our anger subsides.

Ok.  First from Peggy Noonan earlier this week.  Who knew her words would hit close to home so soon?  "America is in line at the airport. America has its shoes off, is carrying a rubberized bin, is going through a magnetometer. America is worried there is fungus on the floor after a million stockinged feet have walked on it. But America knows not to ask. America is guilty until proved innocent, and no one wants to draw undue attention."  "And, as always: Why do we do this when you know I am not a terrorist, and you know I know you know I am not a terrorist? Why this costly and harassing kabuki when we both know the facts, and would agree that all this harassment is the government's way of showing "fairness," of showing that it will equally humiliate anyone in order to show its high-mindedness and sense of justice? Our politicians congratulate themselves on this as we stand in line."

Let me say at the outset of what could be an undistinguished rant:  According to the TSA website on flying regulations:  "If you aren’t traveling and need to go through the security checkpoint to accompany someone such as a child or other traveler with medical conditions who is traveling, check with the airline for required documentation."

All of the above applied to our daughter today as she tried to fly home to Washington D.C., except "child" was plural.  The American Airlines ticket agents would hardly give us the time of day when we asked for permission to accompany her to the gate.  One turned out to be very kind and helpful, but the other shooed us away with the order to go back to the nice woman and have her call the "supervisor" Kevin.  No one could find Kevin and he wasn't answering his phones.  Finally, after 20 minutes we get sent back to the crabby ticket agent and she curtly told us Kevin said no.

So Lizzie had to struggle through the security line and the boarding gate with a two month old and a two year old plus their stuff.  The flight was delayed.  Surprise!  When they were finally allowed to board, two very nice TSA agents came along and helped her corral the two year old and the two month old and settled everyone in their seats.  She told them what had happened when we tried to get permission to go with her to the gate and they laughed.  It is just not true that we couldn't have come with her.  They told her that they would much rather screen an extra person then to have mayhem or problems.  And, they laughed when they heard who the "supervisor" was.  "Write a letter", they told her.

Oh, we will.  Believe it.  And I hope our daughter does too.  And, we got the name of the ticket agent who went out of her way to help our daughter, even changing her seats to the bulkhead and giving her an empty middle seat for the baby.  We'll write a letter about her too, but in a very good way.

I hope anyone reading this will have a better understanding of what you can do at the airport should you find yourself in a similar position some day.

Comments

[Carol]

This is awful. What happened to common sense and customer service? With the airline situation the way it is you would think they would do everything they could to attract, not drive away, customers. And what about Kevin? Isn't it the supervisors job to be available to problem solve? Not available for 20 minutes-unacceptable. Hope you also got the name of the rude employee, sounds like she needs a refresher course in how to treat customers. I can't wait to hear the reply to your letters.