[maximumbob62]

Here is the text of an email and letter sent today to the CEO of United.

Glenn F. Tilton
President and CEO
UAL Corporation
77 West Wacker Drive
Chicago, IL 60601

Dear Mr. Tilton:

I'd like to file a formal complaint regarding your extremely unprofessional service I just received from your reservations agents. Having just received notice that my flight tomorrow from Seoul to Narita has been cancelled, I called the Elite number to inquire what United has planned to get me from Seoul to Tokyo, tomorrow, Wednesday, June 12. The first agent told me a weather problem has caused the cancellation, and that United had no alternatives. I asked to speak with her supervisor, was connected, and got an enormous attitude problem from her.
I am a confirmed Continental person, and I can easily tell the "United" people from the "Continental" people, and even though there is no longer a "Continental", there most certainly is the "United" attitude, which pretty much tells your customers to take our business elsewhere. I informed the agent that I had 95,000 miles year to date, and would easily fly another 100,000 miles in the rest of this year, and I got nothing but attitude from your supervisor. It was incredible, a lecture how there was no longer a "Continental" that it had ceased to exist, and that I needed to change my attitude.
Hello, this is your paying customer, that flies each month from Fort Lauderdale to Tokyo, and then on to China, Korea, and Singapore, also having been to Australia and Thailand earlier this year. Is this how you treat your best customers? Incredible! I will be a 1K on my return flight home next Friday, and what, exactly, do you think the likelihood is that I will fly United again this year? It’s unbelievable just how bad the merger has gone for you. The wrong people are driving the boat. The Continental people are welcoming, will do whatever it takes to make me happy, while the United people pretty much tell me to shove it.
So, I booked a flight tomorrow, Wednesday, on Delta, and guess what? They have a challenge program that I can use to attain equivalent status on Delta. Amazingly, I only need to fly 26,000 miles in the next 90 days to qualify. Take a look at my flight profile, that shows it will take me maybe one trip to qualify. I need to come back to Japan in July, and your airline is doing its absolute best to drive me away.

To be clear, my wife flew with United for 10 years, leaving the company in 2006, so I know your airline. With service like this, you are in big, big trouble. What terrible customer service, really incredibly bad. I'm going to tell everyone I know about this, and will post it on line.
This is just not acceptable. At the least, your airline should have paid for me to ride another airline, given the revenue I have already posted with United, and intend to do again in the second half of this year. My job is head of Sales for the Asia Pacific region, and that means I travel every single month, in Business class, to Asia from my home in Ft. Lauderdale.
Instead, I got a lecture how could I possibly know the weather at 30,000 feet, and she couldn’t tell me either, because she was not at 30,000 feet, and what could I know? What I do know is that I am sitting in Seoul as I write this, am looking out the window, and the weather in Asia has nothing to do with your weather cancellation tomorrow on flight 890 from Seoul to Tokyo.
You have one very angry customer right now, and I am actively looking to change my business. Your merger is an absolute failure, and so is your management.

Regards,

PS: Interestingly, I’ve just gone back on line to cut and paste my latest mileage statement, and I appear to be locked out. Coincidence? I think not. Shame on you.

[jimworcs]

Please post any replies. This merger seems to be worse than average...sadly Delta might be frying pan into the fire... but choices are limited.

[azstar]

I don't really understand the hostility that exists whenever there is an airline merger. The employees should appreciate the fact that they all still have jobs. Continental was no better, or worse, than United. United was no better, or worse, than Continental. The UA employees complain that it's really CO with UA name since the President, the FF program, the computer system and the logo are all CO. The CO employees complain that UA has complicated their lives and destroyed the CO "reputation". It is what it is. They need to accept it and move on. However, that's not likely to happen citing US Airways as an example. Five years after that "merger" there are still separate work groups.

[stonecold_1981]

What was your complaint? You mentioned about the "attitude" problem but then you focus on the United-Continental differences. There is a higher probability of someone in United responding to you complaint IF you focus on the issue you faced WITHOUT jumping to a conclusion (i.e. United-Continental merger and its effects).
Not saying that there isn't any attitude problem, but rather trying to understand waht was the issue!

[maximumbob62]

Just look at the numbers for a minute.

I've already spent about $40,000 on airfare with Continental (oops, United) this year, and they were completely unable to book me on another carrier for my flight. so, I paid Delta $309 this morning, and I am on my flight to Tokyo.

I'll likely spend another $50,000 in airfare in the remainder of this year.

So, if United (oops, Continental) had simply booked, and paid, for a one-way ticket to Narita, we wouldn't even be having this conversation. Spend $300, get $50,000 back. Pretty simple math, unless you are a United reservations agent.

the attitude is what is really sets United apart. This is not an isolated event. Returning from Australia in March, United had closed my connecting flight 15 minutes before depature, forcing me to overnight and catch another plane. There were about 15 of us on the Sydney flight, and none of us made the connection.

are you getting it yet, or are you a United employee?

[AirlineSympathizer]

Originally Posted by maximumbob62

Just look at the numbers for a minute.

I've already spent about $40,000 on airfare with Continental (oops, United) this year, and they were completely unable to book me on another carrier for my flight. so, I paid Delta $309 this morning, and I am on my flight to Tokyo.

I'll likely spend another $50,000 in airfare in the remainder of this year.

So, if United (oops, Continental) had simply booked, and paid, for a one-way ticket to Narita, we wouldn't even be having this conversation. Spend $300, get $50,000 back. Pretty simple math, unless you are a United reservations agent.

the attitude is what is really sets United apart. This is not an isolated event. Returning from Australia in March, United had closed my connecting flight 15 minutes before depature, forcing me to overnight and catch another plane. There were about 15 of us on the Sydney flight, and none of us made the connection.

are you getting it yet, or are you a United employee?

I'm not getting it either... you wanted them to book you a one-way on another airline? What was the issue? It seems like they booked you on their next available flight. It's very normal to close flights 15 minutes from departure...

[maximumbob62]

They rebooked me for the next day into Tokyo, not on Wednesday! I need to be in Tokyo on Wednesday,not Thursday. Got it now?

[AirlineSympathizer]

Originally Posted by maximumbob62

They rebooked me for the next day into Tokyo, not on Wednesday! I need to be in Tokyo on Wednesday,not Thursday. Got it now?

So with all your massive amounts of frequent flying, this is your first cancellation? Or are you perhaps a little troubled your airline (continental) was going under and acquired and using this as a vent?

If you want, you can request a copy of your PNR and post it here. Then it will be clear to all what went on.

[stonecold_1981]

Originally Posted by maximumbob62

are you getting it yet, or are you a United employee?

First off. I'm NOT a United employee (or in any way/shape/form work with the airline industry). I too am a 1K and have traveled tons as a consultant.

Re: your issue. I was trying to understand what "attitude" problem you were referring to and how you were relating it to the UA-Continental merger. From what you posted, it seems that the "attitude" problem refers to not putting you on a different flight (same day any airline).

There's nothing wrong in demanding the airline (especially when you are a 1k) to put you on any flight to ensure you reach there the same day. The problem is you jumping the gun and labeling this as a merger issue.

Go ahead and read your 1st post and see if you have been able to articulate the problem you faced (vs. your perceived rationale for the problem). If you can do this in your letter to United, you would have a much higher probability of response.

BTW - FYI If you really spend 40k in a year on United (you quoted a number close to 90k for the whole year), you would NOT be 1k. You would be GS.