Posted by Marshall Jackson on September 30, 2006 under Travel Technology | 
Hewlett-Packard came through for me. They are sending me a new computer. After getting my problem elevated to a case manager who reviewed all the difficulties I had, they’ve determined that my computer cannot be repaired.
While I don’t have the new computer yet, I expect to get it within the next two weeks. The case manager was very forthright with me. They’ll replace it with equal or better per the warranty, but their in-stock inventory is very low right now due to all the back to school sales. So I may have to wait for the replacement to be built. I’ve waited this long, I’ll wait a little longer to get what I want. Aside from the fact that it only worked for 6 days, this particular laptop is the perfect combo of weight and performance….I really like it. I just happened to get a lemmon. And unfortunately, my travel schedule over the last few weeks prohibited me from just taking the thing back to Best Buy before the 14 day return window expired. I tried to get them to take it back, but I was there on day 19 instead of 14! I tried speaking to a manager who can make a decision on such matters, but after 10 minutes of waiting, I gave up.
Overall, I’m happy with the way HP has stepped up on this. I’ll post one last time on this when I get the replacement computer.
Posted by Marshall Jackson on under Marriott Rewards |
I know I’ve mentioned my preference for Marriott Hotels, and my stay at the Renaissance on 9th Street in D.C. this week was just one more reason to continue to patronize a Marriott family hotel whenever I can.
Lady Astrojets was invited to a black-tie event downtown at the National Building Museum (a beautiful venue by the way) this week, and I thought I would tag along just for grins. Not wanting to deal with driving home after the party, we thought getting a hotel downtown would be a neat idea. Having a few Marriott points to burn, I booked the Washington Renaissance for Tuesday evening.
I was able to leave work early, and cabbed over to the hotel with our bag. A member of the management staff was by the door greeting customers as they entered. The hotel appears to be near the end of a fairly extensive renovation with the main restaurant yet to be completed. There is a lobby lounge available for cocktails, and the Presidents Sports Bar is available for food and booze needs.
Check-in was swift. The desk clerk advised me that I’d been upgraded to a Club Suite, but it was not quite ready. He offered another room, but I was happy to wait for the Suite. He took my cell number and offered to call as soon as it was ready. No sooner than I’d made it half-way through a tall coffee at the Starbucks adjacent to the lobby, my phone was ringing and the room was ready. I went back to the front desk and entered the queue. All the clerks were helping other customers, but a gentleman in a suit standing to the side saw me, went behind the counter and checked me in. Pretty snazzy service!
Our room was on the 12th floor of the Club Tower and was a fantastic two-room suite complete with kitchenette, sitting area and sleeping area with the new Marriott “Revive” bed. Lady Astrojets joked that we should just blow-off the black-tie event and just chill at the hotel, but we didn’t.
Time didn’t allow for a visit to the concierge lounge, so I can’t report on that. We did stop by the Presidents Bar after our event for a nightcap. Service was polite and reasonably efficient. Arriving in the room for the evening, we found the bed had been turned down, and our stock of bath towels replenished.
A quick but wonderful stay at a great hotel. We will be back. I highly recommend this hotel for your next trip to D.C.
Posted by Marshall Jackson on September 29, 2006 under Safety and Security |
Well…I have to admit that the first real reprieve on toiletries and Starbucks from TSA came sooner than I’d expected.
You can now pass through the checkpoint with your shaving cream (and whatever else) as long as nothing is more than 3 ounces and it all fits in a quart size zip top clear plastic bag. You can read all the details straight from the source by clicking here.
Starbucks fans at my local airport, Reagan National (DCA) are going to be disappointed as the Starbucks is located outside of security (Just across from the American Airlines ticket counter for those wondering). And you will still not be allowed to cross the checkpoint with liquids purchased from the outside. Anyone else think it’s a little odd that TSA seems to think coffee brewed on one side of the checkpoint but still inside the airport is questionable, but coffee brewed on the inside is secure?
I’m gonna be on the road a bit in October….can’t wait to see how this is going.
Posted by Marshall Jackson on September 28, 2006 under Travel Technology |
Did I mention that my new laptop failed? Hard drive went kaput? Ok…I think I did. Did I also mention that it was sent in for repair, it’s hard drive replaced, new software installed back to factory original specs, and returned to me within 72 hours? Pretty cool, huh?
Would be very nifty if the thing would actually work! Yes, Hewlett-Packard sent the laptop back to me, and it still does not work.
Had to call HP again. The support tech took me through all the same steps as last time. The BIOS simply does not see the hard drive. The 2nd level tech insisted that I try and reseat the hard drive. Unfortunately, I had no screwdriver that would work. After much coaxing, I agreed to go buy one, and they agreed to call me back tonight after 8pm to talk me through the process. I protested that I want a new laptop if this does not work. Does anyone not think that it’s just a little rediculous that I’m having to do this to a laptop that is less than one month old?! I’ll keep you posted.
Believe it or not, their phone support has actually been pretty good compared to my experiences with Dell. Now if the computer would just work, I’d be in business.
Posted by Marshall Jackson on September 23, 2006 under Commentary / General Info, Marriott Rewards |
I like Marriott Hotels. From Fairfield Inns to Courtyard to the JW Marriott, they’ve normally got a product in my price range in most every town I’ll ever need to stay.
I spent this week in Roanoke, Virginia on a new project that I’ve recently been assigned to. Unfortunately, none of the Marriott properties in the area were available at what my employer will pay. You, dear reader (and taxpayer), are my employer as I work for the United States Government. As a result, I had to look at alternative properties. Hilton or Starwood are my second choices, and neither had rooms available at what we fondly call the government rate. It’s $69 dollars a night in Roanoke for those keeping score. By the way, does anyone know where one can find a room for $69 dollars anymore? But I digress….
I was able to find a room at the Wyndham Roanoke Airport for the government rate, so I booked it. Wyndham does have a frequent stay program called “By Request” which I signed up for prior to booking the room. You don’t collect “hotel points” but you do get 500 miles deposited to your frequent flyer program of choice. They also have a feature where you sign up for your preferred welcome beverage and snack. I thought to myself, “yeah right.”
I checked in at 1pm Monday just to drop off my bag, and ahead of some meetings in the afternoon. The hotel staff was very pleasant and friendly, and they didn’t seem forced to act that way. Probably a by-product of the area of the country they are from more than anything else, but I don’t have a large sample of other Wyndham experiences to compare to, so I can’t say for sure. After returning from my meeting, I was shocked to find that the “By Request” welcome beverage and snack were actually waiting for me in my room along with a note from the Manager! So score one for Wyndham.
Throughout my 4 night stay, every employee whom I passed in the hallway said hello, good morning, etc. The hotel itself was showing it’s age, but was certainly in acceptable condition. No fancy beds like Starwood, and the new Marriott beds, but the room was large and plenty comfortable. Better yet, as a “By Request” member, you receive free internet services. (Not such a help this week with no laptop, but certainly an incentive to consider Wyndham when I can)
All in all, a productive week at a decent hotel. While Marriott remains my number one choice for hotels, Wyndham has certainly moved onto my list of alternatives when no Marriott property is available.
Posted by Marshall Jackson on September 22, 2006 under Travel Technology, US Airways |
Sorry for not posting anything all week. Where do I start? Well, after my last post on my adventure in baggage service with US Airways, my brand new laptop suddenly decides to go kaput. Yes, at the ripe old age of 6 days, my new laptop gave up the ghost.
It would only boot up to an error message: “Error 200: Fixed Disk Failure.” After 1.5 hours on the phone with HP tech support, they determined that there might be an issue with the hard drive, and I would have to send it in. If I’d had the time, I think I might’ve just hauled the thing back to Best Buy, but unfortunately, I had to head out on the road Monday morning for a 5 day business trip. So…I just got the new computer dropped off at FedEx, so hopefully I will have it back in a week or so. I’m not happy….but what to do?
I drove for this trip….it was only 4 hours away, so no war stories from the airport. But I’ll have plenty of those coming up, as I’ve been assigned to a project that is going to keep me on the road for a good bit through the fall.
More soon, just wanted to write something!
Posted by Marshall Jackson on September 16, 2006 under US Airways |
Hello from Kennebunkport, Maine. I finally made it up last night after getting caught in the weather/atc issues that were affecting most of the Northeast yesterday. Lady Astrojets and I were traveling separately and planned to meet in Portland, Maine (PWM) around 5pm yesterday, alas, it was not to be.
She’s here for a work function, and I’m tagging along because…well…I could. Since I was paying for my ticket, and I had Friday off, I took an earlier flight Reagan National (DCA) with a connection to PWM in La Guardia (LGA) yesterday. Hey.. in retrospect, it wasn’t worth the $70 bucks I saved…but still…. $70 bucks is $70 bucks, right?
Things started harmlessly enough yesterday morning. I checked in just over an hour ahead of the 10am shuttle to LGA. We decided that I would bring our checked bag with the special non-explosive shaving cream. Flight departed right on time at 10am. No announcements were made in the gate area regarding the existing ATC delays in and out of La Guardia, but I was prepared. One, I booked on Orbitz, and received an e-mail advising me that there was a ground delay program for LGA in effect, and two, I checked the Federal Aviation Administration’s very handy website: http://www.fly.faa.gov/ at the airport which shows current air traffic control conditions for several major airports around the country. Check it out, and add that url to your “Favorites” list, because you will use it if you travel any at all.
Well, we pushed back from the gate and started taxiing towards the north end of the airfield. That indicates a problem since all the airplanes that are actually taking off doing so from the south end of the field. We parked beside what was probably the 9:30am Delta Shuttle and shut down the engines. Captain came on and said there would be an update at 10:30am. Five minutes later, engines start and the Captain came back on and said that sometimes good things do happen and we’d been released for takeoff. We scurried down the other end of the airport and we were off.
Weather was rainy in New York, but we only landed about 20 minutes late. Airplanes were lined up on every taxiway. Not good. In any event, I was half way to Portland finally, so I headed for the US Airways Club to camp out for a few minutes prior to my flight. The display monitors all indicated an on-time departure. I checked usairways.com, which also indicated an on-time departure. It also showed that the first leg of the flight that I was connecting to originated in Richmond, and had departed a few minutes late, and would arrive 7 minutes late. Looking good so far.
At the gate, the agent is looking for 6 volunteers as the flight is now oversold. I thought about it, but the only option they had for Portland wasn’t until 6pm, and there was no way I intended to spend that much time in La Guardia on purpose. The agent also announced that we had an airplane, but no crew as they were inbound from Richmond..the originating point of our flight. Well, here’s where things got fuzzy because it started out with the crew will be here in 10 minutes and we will depart on-time and deteriorated rapidly to the crew is still in Richmond where they are waiting to take off, and we have a new estimated time of departure of 2pm! This wouldn’t be so funny if there were 4 pilots standing there waiting to deadhead to Portland, 2 of which were supposed to fly the very airplane were flying on back from Portland that afternoon. Now…. there’s all kinds of not so obvious variables with crew scheduling that might make this look a little goofy, but that I understand, so I will refrain from complaining about why the airline, US Airways Express operated by Chautauqua Airlines didn’t do the obviously smart thing. But still frustrating nonetheless.
Oh well…it’s raining, and it’s La Guardia. I don’t need to say anything else. I trekked back up to the US Airways Club for a Diet Coke and some pretzels. Within 5 minutes of sitting down, the front desk paged any passengers on 3068 to Portland to come up to the desk. I knew this wasn’t going to be good. Sure enough, the flight had cancelled. That they would cancel an oversold flight on Friday afternoon at the drop of a hat is surprising to me….and not. Oh well. Anyways… the front desk started working on my reservation, and asked if I had a checked bag, unfortunately I did. There were no flights to Portland with any seats until 8:30pm. Time now, 1:15pm!! That wasn’t going to cut it. The agent asked if there were any alternative cities I’d consider, so I suggested Boston. Sure enough, there were seats on the 3pm shuttle, so I said grab them. The agent dutifully processed a baggage change order to re-route my bag to Boston. Anyone see the irony there? 
I suggested that my bag was probably on the 11:50am flight to Portland (it would’ve had time to make that flight), but was met with a puzzled look. In any event, I was rebooked, had an aisle seat to Boston and was # 1 on the upgrade list. Things weren’t so bad, but I knew there was not a snowball’s chance in hell that my bag would meet me in Boston.
The 3pm shuttle arrived late, but boarded early and we pushed back 5 minutes ahead of schedule so we could acquire the 40th position in line for takeoff. (I posted from my PDA when we hit # 30 (see below)). It took 1 hour and 20 minutes, but we eventually made it to the takeoff position and launched. My upgrade had cleared so at least I was sitting in a big seat for all of this. Unfortunately, the flight attendants didn’t appear in the aisle for the entire flight as the Captain had asked that they remain seated due to the choppy weather. It was choppy but certainly not that choppy. But I digress. In any event, this particular Boston based US Airways crew wasn’t that great. But they did manage a pre-departure beverage service for the whole cabin even during the rushed boarding. (AA, are you listening?)
After all the issues getting off the ground, to think that we only landed 45 minutes late is a minor miracle I think, but that’s exactly what happened. Rather than head to baggage claim, I elected to remain inside security and camp out at the US Airways Club to wait for Lady Astrojets. You see…during all my drama, her nonstop from DCA to Portland wound up oversold. She volunteered to be bumped and was rebooked to Boston so we could drive up to Kennebunkport together. Her 5pm US Airways Shuttle from DCA landed only 2 hours late!
I had proceeded outside security to baggage claim when I was sure her airplane was actually on it’s way so I could begin dealing with bags. Upon arriving there, the results of the day were obvious. There was a fairly large selection of unclaimed luggage to choose from. Unfortunately, none of those bags were mine. I went to the desk and was assisted by a gentleman who was helpful enough and not as snarly as a lot of baggage agents are. Perhaps because I was not snarly to him, but more than likely his natural demeanor. He took one look at my claim check and told me that the bag was probably in Portland (which had been my guess). Unfortunately, no one had bothered to update the computer with the whereabouts of my bag, so it was officially missing in action. He processed my claim quickly enough and said that Portland would ship the bag straight to our hotel. I have no doubt that if this gentleman were running things, that would probably happen. But unfortunately, he wasn’t running things, and I knew better.
We picked up the rental car and headed north. While she drove, I got on the phone with the US Airways Chairman’s Preferred Desk. Something told me that I might need their help on this trip so I elected to credit this flight to my US Airways account, and not my United Mileage Plus account. Turns out that I was right. You see, one little benefit of top tier elite status on US Airways is you have access to what I think may be the very best cadre of reservations agents on the planet who answer only calls from US Airways Chairman’s Preferred members. Not only can they handle standard reservations calls…they can also look at baggage tracer information. The helpful agent I got put me on hold and called the baggage service offices in Boston and in Portland. No bag in Boston, we knew that, but she checked again anyway. But Portland? Well..trouble is, they didn’t answer the phone. She was apologetic, but I knew she’d done all she could. I would spend the night with only the clothes I had on.
I’m not what most folks would consider rich, but suffice it to say that I can afford a new tooth brush. That is…if there is a store open where one can be purchased. Rule # 1 of traveling to Kennebunkport, be aware that it shuts down at 9pm. No toothbrush.
We set the alarm for 7am so I could get up and start calling. Of course, my baggage file still had not been updated. Translation: “we are uncertain where your bag is.” Lady Astrojets and I talked about driving to the Portland airport last night, but were just too tired to deal with it. Not now. Off we went. It’s about a 30 mile drive from Kennebunkport, and we were there in short order. Of course, no one was at the baggage service office, but there sure was a pile of bags locked up in there, but alas, I couldn’t see mine. We went down to the ticket counter, where the very nice lady who appeared to be on a second retirement job seemed surprised that no one was in the office. She went back behind the ticket counter to find the agent that was supposed to be working baggage. While she was there, another customer came in and immediately recongnized the piece of paper I had in my hand. She said…oh..looking for your bag too, huh? Ha! Our agent friend returned and said that the baggage agent would be down there shortly, so we headed back to the baggage office.
After 10 minutes, a gentleman showed up and unlocked the door. The other customer’s bag was waiting for her, so now it was my turn. I walked in, looked around, and immediately spotted my bag burried under two others. It had been untouched since its arrival (I suspect sometime yesterday afternoon). It’s bright red “Star Alliance Priority” bag tag that was placed on it by US Airways at check-in the day before immediately distinguishable from the others. No one had taken the time to update the “on hand” list that it was just sitting there unclaimed. The agent verified my name on the bag, and I left with it. He didn’t bother to collect anything else from me. I really don’t think he was the normal baggage person. As of now, I have my bag, but US Airways still has an open tracer on it and the little computer voice they make you speak to for baggage service still says that they have not determined the whereabouts of my bag. Nice….
Fortunately, I have the benefit of a few years of airline experience, half of which was in airport operations and Customer service. I’ve seen this before. And I knew that if a bag is tagged to a destination, that’s probably where it is going to eventually wind up, baggage change orders, involuntary re-routes, etc. aside. If I had waited for US Airways to do its job on this, I’d probably still be in yesterday’s clothes, and I am not pleased. Yes, they will hear this story.
You’ll note that I’ve not once complained about a cancellation or delay. I am complaining about a lack of attention to detail when it comes to treating your Customers right. I might have gotten the best service in the air one can get yesterday, but in the end, it won’t matter. All I will remember is not brushing my teeth for 24 hours. And not once did anyone bother to say I’m sorry. It is someone’s job to process unclaimed bags. I know they are busier than they used to be with all the additional bags that are being checked, and I know that there are far fewer employees to deal with these kinds of issues. But come on! That bag had been there a while as evidenced by its unceremonial burial under all the other bags. There is no excuse for its not being delivered to me last night. US Airways could’ve done a better job, and I will be sharing this story with them with the expectation of some form of an apology for the time they have stolen from Lady Astrojets and myself this weekend.
Update (10/5/2006): I did fax a letter to US Airways regarding my experience on this trip. Today, I received a response along with what I feel to be adequate compensation for our troubles on 9/15/2006. This was a pretty fast response, and I do appreciate that. So kudos to US Airways for turning my complaint around in a timely manner.
Posted by Marshall Jackson on September 15, 2006 under US Airways |
I’m here…. only problem is that I’m supposed to be in Portland, Maine instead of Boston, but I digress. ATC/weather issues in La Guardia today….. In the name of saving 70 bucks, I booked my flight up to Portland with a connection in LGA…. I probably deserved this. My 12:59pm departure to Portland turned into a 1:59pm departure which cancelled. Of course, the display monitors in the airport never changed for any of this. My choices were an 8:30pm flight to Portland or a 3pm flight to Boston…Boston won.
More later. I need a drink.
Posted by Marshall Jackson on September 12, 2006 under United Airlines |
Star Alliance Silver and Gold members from other airlines are about to lose a handy perk when traveling on United Airlines. As I understand it, United will restrict complimentary access to its Economy Plus cabins to United’s own elite flyers and those who pay for the access, either through the annual Economy Plus Access program or through purchasing access if available at flight check in. Previously, United gave complimentary access to other Star Alliance partner elite travelers.
Posted by Marshall Jackson on under Commentary / General Info |
Some friends of mine will not agree with this statement, but trust me when I say that major airline pilots have had it pretty good. While the starting wages aren’t so great, and you’ve either gotta slug it through the military or regional airline ranks at paltry pay, once you hit the big leagues and survive first year pay, you pretty much used to have it made.
I knew guys that worked 10 or 12 days a month and made over 150 grand a year. I won’t even talk about schedule manipulation, sick calls and whatever else I’ve seen done to maximize time off while still getting paid.
Unquestionably, things had gotten out of hand. The market, with the bludgeon of a few bankruptcy courts has really swung things around on the compensation and scheduling side of things…maybe even a little too far, but that’s for the market to decide, not me.
These generous wage agreements were accompanied be equally generous pension promises. And here’s where things get tricky. One could argue all day on either side of things about whether airline pilots were getting paid too much for too little work. But one thing that I can’t come to terms with is the mass terminations of pension plans that have been happening in the airline industry for all employees, not just pilots. I’m sorry, but somebody needs to have their head handed to them for allowing things to get so out of whack with poor accounting
that these plans wind up so underfunded that they can’t possibly be made whole. I’m especially sorry for pilots who are forced by the government to retire at age 60, but can’t collect full benefits from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) because they didn’t work to what the government considers to be the normal retirement age of 65.
Freezing benefits at current levels is one thing. Terminating the plan and dumping it on the taxpayers is something else entirely. Like I said, somebody needs their head handed to them on this one.
