The worst (and the best) way to travel ...

Well this skit seems to be prophetic.

Who can blame airline employees or passengers) for drinking? LOL

Lately I'm regretting leaving the airline industry. Being an "insider" is still the only way to get any decent customer service.

Being a peon of the travelling public these days it doesn't matter which airline you fly with. They're all bad ... and occasionally good.

On my recent trip to/from Ukraine British Airways was dreadful... delayed flight, no refund on seat selection BA cancelled. I've been back home two weeks and they still have not even contacted me, let alone issued my refund, after having to fill out a form online. (You'd think their genius bean counters would come up with an efficient automated system to issue refunds ... but they obviously prefer systems that p**s off their paying customers.)

In total contrast, my rebooked flight on Air Canada YYZMUC was outstanding, one of the best flights of my life overseas.

But I'm back to being disgruntled with AC (not an IRATE PAX yet, just shaking my head).

I just booked a flight to Winnipeg at their website, and in order to add my Aeroplan number need a password. Good grief. Couldn't remember it, their automated password retrieval system said my birthday entry was wrong (!) and I hung up from the help line after sitting on hold forever. Sigh. A trip down memory lane I could do without.

What I hated about working in the industry, and the reason I left, was the pathetic systems that prevented human beings from providing decent service to paying passengers.

The well-paid bean counters and suits had no interest in efficient systems and common-sense approaches for customers and front-line staff 20 years ago, and it's obvious from a passenger's perspective that it's only gone from bad to worse.

So I am very grateful whenever I'm lucky enough to encounter airline staff who provide good customer service ... like the AC cabin crew and ground staff in YYZ and (to be fair) the BA cabin crew on my flights home ... and my former TZ/PW/CA/AC co-workers (who unfortunately are retiring in droves now).

It's definitely an effort on their part ...basically an act of civil disobedience against Management.

So I've resigned myself to expecting the worst, and hoping for the best (to quote an old supe named Barry), whenever I fly.

Meanwhile, enjoy this skit. Suggest watching it with a glass of wine. :)