Give The Airlines The Stimulus Bailout But With These Stipulations

Getting Rid Of Those Annoying Extra Fees Should Be A Part Of Any Deal, Says Mr. Sorehead

By Mr. Sorehead, PubClub.com Blogger

Okay, Mr. President and Congress, go ahead and give the airlines their stimulus bailout.

They are really in need of help as people are not getting on planes in big numbers due to all the COVID-19 shutdowns and restrictions. About the only ones traveling now are doing so by car for close-to-home weekend excursions.

I also know several flight attendants who have been furloughed or laid off and they are starting to panic because, well, for many this is the only job they have ever had and are not trained to do anything else. It’s not like they can go start work at a marketing company or find a job in the corporate world.

But before you do it, make sure the airlines adapt some new policies, follow some passenger-friendly guidelines and get assurances that the employees follow them.

With that in mind, here is Mr. Sorehead’s airline bailout stipulations and the heart of it is dropping those annoying fees:

• Require airlines to eliminate the extra charges for one inch of more legroom and for the right to sit in an aisle or window seat.

• Eliminate the carry-on baggage fees.

• Allow all passengers to have one (at least) checked bag for no fee.

• Get rid of all extra tacky fees that frustrate passengers and add to your bottom line.

• Don’t automatically cancel reservations for connecting flights because your first flight is late. Hold the plane for arriving passengers. This is a particular sticky point for me because fairly recently I was at a connecting gate before departure yet my seat was given up and I was booked on another flight, all without notifying me in advance or consulting me. I was really sore about that incident.

• Require all gate agents to treat passengers like human beings instead of cargo with legs. Anyone caught yelling things like “have your boarding pass out now,” or especially “there’s no room in the overhead bins; check your bag,!” will be immediately terminated. I can’t count the number of times the latter has happened despite the fact the overhead bins were nowhere near full.

• Flight attendants are not allowed to bark at passengers unless they deserve it. I never do, of course.

• Require anyone who brings on smelly fast food (especially McDonald’s!) to sit in the back of the plane.

• Start serving peanuts again!

Mr. Sorehead is a guest contributor to PubClub.com who writes about what bothers him in order to try and create a better lifestyle for everyone.