Delta Sucks

2012-05-19T00:29:00.002-07:00

I "retired" from this blog a couple years ago to spend time on more interesting things, but this is just too good pass up. Delta has been ripping off its frequent flyers -- its "best" customers -- for higher fares than it charged those who were not logged into their SkyMiles account. Unbelievable!

WCCO (15 May 2012): 2 Same Flights, 2 Different Prices: Frequent Flyer Discrepancies

They were getting nearly a $300 difference for an economy fare. Lisle was getting the cheaper ticket and he wasn’t logged in to his Sky Miles account. They thought a call to Delta would clear things up.

“She said that’s the way their system works, that’s the way their system is set up and that was the end of the conversation,” Smith said.

“We’re like you’ve got to be kidding me, right?” Lisle added.

We were there when they checked five trips with the same dates and the same flight numbers.
This time, Smith’s not logged into his frequent flyer plan.

They found from MSP to LAX a $124 difference for economy fare and more than $1,000 separated the first-class fare.

The same thing happened for two more trips. So in three-out-of-five tests, the frequent flyer would be paying more. The other times the prices were the same.

We tried three cards in tests of our own. Again, we found without the card in one trip of the three, it was cheaper. There was a $168 difference. When we called Delta they blamed the price differences on a computer problem they’ve now fixed.

In a statement, Paul Skrbec, a Delta spokesperson said, “The differences of how information was presented between logged in and non-logged in customers has been resolved. We apologize to our customers for any inconvenience this caused while we worked to resolve the issue.”

The reality is that "Paul Skrbec, a Delta spokesperson" has known about this problem for over two years -- read on!

If you believe that Delta actually fixes anything like this, I'd like to sell you a bridge in Brooklyn.

MSNBC (16 May 2012/: Delta says frequent fliers saw different fares

Delta acknowledged on Wednesday that frequent fliers who logged into its website to search for fares saw different prices than people who searched anonymously. Delta spokesman Paul Skrbec said frequent fliers sometimes saw higher fares, sometimes lower. He said the problem has been fixed and apologized to travelers. He didn't know how many people had been affected.

The two business travelers who first noticed the problem said fares they saw were consistently higher when they logged in via their frequent flier accounts.

A few weeks ago, security company executives Patrick Smith and Steve Lisle were side-by-side with their laptops open on the same conference table at their company's Minneapolis office, trying to book tickets on the same flight to St. Louis. Smith was logged in as a frequent flier. Lisle wasn't. In three out of five of their tests, fares for the frequent flier were consistently higher, including a $124 price difference for a trip to Los Angeles, the two told WCCO-TV in Minneapolis, which first reported their experience on Tuesday night.

The folks at FlyerTalk dug up some old threads that show Delta has known about this problem for years:

Price of the same search increases if I log in

In the above thread, "Paul Skrbec, a Delta spokesperson" posting as FlyerTalk user SkyMilesInsider says:

Hmmmmm...I'm not a dot com person (although I used to be one in a pre-airline career), but this sounds odd to me. Thanks for pointing this out. I'm sending this thread over to DeltaWebDev to take a look at this and see if there is any insight that he can provide.

Thank you!

SkyMilesInsider

In response DeltaWebDev said:

thanks for sending this my way. this is a new one for me and we're looking into it now.

This was DeltaWebDev's last post on FlyerTalk -- must have stepped on a sacred cow or something.

Then Delta tries to weasel out with a big fib (remember, they knew about this at least 27 months ago!):

Yahoo Finance (18 May 2012): Delta details airfare search glitch

Delta Air Lines said a glitch that appeared to show different airfares to frequent fliers happened because it was trying out a new company to power flight searches on its website.

...

Delta and other airlines use third-party companies such as Google's ITA Software to deliver results when customers search for flights. Those search providers sift through all the available seats, possible connecting flights and different fares to show flight options to customers.

Delta was thinking about switching search providers, so starting on April 20 it ran a side-by-side experiment, Bob Kupbens, the airline's head of e-commerce told The Associated Press. People who logged in with their frequent flier number saw results from the airline's current search provider. People who searched anonymously got results from the experimental provider. Delta declined to name either company.

If I can quit laughing long enough, I'll pick myself up off the floor & give you a really good deal on that bridge in Brooklyn. Meanwhile, ponder this similar question from 2009 regarding their notorious[ly broken] award booking engine:

Award Goes from Low to Med as PM

I now return to my semi-permanent hiatus. You'll find me at the Travel UnderGround.

Smoke in Cockpit Diverts Delta Air Lines Flight to Tampa

2010-04-09T06:00:00.000-07:00

Delta Air Lines flight 531 from Atlanta to Cancun diverted to Tampa after the pilots smelled smoke in the cockpit.

Source: Delta plane makes emergency landing at TIA

Delta Air Lines Flight Diverts Due to Engine Problems

2010-04-07T06:00:00.000-07:00

A Delta Air Lines flight from Atlanta to Las Vegas was diverted to Oklahoma City due to engine problems.

Source: Plane diverted to Oklahoma City because of engine problems

"One Plus One Equals Less Than Two"

2010-03-31T06:00:00.000-07:00

The BTS statistics reported separately for Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines even though the two carriers were joined at the corporate hip for most of 2009 and officially merged on December 31. Taken together, they carried 108.5 million passengers. That would have made it slightly larger than Southwest, which carried 101.3 million customers. (Delta-Northwest's combined total of 20.4 million international passengers would have made it slightly larger than American's overseas traffic too.) But the numbers are deceiving because Delta is shrinking fast. In 2008, Delta and Northwest carried a combined total of 120.3 million passengers. That means the two carriers in 2009 shrank almost 10 percent compared to 2008.

Source: One Plus One Equals Less Than Two

Smoke Fills Cabin of Delta Air Lines 757

2010-03-30T06:00:00.000-07:00

A Delta Air Lines 757 flying from New York to San Francisco (DL 721) Tuesday evening (March 30) made an emergency landing in St. Louis after smoke filled the passenger cabin.

Sources:

Delta flight makes emergency landing in St. Louis

Delta Plane Makes Emergency Landing in St. Louis

Delta jet makes emergency landing at Lambert

Up to $5,000,000 Government Subsidy for Paris Flight

2010-03-12T06:00:00.001-08:00

State and local governments might have to pay up to $5,000,000 in subsidies to underwrite Delta Air Lines' service between Pittsburgh and Paris.

Sources:

Government, group on hook for $5M to subsidize Pittsburgh-Paris flights

Paris flight not meeting revenue target

How global would this "global" airline be if the subsidies were cut?

Retraining Laid Off Delta Air Lines Employees Costs Taxpayers Millions

2010-03-12T06:00:00.000-08:00

Not only are Minnesota's funds for retraining laid-off workers almost exhausted, but $3,000,000 of future funds are earmarked for retraining workers already laid off by Delta Air Lines.

Source: Minnesota nearly out of money to help retrain laid-off workers

Synergies for Delta Air Lines, bills for the taxpayers.

Union Problems Brewing at Delta Air Lines

2010-03-11T06:00:00.003-08:00

The union that represents the former Northwest Airlines flight attendants is trying to block further integration of Delta Air Lines crews, claiming that their contract requires that only Northwest crews work on Northwest planes.

Source: Northwest union seeks to halt Delta crew integration

Only problem is that there are no longer any Northwest planes, and the two sets of pilots are already integrated.

Three Flight Attendants Injured by Turbulence on Delta Air Lines A319

2010-03-11T06:00:00.002-08:00

Three flight attendants on a Delta Air Lines A319 flying from New York City (La Gaurdia)to West Palm Beach, FL, on March 11, were injured when they encountered severe turbulence on the landing approach:

Delta Airlines reported, that the three flight attendants received minor injuries in the turbulence encounter, requested medical assistance after passengers had disembarked, were taken to a local hospital as a precaution and were released soon after.

Sources:

Accident: Delta Airlines A319 near West Palm Beach on Mar 11th 2010, turbulence sends 3 flight attendants to hospital

Two Delta flight attendants en route to PBIA hurt in rough weather

Fumes Ground Delta Air Lines Plane at Albuquerque

2010-03-11T06:00:00.001-08:00

A Delta Air Lines plane taxiing for takeoff at Albuquerque returned to the gate after several passengers became dizzy from fumes in the cabin.

Source: Fumes ground departing jet at Sunport

The Still Shrinking Airlines

2010-03-11T06:00:00.000-08:00

Delta Air Lines enplanements for Jan-Dec, 2009, down 5.4% from Jan-Dec, 2008

Northwest Airlines enplanements for Jan-Dec, 2009, down 16.2% from Jan-Dec, 2008

And the competition?

Southwest Airlines enplanements for Jan-Dec, 2009, down only 0.6% from Jan-Dec, 2008

Source: December 2009 Airline Traffic Data: System Traffic Down 0.6 Percent from December 2008

Delta Air Lines #1 for Tarmac Delays in January

2010-03-10T06:00:00.000-08:00

Delta Air Lines won top billing for tarmac delays in January, 2010:

Flights with Longest Tarmac Delays

Delta Air Lines flight 2244 from Fort Myers, FL to New York LaGuardia, 1/25/10 - delayed on tarmac 253 minutes

Delta Air Lines flight 1737 from Charlotte, NC to Atlanta, 1/24/10 - delayed on tarmac 245 minutes

(There were only two flights with tarmac delays of four hours or more in January)

Source: US DOT: Airline On-Time Performance Improves in January

Delta Air Lines Lobbies for Tarmac Stranding

2010-03-08T06:00:00.000-08:00

Delta Air Lines wants to be exempted from a new rule that prohibits keeping passengers imprisoned on the tarmac for longer more than three hours.

This rule is being put into affect because airlines such as Delta have been abusing passengers in the manner for years, and Delta wants to continue that abuse.

Source:

Airlines Seek Exemption From Three Hour Rule At JFK

Delta Requests D.O.T. waiver for new KJFK tarmac delay rules

New tarmac rule may cost passengers

Delta Air Lines Traffic Falls 2.6% in February

2010-03-06T06:00:00.001-08:00

Delta Air Lines traffic dropped 2.6% in February, 2010, as compared to February, 2009. Capacity was reduced by 6.1%.

Sources:

Delta traffic down 2.6 percent in February

Delta Air Lines Feb. Traffic Declines 2.6%

Delta traffic slides in February

Delta Air Lines Reports February Traffic

Delta Air (DAL) Reports 2.6% Drop in System Traffic During February

Bringing a Bike? Delta Air Lines is the Worst!

2010-03-06T06:00:00.000-08:00

Costs of checking a bike for your trip:

Delta $175
United $175
American $100 + checked luggage fee
US Airways $100
Continental $100
JetBlue $50
Frontier $50
Southwest $50

Source: What's The Best Airline For Bringing My Bike?

Delta Air Lines A320 Shuts Down Engine in Flight

2010-02-28T06:00:00.002-08:00

A Delta Air Lines A320 (DL-2339) flying from Detroit, MI, to Denver, CO, shut down an engine in flight and returned to Detroit on Feb. 28.

Source: Incident: Delta Airlines A320 over Lake Michigan on Feb 28th 2010, engine shut down in flight

Bulldog Freezes to Death in Delta Air Lines Cargo Hold

2010-02-28T06:00:00.001-08:00

An English Bulldog apparently froze to death enroute to JFK airport in the cargo hold of a Delta Air Lines plane.

A month earlier one of two puppies enroute from Mexico City to JFK also froze to death in a cargo hold -- no indication as to whether or not that also involved a Delta Air Lines flight.

Sources:

Bulldog Dies on Delta Flight

One Puppy Survives Freezing Flight

Puppy survives journey in plane's cargo bay

Puppy survives journey in plane's cargo bay

Bags Doused with Deicing Fluid? Or with?

2010-02-28T06:00:00.000-08:00

A group of 10 passengers claiming their bags after a flight from Atlanta to Denver on DL 1487 noticed that their bags stunk:

"Our bags were the last ones to come out of the baggage carousel and they were just smelling profusely," Michael Jobin said, one of the travellers. Apparently the bags of the entire group group, and those of another couple, were soaked in an unknown fluid.

They first assumed the fluid might have been jet fuel. Then a Delta Air Lines spokes person said their bags had been, "exposed to deicing fluid and is working to reach out to these customers to ensure that their claims are resolved." However, later the airline was not able to confirm exactly what kind of liquid the bags were exposed to.

Source: Luggage Smells Horrid After Delta Air Lines Flight

Wing Flag Failure on Delta Air Lines CRJ-100

2010-02-26T17:35:00.000-08:00

A Delta Air Lines CRJ-100 operated by Comair and flying from New York City to Montreal on 29 January made an emergency landing at Montreal after its wing flaps failed.

Source: Incident: Comair CRJ1 at Montreal on Jan 29th 2010, flaps failure

Lawsuit Adds Additional Charges of Collusion

2010-02-26T06:00:00.002-08:00

A lawsuit filed in 2008 alleging collusion between Delta Air Lines & AirTran with regard to baggage fees has been amended to add an allegation that the two airlines colluded to reduce capacity out of Atlanta so as to increase fares:

The suit, filed in in Atlanta last year, was followed by similar lawsuits around the country that were consolidated into a single case in U.S. District Court in Atlanta. Earlier this month, attorneys filed a consolidated complaint with the additional claims. The suit claims that "as a direct result of their collusion," Delta and AirTran cut flight capacity to support price increases and impose the bag fee.

Source: Lawsuit alleges collusion on airline fees

Delta Air Lines Passenger Dies at Detroit Airport

2010-02-26T06:00:00.001-08:00

For some apparently even the impending stress of flying on Delta Air Lines is more than one can bear:

It happened Friday morning in the McNamara Terminal. The man was found unresponsive in the boarding area in Concourse C. Sources tell WWJ that the man was waiting to board a Delta Air Lines flight.

Source: Passenger Dies at Metro Airport

Cat Fight on DL 887

2010-02-26T06:00:00.000-08:00

As DL 887 was taxiing back to its gate in Rochester, NY, on 25 February to offload a sick passenger, two flight attendants got into a fist fight. The pilot canceled the flight and ordered everyone off the plane.

Sources:

Flight attendants' spat keeps plane to Atlanta grounded

Flight Attendants' Fight Grounds ATL Flight

Flight attendants fist fight on plane

Flight attendants fist fight on plane

Flight Canceled After 2 Flight Attendants Get Into Fight

Flight Attendant Fight Grounds Plane

Flight canceled after flight attendant argument

Flight canceled after dispute between flight attendants

Flight canceled after fight between flight attendants

Flight Attendants' Fight Cancels Trip

Rochester flight cancelled after altercation between attendants

Pilot cancels flight after attendant fight

Smoke in Cabin on Embraer 145

2010-02-25T06:00:00.000-08:00

A Delta Air Lines Embraer 145 (DL 6020) flying from LaGuardia to Columbus returned to LaGuardia due to smoke in the cabin. The E-145 was operated by Chautauqua Airlines.

Sources:

Incident: Chautauqua E145 at New York on Feb 25th 2010, smokey odour on board

Columbus-Bound Flight Returns To Gate Because Of Smoke

385 Layoffs at Philadelphia

2010-02-20T06:00:00.003-08:00

Delta Air Line is laying off 385 of it personnel at Philadelphia.

Source: DAL Global to lay off 385 at Philadelphia airport

Delta Air Lines Discontinues Service to Humboldt County, CA

2010-02-20T06:00:00.002-08:00

Apparently 80% loads aren't sufficient.

Sources:

Delta Air Lines suspends service to Humboldt County, Calif.

Delta to Humboldt: No summer air service

(If they can't make money with 80% loads, they should consider going out of business.)