[elmo2227]

I recently flew with Delta, and on the flight a passenger became very ill. I am a nurse and I attended her until we made an emergency landing. I was given a voucher for a "gift of appreciation" for assisting. When I called customer care I was told to ask about it at the airport. After standing in line 45 minutes at the airport I was given a phone number and told to call it, and when I did I realized it was a fax number and I got my ear screamed into. I emailed and got no answer. I emailed again and got no answer. I called and after a very lengthy (more than 50 minute) phone call I was told they knew nothing about the award. I was told I could either make a photocopy of the award card I was given and she would give me the corporate address so I could mail it in and they could take a look at it (like I was a LIAR), or I could take 5000 sky miles. Ha Ha what a joke! The "Customer Care " atttendant on the phone was put out because it took so long for her to find someone to help me. She was rude and obnoxious.

If Delta- who has been my exclusive carrier for over 6 years, thinks this was an award it is sadly mistaken. I told the stewardess I didn't want anything. One stewardess took my name and said "The president of the company will want to email you a thank you" (which also has not happened.) When I told the stewardess who gave me the card that I didn't want anything, she insisted. At the end of my 50 minute call to Customer Care the woman, after all was said and done, I said "You wanr ME to make photocopies, write a letter and send them to headquarters? You must be KIDDING!" She then yelled ALRIGHT THEN I WILL PUT 5000 INTO YOUR SKYMILES ACCOUNT'.

I told her to forget it! I am DONE with Delta and will never fly with them again. I will cancel my Delta American Express account, and I will tell everyone I know- including the numerous travel websites I write for- just how Delta shows it's appreciation.
Just the clothing I was wearing that I had to throw away because I got vomited on are worth more than 5000 skymiles! And to already have had me jumping through hoops...and now questioning my integrity by asking me to send copies of a form they give out (but no one is aware of) has me hurt and angry. In my book Delta is unfeeling and treats it's customers poorly. And I will get the word out to nurses and medical personell all over the United States.

[PHXFlyer]

Originally Posted by elmo2227

I told the stewardess I didn't want anything.

Then why are you making such a big deal out of the issue now? Couldn't you be satisfied that you helped another human being and move on? There are heroes that go "unrewarded" every day.

[elmo2227]

I told two stewardesses over and over that I didn't want anything. They LOUDLY insisted, so that all the passengers would hear that "Delta takes care of people who help us"- over and over. I want the passengers not to be mislead into thinking Delta is the great airline it pretends to be. I asked them not to make a fuss and go sit down- they ranted and raved about rewarding me. They portrayed Delta as a caring outfit- which it is NOT- as many others have attested to here.
I could care less what they give me- but the rude manner in which I was treated by Customer Care was truly an insult- it made me feel as though they thought I was lying. NO ONE I spoke to ever heard of the bogus form they gave me. Delta is as inept at rewarding as it is in booking flights (overbooking). I am merely exposing their fraudulant practices.
And by the way- if I didn't do what I do EVERY DAY for the joy that helping people gives me, I wouldn't do it. Why are you attacking MY intentions?

[AirlinesMustPay]

Originally Posted by elmo2227

so I could mail it in and they could take a look at it (like I was a LIAR)

now questioning my integrity by asking me to send copies of a form they give out (but no one is aware of) has me hurt and angry.

I can't agree from you own account that anyone thought that you were a Liar or questioned your integrity. I can't see from your account what caused you to become hurt and angry.

When you volunteered your assistance, including getting your suit vomited on in the process, that was a noble gesture on your part. You initially conducted yourself well when you told the hostess you did not want anything.

The airline strictly did not owe you anything, but if you knew how to follow this through, you may well have got an email from the President and even another voucher to cover the cost of the damaged clothes.

What you perhaps did not know is that when you get a gift you must act graciously, which it appears you did not.

The hostess gave you a voucher, and I'm sure you thanked her. The news did not spread like wildfire throught Delta circles, so you called customer relations and found that the person answering did know know of your heroism or the voucher that was given to you. So she asked you to copy it and send it to them. That is not calling you a liar. She does not know what happened!

If you had gone to a ticket office, you may have been able to use it to pay towards a ticket. Someone looking at it would recognise it as a valid Delta voucher. But when you phone someone, she does not know what you are talking about.

You can still be nice about it and it may pay off. If I were you I would write a polite letter to the President of Delta, let him know what happened and tell him how happy you were to be of assistance to a fellow passenger on Delta. But tell him that your clothes were damaged and ask if they could assist by replacing your damaged clothes, and that you would appreciate a travel voucher for the value of the clothes, telling him the value of the clothes.

See what happens. Who knows, they may even shortlist you for the Delta passenger of the year award

[elmo2227]

I stood in line at the ticket office for 45 minutes. I WAS nice. I was spoken to rudely- the girl on the phone told me my issue was holding her up. I told her to forget it as it was not important and I apologized for holding her up. You are unfairly accusing me of being ungrateful. I never wanted this to begin with and tried to refuse it. I am angry because what I did caused me to be spoken to rudely by the girl on the phone, who was yelling at me by the end of the conversation because I was interferring with her agenda. I didn't ask for a thing- certainly not being spoken to rudely. When she said she had no idea what voucher I was talking about- she had me read the whole paper to her then said "are you sure?" THATS what made me feel like a liar. And YOU are making me feel like a bad person as well- comments like hers and yours make people avoiding helping others.

[wkharris2001]

i don't know why this was emailed to me personally, i'm sorry you went through such a hard time, but i've never heard of such an award. if you were given a travel voucher it would be similar to a ticket number it starts with 006 *shrugs* sorry that's all the help i can give.....and again...I don'know why the op mailed me personally?????????

[PHXFlyer]

Originally Posted by elmo2227

I never wanted this to begin with and tried to refuse it. I am angry because what I did caused me to be spoken to rudely by the girl on the phone, who was yelling at me by the end of the conversation because I was interferring with her agenda.

You keep saying you didn't want want any addtional recognition or compensation yet you pursued it anyway. Had you not pursued it any further we wouldn't be hearing about it here. Granted you shouldn't be treated rudely but we are, after all, only hearing your side of this story.

Delta is in the process of merging Delta and Northwest. That means the customer service agents you spoke with could be Delta or former Northwest agents. Additionally the crew of the aircraft could have been Delta or former Northwest as well. Perhaps one airline used and is familiar with the certificate you received while the other is not.

Why not just let this go knowing that you did the right thing and that the fellow passenger you helped is undoubtedly grateful for your efforts. After all, who were you helping? That person in distress or Delta?

[jimworcs]

Ok, that is enough already!! Why on earth this lady is being given such a hard time is beyond me.

This lady not only helped a passenger, but also the airline. The flight attendant's recognised this and insisted that the company would like to recognise her efforts. Any decent airline would simply have procedures for the FA's to note the name and address of the passenger, and then someone at head office would write to them with a letter of appreciation.

I have a colleague who was a doctor on a flight from Hong Kong to London. He performed CPR on a passenger for over 40 minutes on a BA flight. He too did not want any recognition. The airline wrote to him and included in the letter a card with enough points on it to book a round trip club class ticket anywhere in the world. It may have been an exceptional award, as the circumstances were quite harrowing, but nevertheless BA had a procedure. Result: this doctor was very grateful, gave the airline some positive publicity and he is likely to be a loyal customer. He is also likely to tell colleagues who may also be more willing to help out the airline in any future event. Medical emergencies on aircraft are far from rare and the airlines are often appealing for help from passengers.

Conversely, Delta treated the award as if the nurse was somehow applying for compensation or asking for something she was not entitled to. The very idea of asking a paying passenger, who has gone beyond the call of duty, to "apply" for recognition is ridiculous. Typical of Delta, but utterly ridiculous. The process of applying for the recognition has now had the effect of alienating a previously very loyal customer and has made her feel bad about the process. She has been made to feel that somehow she was exploiting the circumstances.

Don't you guys get it? SHE SHOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN ASKED TO "APPLY" FOR RECOGNITION IN THE FIRST PLACE. You guys enjoy flaming people on here, and I have participated in the sport myself, but you should be ashamed of yourselves attacking this woman. She may well have saved someone's life and she followed the directions of the FA's in relation to the airline "recognising" her efforts. The cack-handed response of the airlines and the lack of grace in your replies is shameful.

[PHXFlyer]

Jim we were only pointing out the contradictory nature of the post. She claims she didn't want any additional recognition or compensation yet she is now complaining about the process through which she is trying to receive just that. Why is she even bothering with front line customer service anyway? In-flight medical emergencies, while not rare, are not an every day occurrence. If she really expected something for her efforts she should have contacted the corporate offices, in writing, rather than go through a channel which is set up to provide customer service for ticketing and other reservations related issues. She is receiving inconsistent information and answers because she has been dealing with channels that are not informed, trained or equipped to handle her unique situation.

To the OP:

Lee Macenczak
Executive Vice President and Chief of Customer Service
Delta Airlines - Corporate Offices
1030 Delta Blvd
Atlanta, GA 30354-1989

[PHXFlyer]

Originally Posted by wkharris2001

i don't know why this was emailed to me personally, i'm sorry you went through such a hard time, but i've never heard of such an award. if you were given a travel voucher it would be similar to a ticket number it starts with 006 *shrugs* sorry that's all the help i can give.....and again...I don'know why the op mailed me personally?????????

The OP e-mailed you personally because you are identified as a Delta employee. Which even furthers my assertion that despite saying that further recognition or compensation wasn't desired the OP is going out of his or her way to get something more than a "thank you."

[jimworcs]

Not sure you are getting my point:

She should not be contacting Lee Macenczak. She should not have been asked to contact the airline at all. When she did, she was given grief. If Lee Macenczak had an ounce of decency, she would be getting a letter of thanks from Lee Macenczak on behalf of the airline, a bunch of flowers and perhaps a free flight or some other gesture.

It is Delta...so she gets rude customer service reps and abuse on the complaints forums when she expresses her disgust at her treatment. There is no contradiction in her approach. The AIRLINE suggested she call... and when she did, treated her very badly.

[PHXFlyer]

Originally Posted by jimworcs

Not sure you are getting my point:

She should not be contacting Lee Macenczak. She should not have been asked to contact the airline at all. When she did, she was given grief. If Lee Macenczak had an ounce of decency, she would be getting a letter of thanks from Lee Macenczak on behalf of the airline, a bunch of flowers and perhaps a free flight or some other gesture.

It is Delta...so she gets rude customer service reps and abuse on the complaints forums when she expresses her disgust at her treatment. There is no contradiction in her approach. The AIRLINE suggested she call... and when she did, treated her very badly.

I'm not sure how much time has elapsed since the in-flight medical emergency but perhaps if the OP had been patient and waited she would have received some gesture of thanks. I know Continental sends a letter of appreciation along with a token of that appreciation to medical personnel who assist with in-flight emergencies. Perhaps Delta has a similar program but the OP didn't allow enough time to pass. In any large company there is going to be some delay as information about the incident is disseminated to the responsible department heads and/or execs.

[elmo2227]

Thanks to jimworcs for the support- you fully "get" the message I tried to convey. As for PHXFlyer's end quote "an association...etc.", I will not quarrel with you, or Delta, or anyone else, no matter how you incite me to. Hoping the administrators choose to delete the entire thread- the only thing I am sorry for is that I sought help in this forum in the first place

[mmurad]

I consider your actions above the call of duty; I'd hope someone like you would be on any flight I took that required help. But you definitely should be rewarded, but don't expect Delta to do anything. And don't believe their advertising about being a caring, friendly airline. It's all hype. They've decimated NWA and its employees, all with a smile and lies about no changes.

In any case, if they promised you an award, with all those passengers listening, you should get some monetary reward (not skymiles).

I'm not a Delta supporter. I'll use my skymiles and call it quits with them. There are a ton of good airlines out there, servicing every city Delta does.

[Butch Cassidy Slept Here]

Mmurad wrote: I'll use my skymiles and call it quits with them.

Again, the best, and least aggravating, way to rid one's self of a bogus airline frequent flier program is to transfer the miles to a hotel "frequent stay" program. Some airlines have a limit on the amount of miles that can be transferred in any one year. So you may have to accept the idea of some of the miles being confiscated/expired before you're able to make all the needed transfers.

Airline scams, with respect to frequent flier programs, can extend even to super platnum members---who may have fallen from grace: The airline screems "fraud," audits your account, then draws the balance to zero or near that.

I have no interest in responding to the mob of 66% on here--drunks, frustrated power freaks, and otherwise.