I think I had the same woman in FAT, with an identical experience. Mary or Maria, I think.

I had a bad run-in with JetBlue once. I was in uniform and had talked with the FO in line for lunch and let her know i was planning on catching a ride. we chatted and all seemed nice. When i got to the counter the gate-agent couldnt find our code in CASS (we had just changed our code over) so told me I couldnt go. My fam was on this flight or I would have waited for WN, but I bought a ticket last minute, fairly cheap. Anyway, with my BOUGHT TICKET I boarded the plane, said hi to the FA and the FO was standing there so she introduced me to the CA. No big deal. Showed my stuff, thanked them for the ride and went back to my seat.
About 20 mins out the FA passes me and says the FO wants to see me after landing. OK. I go up after deplanning and the FO stands up, blocks me from the CA (in a manor that would suggest I was going to attack him!) and proceeds to tell me how I was rude and inconsiderate to the FA and if I ever wanted to get a FREE RIDE from them again I would need to learn some jumpseat etiquitte. I have been jumpseating for several years and never ran into anything like this before. I said Hi to the FA and the FO invited me up!! What was the FA freaking problem??
Anyway, I stood there dumbfounded about the whole thing and PO'ed as she told me they would have left me had they known I was so rude to the FA (again, with my PURCHASED TICKET). I really dont know what more the FA wanted from me, to show my badge and certs??
Not to be down on FA's. I really enjoy the vast majority of them and respect their job, i guess this one just needed a power trip that day. It still makees me mad.
Ok, Im done.

While traveling on a paid ticket, I volunteered my seat, got re-routed, a first class upgrade, and a ticket voucher. I was happy at the first class upgrade. After the one terminal sprint, I made the next flight with minutes to spare. As we were deplaning, I was the last out of first, and the FO wanted to know what airline I flew for, he'd seen my crew bag tags. Then he wanted to know why I was in first and another, more senior, pilot for our company was in coach. I knew he was looking out for us pilots in general so it was no skin off my nose to explain how it happened.

If a crewmember wants a confrontation, first you gotta tell them that you are a ticketed passenger, cut off the blowup in mid-spew if you have to, it'll save them the embarrassment. Then you gotta find out just how whatever person felt that they were slighted, power trip or not. Those on power trips or having bad weeks are quickly recognized by most captains, even the spiked hair, IPO-wearing ones. Be aware that whatever your response or actions before, during, and after the flight may be called into your chief pilot. Who knows, maybe the FO was having a bad day too as the FA, who didn’t get any last night, was ragging on the CA who then ragged on the FO and that night someone’s poor dog got kicked.

My worst experience 'commuting' was with AWAC. They would not positive space me out for the interview, don't even have service to their own base of operations, and couldn't get me a spot to get back home for likely days. Yet, for some of their other interview locations, they would PS folks out. I knew by the time I landed that the interview was for practice only, expensive practice, but still cheaper than Air Inc. If that is what they think of their potential employees, forget it.

Yeah, Maria's her name. Now when I see her in the terminal she won't even acknowledge me. Might have something to do with the IOR that I filed...professional, but scathing.

I have also had *some* trouble with SkyWest...but I would imagine most of it is "w&b issues..."
...yeah right ;)

Skywest has treated me better than any other, including the Northwest family.

I had one in ORD, UA. I was fairly new to JS and knew that you have to be courteous however that day I just tired, wasn't feeling it. Showed up at the gate about 1 hour before departure time. Picture a chain smoking, alcoholic Denny's waitress, I show her my I.D and Passport with minimal conversation. She mispronounced my Eastern European last name, I corrected her in a non confrontational but somewhat firm tone. Maybe in her less then high school educated 50 year old mind she was thinking this 20 something son of a B$tch. Then, here we go, she claimed she couldn't find my airline in Cass the she said I was being denied. I told here I just jumpseated on UA 3 days ago, she said she didn't care she only believed the computer. I had to call the 800 number, the guy in the background said I was fine and to let him talk to the agent, she said she wouldn't talk to the guy because she didn't like the tone that I described the situation making her look incompetent, which I never did, I just said that she wasn't accepting me. So by this time the guy in the phone got angry and just hung up. Thankfully the CA showed up, I introduced myself, he went by the agent she explained what was going on. I told her try again one more time, reluctantly with the CA standing next to her she tried it again, what do you know the computer "magically" accepted me. Unbelievable. Anyways at this point I knew she was furious, I was getting on but she made sure I was the very last person on. Later found out that she was one of those high and mighty types, and overheard her talking to another customer about alcohol how she used to work at a bar. Very unprofessional person, even though it's been a long time I could probably still i.d her. What made me even more angry is that after the FAs showed up she went back behind the counter to tell them about me. When I went in to check with the CA he told me that the lead FA wasn't impressed with what I did. Inside I was boiling because I hadn't done anything, she was the one that was playing the cruel joke. It's hard to imagine that gate agents can play these games, especially with tired overworked pilots who are trying to go home.

I have seen pilots terminated over "accusations" that gate agents make.

Smile, say thank you, and retreat. No ride is worth your career.

Then, write a detailed letter to the airline's VP of Customer Service. They tend to take those things seriously--a lot more than local station management.

Had one of these idiots try to pull this on me in SLC. Funny thing was it was going from the secure (ramp side) to the terminal side. I was like aren't you supposed to try that going the other direction? He looked at me like I was stupid for a second and said "uh I guess that's a good point". IDIOT!

Did you see his correctly issued SIDA badge though? They like to walk around with fake IDs trying to bust people for not checking them while in the secure area. Had 1 TSA guy up by me with a badge listing his name as Santa Clause!

Yes I did that is the first thing I ask for with these guys. They try to board all the time with there badges all covered up like they are sneaky or something.

Hey Dude....thats not us man...thats MGT....they only just started positive spacing people cuz the loads are lighter in the fall/winter and our attrition rate went up. When i interviewed...I had to fly standby from ATL-CLT the CLT to MKE....rent a car....drive 1.5 hours up to ATW....spend 60 bucks on sim prep, 30 bucks for a hotel (Awac Discount) then interview.

Im sorry you only saw the interview as practice. For those of us who are here....I can speak for the majority when I say that id rather complain here...then anywhere else. Despite our problems...its a damn good company to work for. Id be very suprised if you found any more than 3 U.S. airlines that seriously "Cared" about its pilot group

My sister is with SLC TSA and you wouldnt believe the problems she has with these people. They try to "sneak" all kinds of sh^t on them for the purpose of termination:eek: Rules get 'made up' as they go. They do it with their own people and they admitt (in TSA meetings that we're not supposed to know about) that they feel good about themselves if they can take a SIDA badge froma pilot OR EVER GET THEM FIRED because of it :mad:
The SLC mangagment (names Earl) has a serious power ego problem and his minions are no better. I live in SLC but not based there so I only have to commute through, I feel bad for the pilots based there. Anyway, thats just some inside info im privy to about SLC TSA. Watch out there!!

I used to commute from SEA to BOS and had a few good stories because of it. My worst was when I had to go through Cananda. I almost always took the red-eye, Alaska and JetBlue had them just a few minutes apart, and I could almost always get on one of them. Well, one night it wasn't looking like it was going to happen, both were full with lots of standbys listed. I looked at all my other options, and everything was full that night. The only thing that looked possible was going through Canada. All this planning was last minute, and I was only listed for the direct flights that weren't going to happen. So, first leg, on to Calgary on Horizon. No problems there, showed up and got on. Once I got to Calgary, I had an hour wait to go to Toronto on Air Canada. Found the gate agent about a half hour before the flight and my troubles started. They couldn't find me in their system (not CASS at the time) and had to have the pilots call their dispatch and get me okayed the old fasioned way. Made the flight about 10 minutes late because of it, and the pilots weren't happy at all. I should have been listed blah blah. I would have liked to, but I didn't know I was going to try to be on the flight untill I left SEA. Anyways, I get to Torronto. I have about two hours, the plane leaves at 7:30 and its about 5:30am. I fight my way to the Air Canada ticket counter and talk to the gate agent. She says that she has no way of listing me, I have to call the 800 number to list. I call the 800 number, it says to call back after 8am, they aren't open until then. Well, that won't work. Stand in line again to talk to the gate agent. She tries a bunch of stuff, but says again that I have to be listed over the phone. She sends me to the manager on the other side of the terminal. Finaly get to the manager and she is able to get me the ticket, it is now about 7:10, and I still have customs and security to go through. Anyways, I manage to get through both to run up to the gate right as they are closing the doors. I was within about 15-20 sec of not making it. Finally, get to boston about 45 minutes before my show time to fly a 1900 around all day.

Also, any time you commute over the red eye and are stuck in a jumpseat and they won't let you sleep. Then have to fly people around all day on no sleep.

Or the time going home that I got bumped off two planes in Boston (I was sitting on the direct flight home and they bumped me off). Finaly took a Jet Blue jumpseat to Long Beach or something to get bumped off two more flights (I was sitting in the plane and they had to have me get off again). Finaly found a plane to take me to Vegas, where I knew that they had a 12:10am or something flight back to SEA, got on that and managed to get to SEA at 2 something am so that I could wait a few more hours to get the airporter to my car. Had I been on the direct that I was sitting on, I would have been at home at 9am the prevous day.

Yah, commuting sucks.

Not sure what you are saying here. Are you saying the crew would not allow sleeping in the cockpit?

I think only once I got a crew that didn't let me sleep in the cockpit, but JetBlue lets people ride in the FA jumpseats, and on those jumpseats, they don't usualy let you sleep (although a well placed magazine makes it look like you are reading, when you are really sleeping).

Seems a bit strange to me. Is this a company rule, or just a weird captain? What the heck difference does it make if you, as a jumpseater, are sleeping?

The guy who didn't let me sleep in the cockpit was a unsocial and grumpy, I don't know what his problem was. That was on United, so it wasn't policy.

It is policy to not let people sleep in the FA jumpseat on JetBlue, but most of the FAs don't care.

No matter how hard I try, I always fall asleep in the jumpseat on red eyes during the last 30 minutes or so of the flight. I think its because as we get into the arrival phase of the flight, I am less involved in the conversation and just kind of drift off. More than one occasion I can remember seeing the lights of Houston from about 100 miles out and the next thing I know I am being awakened by the "thump" of the landing:D

Don't know if its against CAL policy or not but for what its worth, no one has ever said anything to me about it.

If I was in your position, I think I'd be tempted to ask the captain if his nickname was "Snap-On".:D

YES, watch out in SLC and in UTAH for that matter, they're really anal about rules, wonder why.... I just came out of the airplane on the ramp, I asked the agent if they could open the door for me to go inside the terminal. I was the only pilot there, I couldn't have sneaked from anywhere, the airplane was no more than a hundred feet away, and I was going from the ramp which is more secure than the terminal, yet the guy still asked for my I.D.

Sorry to thread jack...

http://www.tsa.gov/blog

this blog is TSA's newest site to help better TSA and where anyone can vent about the inconsistancy and obvious problems with TSA. But be aware TSA does delete blogs that it doesn't like (no suprise there) but top managment *does, at least, read them....

Furthermore, the team of officers that try to get pilots introuble in Salt Lake, known as the Lemonade Stand, are not even liked by thier co-workers for the crap that they pull not only with the pilots but with them as well. As for the Thought Police, the TSA group that pulls you based off of how you are looking or acting are no better. Apparently they all get paid much more than the regular officers and have a week long training course in how to watch facial expressions.

As far as the comment about the power hungry FSD (Earl) has a terrible temper and holds the most unbelievable grudges. As I understancd it if the officers are grouchy it's probably because they just barely started getting a 1% raise a year after 5 years of service and thats it. I'd be pretty PO'ed to if I hadn't had a raise in 5 years. I guess that the Salt Lake City Officers get some of the best compliments in the country which makes me wonder how bad all the other airports really are.

Ok, back to commutes...;)

I understand, no offense intended to the pilot group or the airline, thus the 'commute' in quotes. I went through the rent a car and hotel room BS and just didn't want to put up with it. My BS tolerance was quite low that week especially to apply for a job that pays 90% less than other things I could be doing. However, it is much cheaper to get paid 90% less than it is to rent a jet for a few hundred hours. :cool:

As for CAL, one crew let me zonk out in the jumpseat on a LAX-EWR red-eye. The FAs rotated through the cockpit zonking out for a half hour at a time in the 2nd jumpseat on that trip. I don't recall if the pilots took naps, nor what flight it was, when it was, or even why I ended up there instead of in the back, but much obliged for the ride.

If you bought a ticket, why even bother introducing yourself to anybody? You're just a passenger at that point, uniform or not.

Simply because I had already talked with the FO out in the term and told her I was going to jump...

O.k., I re-read your post now and I think I understand what happened. I would only add once again that once you by a ticket your a customer and not a jumpseater. Beyond that, smile and show them the ticket and ask them if they treat all of their customers like that.

I agree but playing nice is important especially with what may one day be a potential employer. I thought it was a little much on both the FAs part feeling neglected and the FOs attempt to resolve it and it put me in a bad mood but I was going to Disneyland with my family so I got over it fast :D

I was traveling on a CO mainline from Houston to Laguardia in a 738. When I reached my seat there were two people both trying to take one seat just behind me. An older gent and a laidy that had to be 8 months pregnant. I offered the laidy my seat but they were both hell bent on the assigned seat. After five more minutes the gate agent came down and told the guy to take the last first class seat. The man looked at me and then at the laidy then asked me if she could take his seat in first. I told him I did not see a problem with it at thanked him for his generosity. Long story short, this ****ed off the FA's so bad that I got sent to the perverbial principals office and then they proceded to verbaly abused me the whole flight. One guy actualy took the drink cart and ran it straight into my leg while I was passed out. The messed up thing was he backed up and did it agin. It left a nice bruse. I learned real quick that people look to you when your in uniform to resolve there issues when it is not your place. And also those main line FA are a pain in the but.

Yeah, she would. I had a terrible experience as a full-fare first class passenger on United (IAH-ORD-FRA-Kuwait). I sat down and started to read (while the flight continued to board) on the ORD-FRA leg when the flight attendant came up to me and just laid into me about moving to the back. "Who do I think I am?" Etc..., for sitting in first. Get my stuff and get out of "her" cabin. Turns out she saw my crew tag on my bag in the overhead and decided (without asking me anything) that I upgraded myself and she was sick of pilots doing that. I tried to explain that I was on a revenue ticket and was in my assigned seat. She threatened to have me removed from the flight, and went and got the CSA before I could even show her my boarding pass. He came back and promptly told me I needed to move. At this point, I was sick of being nice. So, I just held up my ticket under his nose, and asked him if anyone in Chicago can read. He pulls it out of my hand and reads it with a sneer. However, after 3 seconds, his sneer turned into a very worried frown to nearly crying. Apparently a full fare first class walk up ticket to Kuwait is in the neighborhood of $18,000. He suddenly became very nice and apologetic. I could stay in my seat (gee thanks...). He laid into the F/A and eventually wrote her up, but I found out (through an F/A friend still flying there) that nothing happened. I wrote a letter to customer service after I got home a month later, and they responded that they were sorry, but here was 1000 miles to make up for the experience. (Again, gee thanks... That's useful...). I haven't been on United since, and hope to never be on them again. Four int'l trips at Southern I flat refused tickets on United, opting for Northwest and Delta because of the incident.

Fire some of those 90 year old hags, and maybe (just maybe) the customer service reputation will go up...

What I don't understand is, we're all in the same business here. If those crewmembers/gate agents that give us a hard time when we're trying to JS were trying to get somewhere themselves, the vast majority of us would have no problem with it, would try to get them on board however we can. And yet they still get bent out of shape when we sit in a different seat, or wear a lanyard they don't like. Just doesn't make sense to me...then again, maybe I'm just too nice:)

Sadly there are a lot of power hungry, ego tripping jerks out there that need to feel like they are better than anybody or everybody else. It stems from a lack of self-esteem. These people, in my psychologically professional opinion, need help.:D

It's a shame when CSRs can't do what they are paid to do..Customer Service.;)

Yeah, if there wearing a yellow "seniority matters" lanyard, then most definately!

I also commute out of SLC. I also spent 4 years working in airport ops in SLC. Earl Morris I believe is who you reference, a total a$$hat. I too also overheard many, many times right from the horses mouth (TSA) that it makes their day to bust a pilot's chops. You cannot be too careful there, I know firsthand. The TSA even has the OPS people on the lookout for who to bust. Wear you badge correctly, don't leave the footprint of your plane, always ask others to see their badge. They really do target pilots. It's a fact. :(

Those SLC TSA-agents need to go to fiery-hot place under the ground. Have ya'll noticed how they also tune up the sensitivity of those metal-detectors, and then smirk when a Pilot (like myself) walk through and sets the thing off?

Yep. It's the only airport where I have to take off my belt every time. Once, I stripped everything metal I could think of off of me. I still set the walk through detector off. TSA drone tells me 'I should know better, check my pockets." Well, my pockets are empty. I finally demand to get wanded as I'm now holding up the line. Lo and behold, it was the metal clip on my id badge that was setting off the walkthrough detector. For crying out loud...

Friday afternoons and Sunday nights in and out of GFK are the non rev express flights pilots and dependents. When I ramp out there 50 60 people on the list where come on those days.

Thats why I where my favorite sports team lanyard when at the training center or flying on our main line. Also got Fogged out on my first commute on my first day.

OK, time for me to vent here.

I tried to catch a Eagle flight to DFW this morning. The gate agent informed me the flight was wieght restricted. When everything was on, she only had 20 lbs available. Evidently the gate agent does the wieght and balance, not the crew. I asked to speak to the Captain, so she called on the radio to one of her cohorts and asked him to speak to the captain for me. He called back saying the captain could get me on. She finished what she was doing and then said she couldn't get me on because it required her changing numbers and it would delay the flight. She said she would get in big trouble if the flight was delayed. So I asked to speak to the Captain again and she went down to get him. I waved at the Captain through the window and he waved back. Next the gate agent began pulling back the jet bridge. The Captain waved at her to stop, but she wouldn't. He sort of threw his hands up like, "Oh well, sorry."

I don't know what Eagle's policy is, but I know at PSA we care about getting our jumpseaters on. If it meant burning the extra 160 lbs. of gas they would have had to burn for me to get on, we would do it. The gate agent was wrong to do that to me, and the Captain should have got out to help me. After all, he told the agent he could get me on. Guess he didn't want to delay the flight 2 minutes to let me on.

Eagle pilots are always welcome on our jumpseat, but I hope this is not a practice among Eagle to treat their jumpseaters in such a fashion.

A year or two ago AE went to an electronic weight and balance system which is completely done by operations/gate agents. The flight crew has no idea or influence in the process, as opposed to the old style of filling out the load manifest. We really do try to get everyone on the plane, but many times we cant visually see the gate area to know if a jumpseater is trying to get on. Sadly, the flight crew doesnt have any control anymore. The gate agents at AE are so afraid of a flight going out 1 min late that they wont do anything to help anyone, pax included. I have no idea what the penalties would be to a gate agent if the flight was late, but knowing AMR they would probably lose a limb.