There’s a good profile of Spirit Airlines CEO Ben Baldanza in yesterday’s New York Times, and it’s worth reading to get a sense of the mindset behind one of the most successful airlines in the US.

The problem with Spirit is not that it is cheap. It’s not even that it takes a hard line with its policies (sure, a little compassion would be nice… but it’s fine to be consistent). It’s also not even a problem when the airline says its only obligation is to get you from point A to point B safely.

There are three problems with Spirit.

First, the company has been using deceptive practices to get consumers to buy their stuff. There’s the fare club that customers automatically (and often unwittingly) signed up for. Another example:

[C]ustomers have unprintable things to say about the way Spirit charges for seat assignments and checked bags. To wit: your credit card is charged for your ticket, and only then are you asked if you’d like to spend more to pick a seat and check a bag. If yes, your card is charged again.

Second, the airline leaves you hanging when it cancels a flight. If the next available flight isn’t for another few days, that’s your tough luck. That’s not adequately clear when you go to buy a ticket from the airline.

Finally, a problem with the airline is that its ideas have caught on among its competitors. That’s not their fault, or even their own exclusive province — Ryanair, anyone? But Spirit’s competitors have been taking pages from their playbook and making their fees and practices commonplace.

Each of the (many) complaints I hear about Spirit Airlines mirrors one of these issues. But when it comes to their CEO, the complaints obviously fall on deaf ears.

Baldanza, a board game enthusiast with a whopping 1700 games in his collection, seems to think that every fee and every bilking of the customer is just part of a game. He even posted a list of board games that approximate the talents and skills of running your own airline.

Games, I can appreciate. But not when the rules aren’t fair. If Ben Baldanza wants to spend an evening playing Settlers of Catan, Power Grid, or Agricola, while discussing the ethics of his airline’s “gotcha” sales methods, he should consider himself invited to come on over to U:TB headquarters. I won’t even charge him for a beverage.

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Upgraded: Weird contraband found at airports
Downgraded: Pigeon welfare
The NY Daily News has a set of photos of items found by customs agents at airports. Most are drug related, but my favorite has to be this image of a man with pigeons wrapped up and kept in his long underwear:

“Sir, your pants are cooing.”

Downgraded: Priorities
A new film being made with George Clooney in the lead role is apparently based on the premise of a man seeking to collect 1 million frequent flyer miles. I would rather see a film devoted a person seeking to spend 1 million frequent flyer miles…

Downgraded: “Good luck” cards for illegal immigrants
Staying on the customs-and-immigration theme… A Mexican man attempting to enter the UK, with the intention of overstaying his visa, was flagged as a probable immigrant, rather than a tourist, when a card was found in his luggage containing the sentiment, “Good luck in your new life in the UK!” The UK Border Agency trumpeted that they were sending him “back.” But the man flew to Manchester from Los Angeles… I wonder what his return ticket read.

Upgraded: Advantage Rent-a-Car revived, in death
Bankrupt Advantage Rent-a-Car’s assets are being bought by competitor Enterprise, assuming the courts approve. But with the ongoing slump in the rental market, I’m surprised Enterprise would even want more cars or offices!

Upgraded: Northwest and Delta mileage accounts
I realize I’ve been negligent in not mentioning this before: You can merge Northwest WorldPerks miles into an existing Delta SkyMiles account and receive a 500-mile bonus for doing so, if you do it by April 15, 2009. The miles will instantly transfer over, but the bonus will take a few weeks to post.

Downgraded: Spirit Airlines charging fees again for buying tickets on their own website
I have to say, part of me loves the gall that Spirit Airlines has. Last year, they instituted a “passenger usage fee” of $4.90 for buying tickets on their own website. If this sounds familiar, it’s because it is: The airline tried this last summer, but retracted it within a few days. In the WSJ, Scott McCartney has this summary:

Spirit tried charging a $7.90 passenger usage fee last year, along with a $2.50 “natural occurrence interruption fee” (to cover storm-related costs) and an $8.50 “international service recovery fee” to pay for some taxes and fees the airline pays to foreign governments. But the DOT stepped in and ordered the airline to stop; federal rules require airlines to include airline-imposed charges that all customers must pay in advertised fares.

Spirit was fined $40,000 but remained undeterred. Since then, the airline has been negotiating with the DOT to find an acceptable way under department rules to charge the passenger booking fee. “We will be reintroducing it in a way the DOT is comfortable with,” Mr. Baldanza says.

Offended? Complain. Here and here.

Downgraded: Missing a flight
Downgraded as well: Airline staff who film passengers
A passenger who flipped out when she missed her flight to Hong Kong, and was caught on cameraphone throwing a huge tantrum, has received an apology from the airline that kept her off the plane. Not because she didn’t board, but because the embarrassing video was made by a Cathay Pacific employee. (Notably, they claim the employee wasn’t the one to have uploaded the video to YouTube, but that’s hardly a vital distinction at this point.) I didn’t post the original video when it started making the rounds, because it seemed to be everywhere at the time, but I’ll include it here for context.

Downgraded: The fates of whistleblowers who look out for passenger safety
A cold day in Calgary, and three US Airways flight attendants notice ice building up on the wings. After much wrangling, they convince their flight crew to de-ice an aircraft. After landing safely, they report the incident to the FAA. Then the fun begins.

After the trio reported the incident to the Federal Aviation Administration, one of the flight’s pilots fired back at them, hard. He sued all three flight attendants for defamation, demanding $2 million.
[...]
But what makes it even worse is that the cost of a trial, much less any jury verdict, would come out of their pockets. At this point, their airline has decreed that they’re on their own.

According to their union contract, US Airways is supposed to foot the legal bill for any flight attendant sued for something she did as part of her official duties. The only caveat? If the flight attendant has shown “willful misconduct,” the airline is off the hook.

And effectively accusing the flight attendants of misconduct, the airline isn’t paying one cent in their defense. Read the whole story. And if you want to help them out, they’ve started a fundraising drive.

Upgraded: Spirit Airlines flight attendant uniform hijinx
Also Upgraded: The ethical sanctity of your tray table advertisement
Spirit Airlines flight attendants are objecting to wearing an advertisement for Bud Light on their uniforms. (Ads for bloggers not quite in the works yet.)

Meanwhile, Spirit has decided that some advertisers are off limits: People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. “Spirit has rebuffed PETA’s attempts to place the ad, which features fluffy yellow chicks and urges passengers to ‘let birds keep their wings’ by adopting a vegetarian diet.”

Upgraded: Safety of your hotel points, for now
Your hotel points are safe, they say. Adam Kirby at the trade journal Hotels followed up on my speculation (or “paranoia”) that recent hotel bonus promotions were the sign of devaluations to come. Both Hilton and Marriott assured Adam that no such devaluations were afoot. Good, but that’s really easy for Marriott to say: They devalued their points just two weeks ago! (Thanks, Adam!)

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Upgraded: Refunds on Spirit Airlines
Spirit Airlines, perhaps America’s most hated airline, gives refunds to its passengers after all! But only under special circumstances… like being rebooked onto a flight that ditches into the Hudson River. Actually, no, that wasn’t enough:

Rob and Jeff Kolodjay were scheduled to fly on Spirit Airlines to a golf vacation with four other friends on Thursday out of LaGuardia in New York City. Their flight got cancelled, and they were rebooked onto US Airways flight 1549. When they tried to cancel the return tickets on Spirit they could not use because they never made it to Myrtle Beach, the company representative insisted on charging them a [$90] cancellation fee.

Wait, Spirit rebooks passengers onto other airlines? Who knew? Amazing!

But as for the cancellation fee, the airline eventually reversed itself. Only after the passengers got the local news reporters involved. Stay classy, Spirit! (via Consumerist)

Upgraded: Promises and threats of Ryanair in the USA
Ultra-cheapo Ryanair has been threatening to fly trans-Atlantic again. This time, from Ireland to … Niagara Falls! Ryanair promises/threatens a route over the Atlantic on a six-month cycle, it seems. And it never materializes. Let me know when they start actually flying this one…

Upgraded: Wi-fi on United, unless you’re a Chicagoan, apparently
I’m amused by this take-down of the introduction of inflight wi-fi on selected United Airlines flights by Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism website. United is putting the $12.95 service on its JFK-SFO and JFK-LAX “p.s.” service. Notably not included: Chicago flights. The article’s negative angle toward the service may betray some sour grapes…

Downgraded: Luxury
It’s barely open for six months, but the Arctic Club Hotel in Seattle has “decided to no longer be a luxury hotel, and said that downscaling will help it attract more customers.” Their new target is the AAA 3-diamond level, and they’re hoping to partner with a major chain. Welcome to the new austerity.

Air travelers have been taking a number of hits lately, but one of the most egregious was Spirit’s recent “web convenience fee,” whereby they charged an extra $10 for booking a roundtrip ticket online.

“Was”? Yes, “was.” They killed it. Sean O’Neill of Budget Travel pinged me to let me know that the newly updated Spirit contract of carriage no longer includes the fee. He posted about it earlier today.

And sure enough, the fee is gone. I walked through their site as if buying a ticket, and poof! It’s disappeared. Thank goodness. Let’s hope it doesn’t rise from the dead again.

Now, do those who paid the web convenience fee over the last week get their money back?… Don’t hold your breath.

…flies Spirit, that is. Chris Elliott notes the latest fee from the winner of the unofficial Upgrade: Travel Better fill-my-inbox-with-complaints award for lousy airline customer service. Their latest transgression: A $10 per roundtrip “web convenience fee” for making your air ticket purchases online.

So much for the internet reducing transactions costs and making it cheaper to deliver goods and services!

The fee is purely a way to bilk the customer. There’s no other way around it. I realize that fuel is pricey, and that $5 or $10 on every transaction can really add up fast. But this isn’t how you do it.

The phrasing of the fee:

Convenience Fee of $5.00 per traveling customer per one way travel applies to all reservations with the exception of those bookings created directly at Spirit Airlines’ airport locations. All fares are subject to change until confirmed and purchased.

So it’s cheaper to book a ticket at the airport? That makes no damn sense.

Chris is right that the Department of Transportation (and the Federal Trade Commission, I might add) should be looking into this. European airlines have been forced to reduce their false advertising of 1-cent fares with piles of add-on fees. This is a similar instance of mandatory, undisclosed fees that shouldn’t be permitted.

But why get ticked off at an airline I never fly? You won’t find me recommending Spirit to anyone, after all. Simple: These sorts of fees are actually problem for everyone, even if you never fly with them. Two reasons:

As I’ve argued before, one problem is comparison shopping: With Spirit tacking on fees like this, they might look cheaper in head-to-head comparisons with other airlines. That’s deceptive.

Second, like it or not, Spirit has been an industry leader, whom other airlines copycat. Nearly every time they add a fee, someone else follows suit within months, with a cascading effect. How soon before US Airways introduces a web fee? Then United. Then American, Continental, et al. (Southwest might not play along, as they’re still able to milk efficiencies from long-term fuel-contracts that they wisely sewed up months and years ago.) So b.s. fees like this one, even at a niche airline that most people haven’t flown, can’t be allowed to stand, or else we’ll all be paying it sooner or later.

Fight back by filing a complaint. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s complaint form is here. The Federal Trade Commission’s complaint form is here.

Update: Customers who really, really, really want to fly on Spirit, despite having been warned time and again about their horrible business practices, might want to book their tickets on Orbitz.com instead of on the Spirit Airlines website. While Orbitz charges a booking fee, it’s less than the new Spirit web convenience fee. Also, I just tried three sample itineraries, and the fare on Orbitz was lower than the fare sold directly by Spirit. Fluke? Maybe. But worth comparison shopping before clicking “buy.”

Update 2: As of July 23, Spirit has reversed this fee.

Related:
- Spirit’s latest indignity: Middle seats for a $5 fee
- Spirit Airlines keeps it classy with their M.I.L.F. sale
- Spirit Airlines’ CEO flips his customers the bird
- Downgrades: Spirit Airlines to charge for ALL luggage, coffee, and soda
- This is not the Spirit Airlines website and I can’t cancel your club membership. So why are people asking ME for refunds?

If there’s one airline that continually and consistently ticks off customers, filling my inbox with nearly-identical tales of piss-poor customer service, it’s Spirit. Whether it’s their “club,” their automatic opt-in for travel insurance, or their CEO’s screw-the-customer attitude, customers love to complain about Spirit.

Here’s another reason for them to complain. Reserving your seats in advance now costs you money, with prices varying according to location. It’s not just the front of the plane, or the exit rows, either:

Spirit Airlines now charges its passengers for online seat selection as part of a new policy that took effect May 30. Customers have to fork over $5 for a middle seat, $10 for an aisle, and $15 for a window.

Windows cost more than aisles??! Okay…

But $5 for a middle seat that’s pre-reserved? This might only make sense if you’re traveling with a partner who already paid the $10 or $15 for their seat. Otherwise, you might as well save your money, take your chances, and get seats assigned at check-in.

But if you’re flying on Spirit in the first place, knowing about how dismal their customer service is, taking risks must be right up your alley.

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Our man on the inside at Spirit Airlines writes in with this warning:

Spirit airlines is rolling out a new reservations and check in system called Navitaire. The changeover will be happening on Feb 4th.

[...] These changes can cause as much commotion as they did when US Airways merged systems with America West. Except this time we are predicting a meltdown because the gate agents and employees have been “trained” on the new system, but by the time it is rolled out they will have forgotten how it works. I’ve surveyed several employees and the response is the same: “I don’t know what will happen, I have no clue how to work that system.”

Expect long lines, delays, and angry passengers…

Consider yourselves forewarned.

If you’re flying with Spirit, despite most advice offered here (see “related” links below), then check in early, leave yourselves extra time at the airport, and keep those fingers crossed.

For passengers’ sake, here’s hoping that the systems will have been figured out and operational by the launch date…

Related:
- Spirit Airlines’ CEO flips his customers the bird
- Is Spirit Airlines’ new club worth joining?
- Downgrades: Spirit Airlines to charge for ALL luggage, coffee, and soda
- Spirit Airlines to Democrats: Drop Dead

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Oh, Spirit Airlines! What would a travel blog be without you?? The double entendres, the imagery, the low fares that few if anyone can actually purchase… But this latest sale, as mentioned in the Consumerist earlier today, is a raising the bar, even for you: The MILF Sale.

Oh sure, the “MILF” sale portends to be the “Many Islands, Low Fares” sale, but we know better, Spirit. You’re talking about the lustful thoughts for a friend’s mom. And you know what: We have the evidence to prove it.

Have a look at these screenshots. You have to look quickly as the Flash passes, but thanks to a fast finger on the print-screen button, we see the seductive silhouette-shaped island north of Cuba…

My Caribbean geography may be a bit rusty, but something tells me that’s not any island I’ve seen. Better look quickly, as it changes to this more generic image:

Keepin’ it classy, Spirit!

Spirit has named sales before, after hurricanes, after Jeb Bush, and now, after the randy thoughts of teenage boys across America.

So: Whaddaya think? Are Spirit’s fare sale antics the marketing equivalent of a crisp snap of a towel in the postgame locker room? Or are these sales crossing a line into the obnoxious and offensive? Or, are they just plain stupid? Vote!

(Viewing in a feed reader? Click here to vote.)

Related:
- Spirit Airlines to Democrats: Drop Dead
- Downgrades: Spirit Airlines to charge for ALL luggage, coffee, and soda
- Is Spirit Airlines’ new club worth joining?
- Spirit Airlines’ CEO flips his customers the bird

If you’re flying between the United States and Latin America or the Caribbean, you’d better pack light. Why? It’s December.

Huh??

This is a policy that airlines don’t really publicize, and it’s doubtful that many people get a call or e-mail about this before it’s too late. But every year, usually on December 1, airlines start putting strict limits on the amount of baggage you can check if you are traveling to the warmer climates of the Americas.

Why? Apparently, passengers traveling to and from these countries are packing so heavily, the planes can’t accomodate all that baggage, along with a planeload of passengers. So they slap on a limit, and adhere to it strictly.

In most cases, the holiday baggage rule states that passengers can check two bags, but no overweight bags or additional bags. Not even for an additional fee. If you arrive with overweight suitcases and want to check the bag, you’ll have to take something out and leave it behind. Ouch.

This latter point is what catches most people by surprise, usually at the last minute, at the airport. And then they’re pissed off.

It’s a widespread practice, with minor variations. December 1 to January 10 is a common range of dates for these more draconian rules, but it’s different at every airline. For example, it kicks off on November 15 at Delta. On United, it starts on the first Sunday in December each year.

But one thing is common: Unless you’re a seasoned veteran, traveling in this timeframe between these regions, you’re in for a surprise if you packed heavily.

Case in point: A comment left on a March 2007 post today in the Upgrade: Travel Better archives. Neal writes:

My seventy year old Father in-law is heading back to Jamaica today and was told that one of his bags was overweight. Not a problem right? He will simply pay the extra charge and continue on his way.

WRONG!!!

Unbeknownst to the consumer, beginning TODAY, December 1st (try to find this on their website luggage section), Spirit Airlines has suspended carrying ANY overweight luggage (51 lbs +) during the Holiday season.

So, this wheelchair ridden man is in the process of emptying his suitcase to rid the 18 pounds he is overweight AND waiting for my sister in-law to retrieve the items (they will not store or hold the items until someone can come to the airport). Whilst on the phone moments ago with the “Customer Service Representative” at the check-in counter, I said “Where is this written?” to which she replied, “Our policy is subject to change at anytime”.

Spirit Airlines gets WORSE and WORSE by the moment!!!

While Spirit Airlines is easy to flog for its litany of customer-unfriendly policies, this isn’t unique to them. And in fact, perhaps in response to angry calls and e-mails, Spirit has posted their holiday baggage rules at the top of their FAQ.

I’ve done a quick search and found the rules for Spirit, American, Delta, Continental, and United. For other airlines, search for “holiday baggage” or “excess baggage Latin America” on an airline’s site to find it.

(That search also yielded a page on Delta’s site explaining the process for checking a Christmas tree as luggage. I’m not kidding.)

But passengers shouldn’t have to go through this rigmarole. The restrictions should be readily explained to all passengers traveling in that time, and not buried deep on an airline’s website. Once again, the airlines have found a way to piss off the consumer and create bad will. Wonders never cease.

Pack light, folks.

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