flying to seattle for an hour

wikipedia photo

This weekend I flew to Seattle for an hour. My flight left Minneapolis at 9:55 pm and I was back home at 6:00 am the next morning. To mark the occasion I purchased a genuine Seattle ballpoint pen for $2.99 in the only gift store open in the airport. I made this 2,650 mile, 8 hour, overnight journey to keep my elite status with Northwest (soon to be Delta) Airlines. I needed to fly 2500 miles before the end of the year, and Seattle was the cheapest flight I could find.

I was too tired to do any real work, and too awake to sleep, so I mostly thought about why I’d make such a crazy trip.
What I came up with first is a list of real annoyances that disappear when you are a “preferred” flier.The two biggies are: The ability to choose from any open seat, rather than just the crappy ones. For someone 6′3″, this is a really big deal. Second, waiving baggage fees unless you bring a ton of luggage.

I do firmly believe that these two items should be available to ANY traveller. The seat sizes in airplanes are ridiculous. Even if I was 5′ 3″, the average seat size does not allow a laptop to be fully opened. In addition, the fees charged by airlines (as Southwest airlines has marketed with success) are beginning to feel like late night infomercials: “Only $29″ in huge letters with “per month for 6 months plus $46.99 shipping and handling” in tiny font at the bottom.

I realize I’m not the first person to complain about these things but given the option to overcome them I spent a considerable amount of money and time to do so. I don’t think I’m out of the ordinary, either. I believe others would spend a little more money for a better flying experience. I’m not talking about first class tickets, I’m talking about a reasonable premium. Look at Apple. They provide a better experience, but cost somewhat more for that experience and people are paying it.

The airline’s current rush to the bottom of the price/service barrel is short-sighted and feeds into the public perception of flying as a hassle and often to be avoided when possible. I have to say that in general I enjoy flying. I have quiet, uninterrupted time to get some work done, do some reading or watch a movie. I don’t think I would say the same thing if I wasn’t an elite member.

There are also perks, which I believe make sense for the airlines (or any company) to reward its most loyal customers including upgrades to first class when seats are available to first class, bonus/additional award miles, pre-boarding, and reservation perks. I would be a complete liar if I said that they weren’t another reason to stay awake all night to fly to Seattle. These also help form my perception of flying as generally positive.

This experience really cemented how powerful good (or bad) customer service is to a consumer. I was willing to give up a night of my life and the cost of a red-eye flight for the possibility of better customer service for another year. As a business, we would be a fool not to take that to heart. Especially in a troubled economy, where the first impulse is to look for the cheapest option. Knowing your customer and knowing what really makes a difference to them can be much more important than cost. After 100 years of a commercial airline industry, I would think they would know their customers better. If the airlines really knew me, they’d offer me an option other than a flight to nowhere for decent service.