The Obsolescence of Preboarding…
Due to my “research” performed when writing the previous article and the subsequent finding of a few more smut pages posted by my psychotic stalker, I looked more closely at some of the websites out there with my name on them and discovered myself quoted in an article in the Charleston Post and Courier reprinted from the May 8th edition of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
The material read as follows:
Richard LeCour of San Jose, Calif., was allowed several months ago to preboard an American flight there with his family, but his request to do so in Chicago was denied. The gate agent, LeCour said, falsely told him that everyone on board had children so that no one with children could preboard.
He said the agent denied a similar request from a man in a wheelchair.
“That was just ludicrous,” LeCour said.
He wrote a letter of complaint to the airline, and a customer-service agent replied saying agents in Chicago would be reminded that families with small children can preboard when it does not interfere with on-time departure. LeCour, a frequent flier on American, plans to carry the letter when the family travels.
Elizabethe Holland, the reporter for the Post-Dispatch had found my complaint letter posted here in my ramblings on a search in Google, and called me up several months ago to discuss the event. I never heard from her afterwards, despite her indication that she would email me the story if it was ever written, and was therefore surprised to find it purely by happenstance.
Behold the power of the blog!
“families with small children can preboard when it does not interfere with on-time departure” I’m gonna have to get me one of those letters. It might work a little better than my usual method which is to tell the gate people that my family WILL be pre-boarding. That they are welcome to stop us if they wish. But that I can absolutely guarantee I will cause far more disruption to their boarding of their aircraft when I have to carry 2 car seats down a crowded aisle, return against the flow of traffic, walk the 2 kids down the aisle, and return twice more against the flow to get all of the carry-ons. So far, it’s usually worked. When it hasn’t they’ve regretted it.
You are a complaining idiot.
What an intelligent and insightful comment! (1) You didn’t have to read my blog at all, let alone waste your oh-so valuable and important time commenting on my complaints. (2) At least *I* don’t work at the MetLife insurance company. Insurance?! Your life must be truly boring. (3) Shouldn’t you be working? (4) I got $900 in travel vouchers, three free passes to the American Airlines travel lounge, and a letter from AA that I can travel with to avoid a similar situation in the future — all thanks to my complaint. What did you get? Thanks for contributing! - RDL
Well, if things haven’t changed too much from when I worked in the MetLife building they get… subsidized Meatless Pizza at least twice a week in the basement cafeteria! Whoo hoo!