Anyone fly Spirit Airlines?

[spqrzilla]

I'm thinking the next time I fly I'll wear good shoes and jacket, carry on underwear and shop at Goodwill when I get there.

Some years ago, my wife and I spent three weeks in Europe that basically started as a carry-on bag each with some clothes we didn't intend to bring back and toothbrushes. Bought clothes at flea markets was actually fun, washed some, threw away some when too dirty and had half empty bags at the end of the trip for souvenirs. Heck I even bought a cheap pocket knife in Amsterdam that I tossed in trash at airport as we returned. We packed light because we were traveling around Netherlands, Belgium and France by train.

Was great fun.

[cstone]

I fly occasionally but always prefer to drive.

Pack your favorite snack foods and put an empty water bottle in your carry on bag. Fill the bottle with water once you pass security. Spend as little time in airports as possible. Audio books on a Kindle/Nook/iPhone. Pack as light as possible. If you are flying domestically, there will be plenty of anything you can't bring with you at your destination.

Deice at DEN was pretty good this morning. It is warmer and sunnier here than it was in Denver when I left this morning. I always look forward to being at home.

The only thing I really need an airline to do for me is get me from one gate to the next gate in one piece.

Be safe

[Gman]

I drive 1500 miles each way to visit my folks every year so we don't have to deal with the airlines. I don't know how y'all put up with it.

Sent from my electronic leash.

[NFATrustGuy]

When I retire from flying for the airlines, my personal goal for the remainder of my life will be to NEVER fly another mile on a commercial flight. My nephew is getting married in eastern Kansas next month. I could fly for free, but I will be driving the ~1200 mile round trip. The whole commercial flying process from the time you pull into the parking lot absolutely sucks.

RWW

[ColoWyo]

When I retire from flying for the airlines, my personal goal for the remainder of my life will be to NEVER fly another mile on a commercial flight. My nephew is getting married in eastern Kansas next month. I could fly for free, but I will be driving the ~1200 mile round trip. The whole commercial flying process from the time you pull into the parking lot absolutely sucks.

RWW

No kidding man. I hate that place.

As to Spirit and Frontier, I would bet that even with all the little fees, the total cost will still be cheaper than Southwest, United, Delta, or another carrier. Not that I blame anybody for choosing a different carrier.

[KestrelBike]

When I retire from flying for the airlines, my personal goal for the remainder of my life will be to NEVER fly another mile on a commercial flight. My nephew is getting married in eastern Kansas next month. I could fly for free, but I will be driving the ~1200 mile round trip. The whole commercial flying process from the time you pull into the parking lot absolutely sucks.

RWW

What are some of the first things you'd do to improve the situation? Or, what's the most critical to fix?

[Madeinhb]

Just experienced all this same shit flying with the whole family on Norwegian Airlines. Pay to check bags, pay to reserve a seat, pay for anything on the plane. Wouldn't fly with a carrier like this ever again given a choice....

Well it is Norwegian airlines. Were you in Europe?

[ray1970]

I drive 1500 miles each way to visit my folks every year so we don't have to deal with the airlines. I don't know how y'all put up with it.

Sent from my electronic leash.

My family is over 1,100 miles away.

I put up with the airline stuff because I can be there in less than 2 1/2 hours versus about 14 hours in the car.

[fly boy]

I love to fly. I pack a backpack of clothes, phone charger, and the bare necessities. I get to the airport super early to make my way leisurely through security to start walking the gates. I love to people watch, so I usually do a few laps, sit for a while, then do a few more laps.

[NFATrustGuy]

What are some of the first things you'd do to improve the situation? Or, what's the most critical to fix?

I've always admired Southwest's employee-centered approach. I understand that this might be changing now that Herb is no longer actively running the show, but the philosophy was that if you treat your employees well and show them some respect, they'll take care of your customers and you'll have a thriving business.

Like so many other large companies who hide behind the "our duty is to maximize profits for shareholders" line, Frontier really doesn't give a flying shit about its employees or their morale. No matter how enthusiastic the employee, this demoralizing treatment trickles down to the customer.

Frontier is the epitome of the modern trend whereby they believe that profit is a zero sum game. They believe that a dollar saved is a dollar earned. This is not accurate. For every extra dollar they make by unbundling the various aspects of the travel experience, they lose some portion of a dollar in lost revenue because customers take their business elsewhere. For every dollar they lose by paying employees substandard wages, they lose some portion of a dollar due to higher than standard turnover rates.

They spend more time screwing employees and customers than they would spend by just doing the right thing in the first place. Morality and "doing the right thing" is simply not in the corporate vocabulary.

In the short term, the singular focus on cost savings and nickel and diming passengers and employees will yield artificially high earnings. In the longterm, I believe it is a recipe for failure. Right now, Frontier is riding the wave of historical employee and passenger goodwill. It won't take long before passenger and employee alike will realize that it's not really raining, they're being pissed on.