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AA charges soldier $100 for extra baggage

Discussion in 'Anything goes' started by SockPuppet, Jul 30, 2008.

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  1. SockPuppet

    SockPuppet Active Member

    As Rummy said, you go to war with the Army you've got. And American Airlines wanted one of our soldiers to go to war without all his equipment.

    http://www.elpasotimes.com/newupdated/ci_10044818

    I wish I had been in the baggage line. I would have paid the soldier's bag fee, asked for an AA supervisor and then shamed the hell out of every employee within earshot.
     
    SockPuppet, Jul 30, 2008
    #1
  2. bshriane

    bshriane Guest

    Got to love America. And American. I guess we don't really have to be worried about having our priorities screwed up. </end sarcasm>
     
    bshriane, Jul 30, 2008
    #2
  3. three_bags_full

    three_bags_full Well-Known Member

    This is common. He'll get every dime of it back when he files his travel paperwork when he gets back to Ft. Bliss. I've paid upwards of $400 for luggage, but gotten it all back.

    Much ado about nothing.
     
    three_bags_full, Jul 30, 2008
    #3
  4. SigR

    SigR Member

    As would any jerk who believes a soldier is more important than a non-soldier, or who believes certain professions come with entitlements.
     
    SigR, Jul 30, 2008
    #4
  5. slappy4428

    slappy4428 Active Member

    Did not this clown get banned from this place?
     
    slappy4428, Jul 30, 2008
    #5
  6. Richard_M._Nixon

    Richard_M._Nixon Guest

    When did Krushchev become head of American Airlines?
     
    Richard_M._Nixon, Jul 30, 2008
    #6
  7. playthrough

    playthrough Moderator Staff Member

    Sorry, count me as someone who thinks a soldier is entitled to be exempt from a fucking baggage charge. AA's not going to go bankrupt by making an exception to people in uniform.

    Actually this story really surprised me. I've never been on a plane with a soldier in which he/she wasn't treated with total respect, singled out by flight attendants, let off the plane first, etc.
     
    playthrough, Jul 30, 2008
    #7
  8. buckweaver

    buckweaver Active Member

    Ditto, on both counts.
     
    buckweaver, Jul 30, 2008
    #8
  9. Richard_M._Nixon

    Richard_M._Nixon Guest

    You, sir, are a douche.
     
    Richard_M._Nixon, Jul 30, 2008
    #9
  10. three_bags_full

    three_bags_full Well-Known Member

    Although Toby Kieth would like you to think it does, being in the Army entitles one to no extra respect. No singling out on airplanes, being let off first. No accepting special favors. There's a joint (meaning it applies to all services) regulation that lays down some of these laws.

    I don't even like it when little old ladies offer to pay for my meal.

    I will not, however, complain if some old Vietnam vet slides a Budweiser down the bar.
     
    three_bags_full, Jul 30, 2008
    #10
  11. playthrough

    playthrough Moderator Staff Member

    I respect the desire for no extra respect, t_b_f. It's not like the soldiers I've seen on planes take a sweeping bow when the flight attendant asks for applause. They usually appear kind of embarrassed.

    And I believe your point about a soldier getting reimbursed back at the base. That's not the point. Someone at an airline ticket counter should be able to make a superfluous baggage charge disappear with one keystroke with no commotion or even telling the passenger. It should just be. Make your stand on the gal with six suitcases full of shoes (even if she looks suspiciously like sportschick).

    The kvetching by the AA officials in that story was obnoxious. If someone read that and booked a flight with a different carrier today out of protest, terrific.
     
    playthrough, Jul 30, 2008
    #11
  12. black dude with pompano

    black dude with pompano Member

    Sorry, the only thing that strikes me about this story is that the soldier is demanding special privileges that other passengers don't get.

    Take it up with the Army, not the airline.

    I don't think a uniform should entail special privileges, whether it's a cop on the beat or a soldier "fighting for our freedom."
     
    black dude with pompano, Jul 30, 2008
    #12
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