Recently in MSY Category

At the outset, hat tip to the ticket agent I spoke with yesterday on Delta's "Special Member Services" desk. As I wrote yesterday, the weather around the south resulting from Tropical Storm Fay had me worried about getting out of New Orleans and up to NYC. The gentleman from Delta-land suggested that, since I was a Platinum frequent flier, I should just go to Louis Armstrong International Airport (MSY) as early as I could and get away from the storm. I'm no stranger to the 6am MSY-ATL flight; I firmly believe that the sooner you're on a plane, the better. The airlines agree as well, particularly the ticket agent working the "First Class/Medallion" line at MSY. I handed her my ID and explained I was on the nonstop to LGA this evening. She needed no further explanation, keying in my name and re-booking me. Since leaving early in the morning is "same-day travel" as my evening flight, there was no charge for the changes.

I was re-booked on the 0640 flight from MSY to Cincinatti-Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG). CVG is one of Delta's main hubs, along with Salt Lake City and the mothership at ATL. (CVG's air traffic has changed dramatically, and I have more about that on my YatPundit blog.) The itinerary had me connecting there to the CVG-LGA flight that I'm on as I type this.

We took a pretty roundabout route to get up to CVG from home, flying east along the Gulf Coast to around Ft. Walton Beach, FL, then turning north into Georgia, passing between Macon and Atlanta, finally turning back a bit west to come into CVG. This added about 15 minutes to our flying time. A delay of any kind can be perilous when making a connection at a hub airport, but this one worked out fine. We came into CVG at gate A18, and the next flight departed from gate A25. Since this flight is on a "regional jet" (ComAir/Delta Connection), the boarding process is less complicated. It's much easier to get 50-60 people aboard than 140 people on a MD88, or even more on one of the larger jets. That meant I had time for a bathroom stop. I had time to migrate to the center of Concourse A and the food court. I passed on that idea, however; having eaten Popeyes Chicken for dinner last night, the prospect of a Quarter Pounder now wasn't that appealing.

So, today was a "regional jet" day. The MSY-CVG flight was on a Chataqua Airlines' Embraer 145 regional jet. This is a 52-seat plane that has three seats per row. when you enter, seat A is on the right, with C and D on the left. I was in seat 3A, not bloody bad for walking up at 5:15am for a 6:40am departure. Seats on a regional jet tend to be even more cramped than their larger cousins, so it was nice that the agent at MSY took pity on my fat butt and put me on the side where the window seat is also the aisle seat. The flight was just fine, in spite of the circuitous route, since we had a pilot with a sense of humor ("Welcome from the front office. I'd like to introduce your flight attendant, Carol, who is a goddess in blue polyester.") Carol was also old enough to be his mother, not an uncommon situation with these very-young (and very low-paid) pilots on the regional carriers. She didn't even have to ask if I needed more Cran-Apple juice, as I nodded off after reading up on three chapters of the computer class I'm teaching tomorrow.

I woke up just as we were on final approach to CVG. De-planing is just as easy on the 145 as boarding. What was weird today was a regional jet parking at the airport's A concourse, but I'll save that for political commentary. Within half an hour, the gate agent at A25 was boarding the connecting flight a Bombardier CRJ-900. This jet has the same seat layout as the Embraer, but with the addition of three rows of First Class seats. Hat tip to the lady who re-booked me (gotta get her name next time, she's helped me numerous times and deserves an e-mail to Delta), for putting me in 1A, right up front. We were slow pushing back from the gate--the pilot said the ground crew was short-staffed--so departure was 20 minutes late. That didn't quite bother me for two reasons: First, getting into LGA is a matter of getting into the air. Barring weather issues, the FAA lets you land once you take off. Their strategy is to keep you on the ground until they can fit you into the metro NYC patterns. Since we weren't on a "ground hold," life was good. Life was better for the second reason, a flight attendant willing to freshen up my pre-takeoff glass of wine.

I would have had one of those lovely Delta "snacks" had I kept to the original itinerary on the MD88. The regional carriers just do the basket of junk food, so my chardonnay was accompanied by a pack of peanut butter crackers. Still, the wine is cold, and I'm taking a taxi to my hotel, which is a block from Times Square.

The Road Warrior has a tough call to make every Sunday. Do you sacrifice your day, taking the early flights out, or do you spend the day at home, heading to the airport at 4pm-5pm, hoping that the travel world hasn't gone to hell in a handbasket while you barbecued for family? Since Delta resumed nonstop service to LGA, I'm usually OK with the latter, even if it means not getting to Midtown Manhattan until 1am. Weather is the kicker, though, and the widespread remnants of a tropical system is about as bad as it can get. Best to take the long way to LGA.

Many companies now require their people to use travel sites like Expedia or Orbitz to book travel. One of the companies I work with frequently, Hitachi Data Systems, still has their own travel department. Since I'm self-employed, I normally insist on making my own arrangements.

As much as people talk about how airlines dump on their customers, there are still some perks to be had by the fliers who stay monogamous. This morning was a good example of that. My original schedule for the coming week was to teach a four day class (HDS Enterprise Storage Foundations) in Santa Clara, CA. I usually fly into SFO when going to Silly Valley, even though you see the planes taking off overhead from SJC when you walk out the door of the HDS office. SJC doesn't do redeyes, so I drive the 30 or so miles back up 101 to the bigger airport.

The airfare for this particular trip was obscene--over $1300--because I booked it so late. The SFO-ATL redeye on Thursday nights is always a zoo to book. It's very popular, overbooks, and upgrades are impossible. In spite of all this, it gets me home at 8am on Friday, so it works, even when the plane is packed like a train in Mumbai.

All that went out the window at 2pm yesterday (Friday), when I got a call that an instructor is ill and can't teach a class in NYC. They could cover my class with a less-experienced instructor, so I'm now off to teach Enterprise Replication Fundamentals (a very fun class similar to one I taught a lot for EMC), in NYC. Changing the flights was a snap, I just called the "Delta Special Member Services" line and they put me on the 5:30pm nonstop, MSY-LGA, returning Friday morning on the nonstop.

When I woke up this morning and looked at Da Paper, I didn't like the track of TS Fay. It's not that I'm worried for the house or the city, but the combination of possible weather delays with the natural delays of flying into the New York City area give me great concerns. The 5:30pm flight looked really risky, so I called Delta back. There are a number of options for earlier flights that go through ATL, but all would cost more.

That's when the ticket agent on the other end made a fantastic suggestion. He suggested I just go to the airport early in the morning and do the "same day confirmed" strategy. In other words, go up to the ticket counter at, say 5am for the 6am flight and fly standby. Because it's same-day changes and I'm a "Platinum Elite," there will be no charge. Even if I didn't have that super-studly status with the airline, the change fee would still only be $25.

The moral of the story--loyalty to an airline still helps when plans change.

We've already taken the hit, so this round of cutbacks won't impact Armstrong International. In fact, USA Today's calculations are that MSY will increase by 5.5% in terms of number of available seats.

This is where the spoke-and-hub system actually doesn't hurt us. So long as the number of seats to MSY stays the same or increases, we're in good shape. Get to ATL, ORD, or IAH, and you can get wherever else you need to go.

One possible problem for New Orleans travelers may be the drop in seats at IAH. USA Today shows -8.8% change there, and that's got to be Continental flights. Contrast that with a -2.4% change at ATL (Delta). Continental fliers may find themselves switching over to Delta for more possibilities through Atlanta than through Planet Hooston. For now, Continental is still a SkyTeam airline, so you can get frequent flier credit for the changes.

I taught a class for Hitachi Data Systems last week in Santa Clara. The HDS office there is right next to Norman Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC), but, like usual, I opted to fly into San Francisco International (SFO).

The main reason I choose SFO over SJC is that there is a wider range of flights from ATL to SFO. The only morning flight combination that put me into SJC a week ago Sunday was MSY-SLC, SLC-SJC. The problem with that itinerary was that the MSY-SLC flight was on a CRJ-100 regional jet, operated by SkyWest. It's over 2.5 hours from MSY to SLC, with the Salt Lake to San Jose leg being a short hop. Regional jet seats are not comfortable for that long a period.

So, in spite of the fact that going east before going west adds an additional two hours of flying time, and I'm flying into an airport 35 miles north of my destination instead of one right next to it, off I went to SFO, so I could sit in a comfy seat.

Since I regularly fly Delta Airlines, the planes used for flights from ATL to the west coast are usually B767-300s or B757-200s. Both have 24 seats in First Class. In spite of my Platinum status with Delta, it's tough getting a First Class upgrade on the ATL-SFO flights. Flying is becoming such a hassle for so many folks that many business travelers that regularly take long-haul flights are able to get their companies to pay for business or first class travel on their flights (or at least on every other flight). Can't get an upgrade when the cabin's full of paying customers!

Because of this trend, it's even more important to narrow down the big jets when possible. The B767 has a two-aisle deck plan. The seats are arranged 2-aisle-3-aisle-2 in economy. The window seats are also wider and more comfortable than those on the B757, which is arranged in the classic 3-aisle-3 configuration. If I book a flight far enough in advance (3+ weeks), I'll pick the B767 and go for a window ("A" or "G") seat as close to the front as I can get.

I prefer window seats to aisles on the long flights because I'm blessed with the ability to sleep on planes. If I choose an aisle seat, I invariably get awakened by one of the other two persons in the row (middle or window) who need to go to the lavatory.

I had seat 11A in a B767-300 on the ATL-SFO flight last Sunday. I arrived at ATL on the 0600 flight (on a MD88) from MSY, which was uneventful. I didn't get upgraded on that flight, which was unusual. Ms. Linda in the Crown Room said my upgrade looked good, but I'm starting to think that the New Orleans gate agents don't follow the list produced by the computer system 100%. I'll check in with them directly next flight about my upgrade. We arrived at ATL on-time, at the main terminal (the "T Gates"). I shifted over to "B," had a coffee in the club, and did some work. There's a Dunkin Donuts now on "B," so I migrated there to get some breakfast, then off to the gate.

Delta B767s have the individual in-flight entertainment systems. These now include not only movies, but a number of basic cable channels, such as ESPN, HGTV, FoodTV, and others. They also have a good selection of music in all sorts of varieties. The tunes and basic TV stations are free in both cabins, but economy passengers have to pay for movies. There's a credit card slot at the bottom of the console. Cabin service was good on the flight, but I didn't take advantage of the first service, as I had fallen asleep. Tailwinds put us into SFO about 25 minutes ahead of our 1305PDT arrival (4:35 scheduled flying time).

SFO baggage claim is usually OK and didn't let me down this day. Soon I was on the airport's train system and off to the centralized rental car facility. Avis had me ready to go with no grief. I was on Hwy 101 heading into San Francisco by 1:35pm.

I chose the 2220PDT "redeye" flight home on Wednesday evening. As much as I wanted to see friends in the East Bay area, I felt it important that I get home while I still had two full days remaining in the week. We wrapped up class early in the afternoon, so I drove down to Capitola on the coast for a few hours. On the return, I went up I280 to head straight for the airport. After stopping for an iced tea and to gas up, I steered the rental back into the centralized facility, cleared Avis, and took the train to Terminal 1.

Delta's Crown Room Club at SFO is lovely, but it's got a catch--it's outside the security gate. Built at a time when this wasn't a significant obstacle, it's not that big a deal now, other than you have to make sure you factor clearing TSA into your timing. Because there are so few late-evening flights, the club's ticket agent usually announces a boarding warning that factors in the crowd at the checkpoint.

Redeye flights are usually laid-back. People in the club are having drinks, watching primetime TV, and generally settling themselves down in anticipation of sleeping a bit on the plane. I haven't been upgraded on a redeye in two years; not expecting to be upgraded here, I had a couple of glasses of wine, checked in with family on the phone and friends on the computer. The announcement came for the SFO-JFK flight, then for the SFO-ATL flight about twenty minutes later.

SFO has a priority lane for first class/medallion customers, but that didn't matter this evening; the line was empty. My flight was deaprting out of gate 48. There was a huge brouhaha going on at gate 42, however. A DL flight from Hawaii had just landed. Several SFPD officers were restraining a woman who was screaming at the top of her lungs, resisting them, swearing and cursing the entire time. The waiter at the pub next to the gate said the gate agent told him she started in like that at two hours into the flight. Airports always have some sort of unexpected entertainment.

I had a window seat in the second exit row of a B757. The seat isn't as comfortable as some, because of it's position next to the bulkhead, but the window seat ensures I won't be disturbed. The exit rows are good because they provide better leg room (have to have more space between seats so people can climb out onto the wing). The seat backs of the row ahead of you are locked, they're also good if you want to use a computer in-flight. The wine in the club had its desired effect. I was alseep while we were taxiing and didn't wake up until we were in-ange at ATL.

We arrived at ATL just before 0600EDT. It was, from all descriptions, a smooth flight. I made my way from "A" concourse to "B" where my 0820 flight to MSY was parked. After a quick cup of coffee and e-mail check in the Crown Room, I headed back down to the concourse. There's a Popeyes Famous Fried Chicken on "B" at ATL, and they do great breakfast biscuits. The line was a zoo, so I didn't have time for a biscuit. I opted for a DD coffee instead.

Delta upgraded me for this leg of the trip before I had even left. That often happens when the plane is a B757 heading to New Orleans. They'll fill the plane, but not many people are willing to pay for first class for a one-hour flight. I was able to get a bit more sleep before arriving at MSY to the "humidity wall" that's the first sure sign I'm home.

Last week's class was at Hitachi Data Systems' office in Toronto. Traveling to Toronto isn't that much worse for me coming from New Orleans than any US city. The routine for a Delta frequent flier is essentially the same, fly to ATL, connect there to the destination. Pearson International Airport (YYZ) isn't a big destination for Delta, so the connecting flight was a 50-seat CRJ-200 regional jet.

This was a four-day class, running from Tuesday to Friday, so I went out on Monday. Usually Monday morning travel has its advantages, the biggest of which is it's not Sunday, but this was the Monday after the second weekend of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. JazzFest is one of those events where people actually pay for first class tickets if that's what they have to do to get to New Orleans. That meant the odds of me getting upgraded to first class for the outbound flight were slim. One of the perks of being a Medallion-level customer with Delta is that they allow me to choose seats from the "preferred" sections. This includes the exit rows. Many of the jets in the Delta fleet have two over-the-wing exit doors on each side. To make sure that those doors are unobstructed, the seat backs of the rows directly in front of the doors are locked upright. If you choose a seat in the second exit row, you get extended leg room (wider to allow passage through the exit door), and the passenger in front of you can't plop his back into your lap. Given that I don't drink cocktails or wine on an early morning flight, the exit row isn't all that bad.

The MSY-ATL flight was uneventful, other than the usual bumpy air over Alabama. We arrived on-time in nice weather. I was able to amuse myself with Twitter while we taxied to the gate T-2. The "T" gates are part of the main terminal building. A glance at the connecting flights monitor upon deplaning boosted my spirits-the outbound flight was not leaving from concourse "E" as my boarding pass listed, but rather from "C." I decided to stop in the Crown Room Club on "T" and relax there before going out to "C," from which most of the regional jets operated by Delta Connection partner airlines operate.

The front desk agent in the "T" Crown Room reminded me that there was now a club on "C," so I turned around and headed there anyway. The Crown Room on "C" is relatively new, and it's absolutely gorgeous, with a waterfall in the entrance, lots of high ceilings, and great views of operations at the gates. It's also got a big "business section," a series of carrels set up for computer users. The wi-fi was the solid T-Mobile signal I've come to expect in Delta's club rooms. Soon enough it was time to head to the gate.

Atlantic South Airlines (ASA) is a "Delta Connection" airline. They operate "Bombardier" regional jets as Delta "codeshare" flights. The employess of ASA are separate from Delta, meaning pilots and flight attendants negotiate salaries independent of th main airline. Pilots on Delta Connection jets are usually the younger guys and gals who are just getting started in civilian aviation. The CRJ-200 is small, so they only need a single flight attendant. Most carry-on luggage that can easily be stowed overhead in a larger jet won't fit on the CRJs, so they "gate-check" these bags. You drop off your bag on the jetway and pick it up planeside upon arrival. My backpack will fit in the CRJ's overhead with the computer out, or it will slide under the seat, so I don't have to sweat gate-checking. All settled in with my Bernard Cornwell novel, I was ready for the 1:45 flight. We were slow getting out of ATL; like most larger airports, there are more flights scheduled for departure in a given hour than there are takeoff slots. We finally got in the air and headed north. This flight was also uneventful, other than my fat butt doesn't quite fit well in the CRJ's smaller seats.

Arriving at YYZ is not all that different from any other large airport. Delta operations at Pearson are limited these days to regional jets, so passengers deplane using the built-in stairs of the CRJ and walk outside to the terminal building. Once everyone is off the plane, a shuttle bus arrives to transport you to the main arrival terminal. Clearing Canadian immigration and customs is fairly simple. When they ask me what I'm doing for four days in Canada, I tell them "photographing streetcars." Toronto has an extensive trolley system, so it usually deflects any other questions. A few years back, a lovely border agent popped me for CA$150 for a work permit of some such when I actually said I was coming up to teach in Ottawa. Never again, I'm a tourist coming to take pictures.

Once through immigration, I retrieved my checked bag to pass through customs. Nothing to declare, and off I go to fetch the rental car. At most airports, the rental car lot is a separate facility, but they're all in the parking garage next to the terminal at YYZ, so there's no shuttle bus ride. HDS has a corporate arrangement with Avis, and yes, they try harder to impress me. My ride for this trip was a Chrysler Sebring...convertible! I walked up to the Avis "preferred" counter right when another guy was standing there, demanding to see the manager, because he objected to the type of car they gave him. Not the size (mid-size, full, etc.), but the make/model. I walk up with a smile, show my license, and am handed the keys to a convertible. I never know if these things are arranged beforehand or if it's karma, but I like when that happens.

With my bag securely stored, I was ready to be away from the airport.

I've been mulling over a situation that happened at the Delta ticket counter at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) last Friday, trying to decide if which of the two in the title happened.

Here's the story:

My son qualified for the Academic Games national tournament that was held this weekend in Orlando, FL. The New Orleans Academic Games league has been one of the serious competitors in Academic Games going all the way back to when I was in high school. Getting the opportunity to represent your school in a national competition is always a thrill for a kid, and certainly was for my 13-year old 8th grader. The group from New Orleans took chartered buses to Orlando that were scheduled to leave at 6pm. That presented a problem for my chronic over-achiever of a kiddo, because the Brother Martin High School Jazz Band had their spring concert at 7pm on Friday.

OK, being the wonderful parents that Mrs. YatPundit and I are, we were more than willing to make this work. The easy solution would be to let him play the gig Thursday night and put him on a plane to Orlando on Friday morning. This was made even easier when we learned that there was a Delta nonstop flight to MHO, and the teacher who is the Academic Games moderator for BMHS had already planned to take that flight. So, we booked the flight and that was that.

Until I got to the airport on Friday, that is.

The gig Thursday night was fantastic, and the other kids going to Orlando got off just fine. I drove kiddo to MSY about 10:15am for a 11:40am departure. We parked and went up to the First Class/Medallion line to check him in. The ticket agent was a black woman in her late 30s/early 40s. I handed her my driver's license and my "Platinum Medallion" card, explaining that I was checking in my son. The agent told me that she would have to charge me $100 extra because kiddo was only 13 and therefore had to be treated as an "unaccompanied minor."

I further explained to the agent that he wasn't going to be "unaccompanied," but rather that he was traveling with a teacher from his school. She firmly refused to bend on charging me the fee, saying that the only way that it could be avoided is if the teacher was here to escort kiddo through security.

At this point, I wasn't a happy camper. You see, I don't pay fees like this to Delta. I have "Platinum" frequent flier status with the airline. Last year, I spent over $30,000 with Delta, and I expect to spend at least as much this year. I expect them to waive fees like this as a courtesy to a good customer. This woman would simply not budge, and I was getting annoyed by it. Finally, I said we would call the teacher to see if he was already here or on his way, and take it from there. At this point, the agent got snippy with me, informing me that she was going on her break, and therefore was going to void out the current check-in of kiddo, and that we would have to start over with someone else when we got things straight.

We stepped back from the counter and off she went on her break. In the meantime, kiddo had run teacher and learned that he was indeed already checked in, through TSA, and at the gate. There was no way I could rationalize paying the hundred-buck fee. If a Delta employee had to be tasked with the responsibility of making sure kiddo got on the plane and then off into the hands of another responsible party, that would be one thing. But his teacher was going to be with him the entire time; all that was necessary was to have an adult take him through TSA.

By now kiddo's anxiety is starting to build up. It's 10:45am and departure is 11:40am. OK, time to bite the bullet and do what I have to do to make him at ease, even if it costs me a c-note. Back up to the counter we go, through the First Class line. The agent of our first encounter is still on break. To the left of that station is one agent who is servicing the regular passenger check-in line, and to the right was another agent who was one of two servicing the "self-service" computer kiosks. Ten minutes go past, and the self-service agent is not only ignoring us, but is actually handling customers who are leaving the regular line and jumping over to the kiosks. After 15 minutes had passed, I've no doubt that my face reflected my annoyance of being kept waiting this long.

Finally the agent working the regular check-in process waves to us to come over to his station. he's a white guy, early 30s. I repeat the process as before, handing him my license and platinum card, explaining that the teacher is going to accompany kiddo on the flight. He printed up kiddo's boarding pass and attached a claim check to his bag. With no mention of rules, fees, or anything, the agent asks, "Would you like to walk your son down to the gate?" I said, "yes, indeed." He took my license again and printed me up a pass to get through TSA.

The contrast between the two agents was stunning, even to me, and I fly on Delta 30+ weeks a year. I'm very much used to having my butt kissed by Delta employees, even the frazzled, stressed, overworked (but wonderful) gate agents at ATL. They see that "Platinum Medallion" on my boarding pass and they know that I'm a regular who understands the system.

This brings me back to my original question: was I the victim of bad customer service or the benefit of white privilege? The first agent was a black female. The second agent was a white male. Clearly, if the rules were as firm as the female agent made them out to be, then the male agent committed a serious breach of the rules. That's not the sort of thing one good ol' boy does for another, particularly given how fickle TSA folks can be. I can see if they cut me a break because they kept us waiting so long the second trip to the counter, though. I'd like to think that I was treated the way I was because of my customer status, not my race.