Saturday, May 17, 2008
UNITED - Except with your Luggage
J and I are sitting in the Star Alliance lounge in LAX waiting to board our flight home after 3 weeks in the U.S. and for the second time in 3 domestic flights, United Airlines has failed to put one of our bags on our flight.
We're flying SIN-LAX-SIN on Singapore Airlines (by far and away the world's BEST airline) but between L.A. (conference) and Hawaii (vacation) and Chicago (visiting my brother), we have to fly a domestic U.S. carrier and let me tell you, if I can avoid it, I will NOT be flying United again. What's the point of having all my bags tagged PRIORITY when it doesn't even make it on the plane with me?! What kind of "priority" is that?
Flying with J:
1) We had 3 check in bags from Singapore to L.A. and SQ gave us no problems (as usual).
2) We had 4 check in bags from L.A. to Honolulu (J shopped at Desert Hills Premium Outlets) and UA missed 1. It was delivered on the next flight to Honolulu and sent to our time share about 6 hours after we landed.
3) We had 5 check in bags from Honolulu to Chicago (J shopped again at Waikele Premium Outlets) but UA managed to get all of them right.
4) We had 5 check in bags from Chicago to L.A. this afternoon (J shopped again in Chicago but this time she also bought a huge new Samsonite suitcase) and U.A. missed my golf bag.
That's 2 bags out of 14 which UA missed. Ridiculous! And on both occasions when we filled in the missing baggage claims, I saw other passengers from our flight doing the same thing. I have flown Singapore Airlines dozens of times all over the world and they have NEVER ONCE failed to put my luggage on board the plane with me. Years ago, a very senior Japanese lawyer told me he has lost his luggage on American carriers so often that he no longer checks in baggage with them. I now understand first hand what he means.
I have been promised that my golf bag will arrive at our residence in Singapore within a few days. I hope so cos I'd hate to have to play next weekend's golf games without my clubs. Well, at least one of the things about the internet age is that within an hour or so of being screwed over by United, I can be sitting in an airline lounge with a free wireless connection & blogging about it to all my friends all over the world. That's what I call freedom of expression :)
