Passport Insecurity  Malaysian Flight Points To Loophole In Passport Checks  Tuesday, March 11, 2014 The discovery that two passengers on Malaysian Airlines Flight 370 used stolen passports indicates a huge vulnerability in aviation security, many news outlets are reporting. Malaysian officials confirmed the sham passengers bought their tickets through China Southern Airlines, which was code-sharing the flight with Malaysia Airlines. The Secretary General of international police agency Interpol expressed frustrationthat few of Interpol's 190 member countries search the database and blamedauthorities for "waiting for a tragedy to put prudent security measures in place at borders and boarding gates." No authorities in Malaysia or elsewhere checked the passports against the database of 40 million stolen or lost travel documents before the Malaysian Airline plane took off. The men used false identities to book flights onward to Europe which means they did not need Chinese visas and avoided the additional scrutiny that comes with visa applications. FlyersRights demands that foreign countries check Interpol against their manifests to ensure the people on the jets are who they say they are.  Otherwise it's not safe for Americans to fly there. The FAA should be downgrading Malaysia's rating for foreign travel until Malaysia begins checking their manifests against Interpol's list of stolen passports.  Using the Interpol database of stolen passports is considered crucial because it would otherwise be difficult for airline agents to spot altered passports.  Steve Vickers, the chief executive of a Hong Kong-based security consulting company that specializes in risk mitigation and corporate intelligence in Asia told the NYTimes the presence of at least two travelers with stolen passports aboard a single jet was rare. "It is fairly unusual to have more than one person flying on a flight with a stolen passport," said Mr. Vickers, who publicly warned a month ago that stolen airport passes and other identity documents in Asia merited a crackdown. "The future of this investigation lies in who really checked in." Malaysian officials also said five ticketed passengers failed to board the flight but said that their luggage was removed from the plane before it took off. Malaysian Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said this also was being investigated, but he didn't say whether this was suspicious. Since the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988 in which FlyersRights' president Paul Hudson lost his daughter, verifying the identity of passengers had become fundamental. Read More: ABCNews Read More: USAToday  Dreamliner Snags India On The Warpath Over 787 Problems India's Director General of Civil Aviation in charge of safety told the Boeing team that the Air India Dreamliners have from induction suffered 44 major engineering snags that are direct manufacturing issues. There have been nine equipment failures, six landing gear troubles, seven flight control issues, four navigation snags and three windshield cracks.  Boeing and Air India say that none of these issues have affected the safety of the aircraft or passengers - so far. Air India is seeking compensation from Boeing for three major problem areas with the Dreamliner - the over-three-year delay in delivery of the aircraft, grounding of the aircraft for four months last year, and for failure to meet "guaranteed performance" standards of fuel consumption as the plane has not proven to be as fuel efficient as it was promised and was the deal-clincher for Air India placing an order for 27 of them. Read More: WSJ Carry-on crackdown  United cracks the whip on bag-size   United is pulling its hub out of Cleveland Hopkins and now this. The airline will be cracking down on carry-on bags as of March 1, reports AP.  Emails to United Frequent Flyers have gone out outlining the decree. Bag sizers will peg the offenders and send those criminals with 'oversize' bags back to the ticket counters to pay the check-bagged fee. No word on what happens when the delay to double back to the ticket counter causes you to miss your flight.    Some travelers are pointing out this is part of a larger attempt by United to collect more fees. The airline says it's simply trying to speed up the boarding process. Basically there is no competition from many junk fees among legacy airlines, as the others tend to match any increase started by one airline, as they all benefit. In a January earnings call, United's chief revenue officer, Jim Compton, said the airline hopes to collect an extra $700 million from extras such as baggage fees and the sale of extra legroom during the next four years. American Airlines asks staff at some of its largest airports "to do an eyeball test on size of carry-ons." The airline has even used tape measures to enforce polices. Delta said that "during peak times at hubs and larger airports" it has agents near security to look for oversize carry-on bags and has improved technology to check bags faster at gates. United is going further than other airlines. Its bag sizers (see above pic) have a space for bags going in overhead bins and another for those items going under the seats. Money Talks Despite the baggage crackdown with United, you can still receive superstar treatment, for a price. "At the highest level of service and status, airlines will meet and greet passengers at the curb, provide private screening and whisk them planeside in a sedan car on the ramp," Jay Sorensen, president of IdeaWorks tells the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "This level of service normally eludes 'you and me' but is now within the grasp of anyone with the swipe of a credit card." In some cases, Delta will even deliver you to your flight in a Porsche, Sorensen says. It used to be that airlines reserved kingly treatment for their highest-mileage frequent fliers. Those days have departed and flown off into the sunset. Delta announced recently that it's changing its frequent-flier program so its biggest spenders get the most rewards. "If you have the money, you can buy just about whatever you want," said Peggy Fischer, owner of Shooting Star Travels in West Bend, Wis. "And people are becoming way more accepting of that." The trend shows no signs of slowing. Look for more airlines to simply use pay-as-you-go, a la carte, methods to seduce more revenue from those willing to buy more perks. Could pay toilets on flights be next? Ireland's Ryanair once toyed with the idea. Will flying only be available for the well-off? Airline consolidation has not been friendly to the consumer. The question becomes; How much would it cost to be treated like an actual customer or at the very least, like a human being? At this rate flying will become available only for the well-off.   Transportation in all forms should be available to all and made affordable.   Your Letters We just returned from a vacation in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.  Our United Airlines flight to Pittsburgh had a connection in Newark. Our flight from Puerto Plata arrived on time in Newark at 5:50PM.  By the time we deplaned, collected our bags, went through Immigration and Customs, and rechecked our bags we missed our connection which departed at 7:00PM. Having flown internationally before I knew that it was not possible make this connection.  When I made the flight reservations I questioned the reservation agent about this connection and was told that it was a "legal" connection. This cost me an additional $325 for a hotel room, dinner and breakfast. My questions are:  What is a "legal" connection?  Who decides what a "legal" connection is?  What do we have to do to prohibit airlines from booking connections that cannot possibly be made in real life? Who do I write or call about this issue? Thank you, C.S.  When I investigated this for another member, I found that a so called "legal" connection is actually determined by the airport.  I find it hard to believe that anyone would think that 70 minutes is enough time to go through customs and connect at any airport.  Here is United's legal connection chart from their own website that says that the legal connection time at EWR is 90 minutes, so your itinerary is not "legal".  http://www.flyerguide.com/Minimum_Connecting_Times_%28UA%29 . I would complain to the airline, and the DOT atwww.dot.gov/airconsumer.  Since this was not a legal connection I would ask United for reimbursement for your expenses. Joel  Joel J Smiler DVM Hotline Director www.flyersrights.org   In response to 'Class Dismissed':    Hi! This is a very good story and I agree with you!  I must say, I had the opportunity to fly first class a few times recently. It is not really a luxurious experience.  It's nice, but in truth, it is merely humane!  What all flying should be. The air attendants were nicer but only marginally and not always.  The leg room was BETTER but not amazing. There were no reclining/bed seats!  Those I think are limited to specific air craft and all of them overseas flights.  The bathrooms were closer, but no cleaner.  At least there was food!  But nothing gourmet, that's for sure. It is a shame that coach has in effect become steerage.  It is like a cattle call from security check point to boarding the plane to the hunt for overhead space to sitting on top of each other.  I have come to accept that I'll never do the travel I hoped to do in my later years because it is such an inhumane experience.  I have no hope for improvement.  Thank you for all you do to try to help the rest of us.  It's good to know you're there fighting the good fight!  SM Dear American, It saddens me to write, I was just subjected to a flight on an A320, with your "new" American. It was the (so far) single worst flying experience I have had with American. I felt like a sardine, a nuisance to the crew, something required to pay for fuel... the walk through the luxurious first and business class let me know that, as we were all shoved into the back of the plane. The distance from my face to the rear of the seat in front of me was equal to a coffin. and I felt I was in one. The clever rounding of all edges in design has eliminated any sense of space for those of us who are rank and file. There is no longer customer service, and the insult to the injury - I called to rebook my return on a 767 so I don't vomit from claustrophobic panic on my return, and was told no matter what ticket I purchased now I must pay the 200 dollar change fee. Where is the airline I have been loyal to and loved for over twenty years? I have many friends who worked for American for years, captain, attendants, all of them quietly shaking their heads when I ask them what has happened. The best way to describe the "coach passenger" experience is to watch the people drowning in the locked steerage of the movie Titanic. That's how you make us feel now. And I am sorry, and I miss my airline, and I will find another just for a change. I look forward to the demise of whatever business model this is, so I can once again travel on American. Best, NB Dear Senator Isakson, Thank you for making your e-mail address accessible. I have been involved with the Flyer's Rights group minimally as I quit flying over thirteen years ago due to feeling like a cow in a dirty barn when I stepped on an airplane. Being a schoolteacher I couldn't afford first class. Upon entering the Atlanta Airport the traffic police would harass drivers at the terminal trying to pick up or drop off passengers. Going through security even then was humiliating. That was nearing the time I retired from my professorship at UGA, so travel was becoming less important for me, even though I was frequently invited to lecture and conduct workshops around the country. Universities and museums do not reimburse first-class tickets so I merely declined invitations. I don't understand why it's taken the general population this long to demand change. It should be obvious to Congress that a growing number of voters are totally fed up with the results of de-regulation, re-definition of bribery 'lobbying' and the resulting economic melt-down that broke the backs of the working class and made the rich richer.  So what do we get next? How about excessive and often fraudulent charges by phone companies, both the reorganized and strengthened AT&T monopoly, Verizon, Satellite TV and cable providers and then there are all the Googles and Apples and anything connected to  internet providers, those that sell virtual data to the unemployed and the working class who have already paid for the infrastructure to deliver many times over. Beyond renting what we have already paid for are the new fees for billing. This all is leading to what is not going to be pretty. How much is spent on homeland security to protect the gated communities? That's a really convoluted use of tax money, collected mostly from those that don't live in one, while education is being under-funded. Charter schools for special people are being run by corporations paid with tax money. Most teachers took more courses in education than they did in the subject they are teaching. That can and should be fixed, but would end the apathy and ignorance in this country. Further, both the Democratic and Republican parties have divided the country, families and neighbors by blaming everything on the other party. That takes the heat off the corporations, who are becoming bolder every day with less service at more cost. Morality has been lost and replaced with greed. Can anyone stand up in Washington and fight for the future of all the children, not just the blessed few of the greed-eating pigs? I don't personally know of one college graduate that has gotten a real job in the last five years. My daughter hasn't and none of her friends, nor none of my friend's children who have graduated from UGA have gotten jobs other than part-time at minimum wage. So, Senator Isakson, you have a great opportunity to give the citizens hope that there are still honest and good people making important decisions in this country. Even faking it better would be helpful. Please read this article as this is just the beginning of real dissent in our country. Sincerely, GN Re. the new Transparent Airfares Bill Introduced in the House: By allowing the "base price" to be advertised instead of the "all in price" consumers will no longer be able to easily price shop for air transportation, as  taxes, surcharges and fees added onto the base fare amount to 20% to 200% of so called base airfares. This bill is really the Air transportation Cost Concealment and Deception bill.  Consumers can and should be able to see all detail of air transportation charges, which they can now, but the consumer primarily wants to know their all-in expense rather than the breakdown of how the expense is divided between airlines, government and others.  Paul Hudson President FlyersRights.org Kate Hanni, founder emeritus of FlyersRights with Paul Hudson, president FlyersRights depends on tax-deductible contributions from those who share our commitment to airline passenger rights.  Thank you.  or    FlyersRights 4411 Bee Ridge Road  Sarasota, FL 34233      We value your thoughts and opinions! Please send to Kendallc@FlyersRights.org.

Class Dismissed High-Flyers Pay Up Big To Avoid Economy-Class Masses Dismissive Treatment for Frequent-Flyers   Tuesday, March 4, 2014

At top, American Airlines skycaps wait outside the AA Flagship lounge at LAX in 2013, and bottom, travelers waiting in line to board a flight at LaGuardia in 2013. AAs Flagship Check-in service, a VIP discreet and expedited check-in process offers personal access to agents for assistance with check-in and bag check, and a separate security line when flying through several large airports. (AP Photo/File) It may be high time for airlines to rename Coach as Steerage Class.   It's becoming 1890-1910 all over again, only we're in the air instead of on the ocean.  Several stories came out last week pointing to this trend, describing an increased separation of the airlines from their customers.   The Associated Press describes the airlines' newest perk - keeping first-class passengers a safe distance from Economy Class riffraff. Businessweek reported that Delta changed its frequent flyer program into a frequent dollar program, and the NYTimes says just forget about loyalty programs altogether. Slowly, passengers are finding themselves treated more and more as cargo. Human interaction, compassion and empathy have been eliminated from the equation of economy-class airline travel.    Customer service has all but been eliminated. At the same time, airlines are foisting fees onto their customers that passengers instinctively know are unjustified.  Issues that are addressed in our FlyersRights Passenger Bill of Rights 2.0. It's the downgrading of the coach experience while the front of the plane is increasingly luxurious. Delta, American and United Airlines have all sprung for spacious, lie-flat bed seats for their business-class customers.   Even JetBlue traditionally a budget carrier with a self-proclaimed egalitarian, culture, gave in to class division, announcing an upcoming premium cabin with business-class seats and suites.   Flying in Singapore Suites Class Ticket prices reflect that growing disparity. Whereas domestic first-class seats used to cost around four times more than economy fares, now they're as much as 10 times the price of an economy ticket, analysts say.  As both ends of the spectrum become more extreme, it's all but impossible to find the middle ground we remember from years ago. As the AP points out, if you are not a "good" customer, then you're treated like a bad customer.   Nowadays when you fly you feel like a piece of luggage. Except the luggage usually gets on before you do and has more room. Sardine class sandwiched together Airline economics are a classic example of how premium pricing works, charging a lot more for a relatively cheap/small improvement in service. In very rough terms, cattle class tickets pay for their share of the fuel bill, whereas the premium seats pay for their share of fuel plus everything else - the plane, the airport, back office and (hopefully) a profit margin. The marginal cost of providing a few glasses of champagne and some steak are trivial in comparison to the additional price of the ticket, even when you allow for the reduced seat density. The best way for airlines to squeeze extra bucks out of a flight is to cram in more tourist-class passengers. Naturally, the aircraft-seat manufacturers stand ready to oblige. Delta Switches To A Dollar-Based System For Its Frequent Flyer Program In case you missed it last week, Delta is essentially eliminating its frequent flyer program.     A new Fortune article says Delta is completely changing its frequent flyer program.   It will no longer be based on the distance you fly. Instead, you will earn miles based on how much you pay for your ticket.      The customers in each category will receive rewards for every dollar spent, depending on their elite status. If you sign up for Delta SkyMiles, but don't fly or spend enough to rate as elite, you'll receive five times the dollars you spend in miles.    That's right, the rewards will still be expressed in miles. "It's the currency accustomed to for many years," says Jeff Robertson, vice president for SkyMiles. But the number of miles you receive will be based entirely on what you pay, not how far you fly.    In other words, your virtual currency, frequent flyer miles, exists at the pleasure of Delta, who reserve the right to change the rules as they see fit.     The legality of this is open to question, as Delta was selling 2014 calendar year flights for over six months now, based on false pretenses of elite qualification.   Of course the Delta Mileage program is subject to change, but they DID make certain promises of future services.     This all goes back to increased market power and the lack of choices for customers.  Why pay for loyalty when there are so few other airlines? Northwest, Continental, US Airways, AirTran, America West all used to be there as options.    As competition dwindles there is less need to "reward" anyone. The final outcome will be just two Greyhound bus type airlines serving their spheres of influence.     Hey, Greyhound has free wifi and more legroom!   As The NYTimes says, it's time to burn your miles. Use them or lose them in the next few years. The airlines did not design this marketing promotion for you.

American Drops Bereavement Fares   Continuing the theme of declining service to the rank and file, American Airlines has just endedits policy of extending special fares to passengers who must book last-minute flights due to a death in the family. The Associated Press notes AA "didn't have a specific discount for bereavement travel, but it had a different fare class that could produce a lower price than the traveler might otherwise find."   These discounts couldn't possibly have affected AA's bottom line by a significant amount. Meanwhile, the negative publicity generated by what appears to be a cold-hearted move is likely equally as measurable.    Contact Your Representatives and Senators!   FlyersRights needs you to contact your member of Congress to respond to our Passenger Bill of Rights survey! Call the US Capitol Switchboard (202) 224-3121. A switchboard operator will connect you directly with the office you request. To locate your Member on-line:    U.S. House of Representatives: www.house.gov U.S. Senate: www.senate.gov Thank you!

Kate Hanni, founder of FlyersRights Paul Hudson, president of FlyersRights   FlyersRights depends on tax-deductible contributions from those who share our commitment to airline passenger rights.    You will be sent the latest FlyersRights publications and newsletters. You aren't merely supporting our mission, you become a part of FlyersRights.    Thank you.    or      FlyersRights 4411 Bee Ridge Road  Sarasota, FL 34233        We value your thoughts and opinions!  Please send to Kendallc@FlyersRights.org, newsletter writer.

Game-Changer The Airline Passenger Bill Of Rights Goes To Washington   Wednesday, February 26, 2014

We are raining letters on Capitol Hill this week!   FlyersRights is showering lawmakers with our new Airline Passenger Bill of Rights.   Every Senator and Congressperson will receive a survey outlining our proposal to improve consumer protections for airline passengers; ranging from seat space, to fee standards, to frequent flyer regulations.   This plan will be a game-changer for travelers and the airline industry.   We will publish the results of this survey on or about March 4th, 2014, by press release, press conference and in our weekly newsletter that goes to our 30,000 members. Our proposals have been circulated to Aviation Subcommittees, House and Senate full committees and Homeland Security committees over the past several months, as well as to DOT, the FAA and other national consumer and air travel groups. FlyersRights has received overwhelming support from our members, travel media commentators and many other consumer groups.   There has been no opposition, except of course from the airline industry, which has been reduced to four major carriers, (American, Delta, United and Southwest) controlling 85% of all domestic flights.  Nearly all members of Congress are frequent flyers, so they have likely experienced many of the problems that our proposals address -as have their constituents. We encourage you to contact your Senators and Congressional Representatives to return the survey promptly. Don't be a passenger rights no-show!

A Reminder Of Why We Need Passenger Rights: Ryanair Passengers Call Police To Leave Plane After 11-Hour Delay Angry passengers on a Ryanair flight called police during an 11-hour delay in which the airline was accused of keeping them trapped on a plane at London Stansted Airport with no food or water. Mutiny on flight FR8347 Travelers were stuck on the Valentine's Day flight to Porto, Portugal for nearly four hours and told that they could not disembark for "security reasons", according to a video posted on YouTube.  Ryanair apologized only after the video went viral. Exhausted, the passengers said they asked the cabin crew for food and water but were refused, the Daily Mail reported.  When their patience snapped, passengers confronted cabin crew, with many phoning police. One passenger claimed up to 50 calls were made.   In the video, passengers can be seen begging the cabin crew for assistance. 'There is nothing to eat or drink,' one man shouts to a male steward. 'You are ignoring your passengers who are asking for help. Aren't you flight attendants? Is everybody crazy?' A woman passenger says: 'You won't let us eat or drink even if we pay? We can't leave the aircraft either?' Another pleads: 'There is a baby on board.' The video claims the passengers asked for food, water and for the air conditioning to be turned on at 1am, but that this was refused. A police car with flashing lights was filmed outside the aircraft before an officer tells passengers they will be allowed to leave the plane. No matter how cheap the ticket is, it never gives an airline the right to treat people like this. Ryanair treated its passengers like animals. Astonishingly, Ryanair is one of Europe's largest airline operations, flying 600 routes (as per their website), most of them daily, many of them multiple flights per day.  Ryanair flouted the basic contract of carriage rules. This has happened many times here in the US, which is why you need an organization like FlyersRights! NYTimes Story Features Wins By  Flyersrights!   Yesterday's New York Times featured a nice article about FlyersRights' victories over the years.  Please read it here. Asiana Fined $500,000 For Failing To Help Families After July Crash  Asiana Airlines was fined $500,000 Tuesday for failing to assist passengers and their families in the aftermath of last year's SFO crash.   The DOT says the airline took as long as five days to notify family members and failed to provide other federally-required assistance. Read More: CNN

Your Letters:  Re. The Airline Passenger Bill of Rights Being a frequent traveler I agree with the stated Bill of Rights and would expect that as a paying customer we would be entitled to fair treatment by the airlines and respected as individuals with our own set of obligations and commitments, for example, to be arrive at a destination at an expected time.  I want the further respect of having adequate notice of flight cancellations or serious delays so that I may make alternative travel plans.  -S.R. I agree with the comment that the aisles on planes should have a regulated width.  Last April, I had a bad experience on Virgin Atlantic to London for my annual trip for work there.  I bought the least expensive seat and discovered when I got there that Virgin had made the aisles narrower in the cheap seats.  When I got to the back where the cheap seats are, I could no longer roll my bag, which is 16-1/2 inches wide, through the aisle.  Going, I left my bag by the first seat and put my other bag in my seat, then I went back and carried the rolling bag to my seat.  Returning, I followed the instructions that if I needed help with my luggage I should wait until others had left and get assistance.  The steward who was standing near me, and turned out to be the Head Steward, was very rude after I explained that I could not roll the bag out as the aisle was narrower than in the next group of seats.  He denied this repeatedly and then was so angry that I did not kowtow that he dropped my bag on the floor and made a female flight attendant help me out.  I tried to complain to Virgin through frequent flyer (which I am,) through the regular website.  Impossible.  They even have a notice that if you have a complaint, complain to the DOT.  I was angry enough by then to go to their Facebook page and post my complaint for others to read, calling him out by name and purported title.  Of course, some PR guy denied that there was a problem, so I posted again, he denied again, and I posted again.  Unfortunately, nobody sees a post if they are not on FB at the time made, because it scrolls into oblivion. Now, I will probably use up some points in April 2014 to get a better seat, then seek another airline for my 2015 flight. The idea to have a comprehensive bill like the one in the EU is good, though it should be tweaked for the US problems. Thanks for all you do. Regards,  -M.A-F.S.    In response to Let Us Change Your Plans:    This has happened to me more times than I can remember. As a business traveler, we had a trip in 2011 where we were shooting (I'm a photographer) an ad campaign for a cruise line sailing from Rome. There were 13 of us traveling. In total, on this trip, there were 13 changes in schedule, late departures and cancelled flights. One model arrived a day late due to schedule change and had to be rerouted via train to Florence at a cost of over $500 to have her meet the ship. My two assistants were rerouted due to schedule change and arrived the morning of the sailing. On a $180,000 photo shoot, these changes cost lots of money and potentially could halt production. We leave for France next month to photograph a different cruise line sailing and we scheduled our flights a day early to insure we will not miss the sailing. This extra day "insurance" against schedule changes and late departures comes at a cost - meals, hotel, crew day fees, etc. We also made sure to book 4 hour minimum layovers to pad for late departures and possible missed connections. In 2009, four months before a trip, my flight on Delta to Athens was changed by two days due to a route change. As a photographer for Starwood Hotels at the time, we had booked very hard to get employee rates at our hotels. And a flight to Santorini on Aegean Air. The hotels could not be changed due to availability and the Aegean flight had a change fee if I changed it. I had to change my Delta flight to an Air France flight two days later departure. At that time, Delta allowed two free checked bags, but the policy was changing to one. After changing my flight, they refused me the two bags because the flight was changed after the new one bag policy went into effect, regardless that the original flight was booked under the two bag policy. My Air France flight was changed three more times before our trip, and we ended up having to pay to change the Aegean Air flight and lost two days of our vacation as well as having to rebook part of our hotel reservations at a higher cost and at a hotel much further from the city center. My dad and I booked AA flights to Kauai, first class for November 2013. In June we were informed the flight was changing due to route changes and we would connect in Dallas after our connecting flight would have already departed. After hours on the phone, I was given the only option to overnight in Dallas or to change our dates by one week and depart at 9pm instead of 2pm for our return flight. That flight was later changed to 10pm and again later to 11pm. This put us arriving home at 4:30pm instead of the original 6am.     -P.M.   In early September (2013) my husband and I booked business-class mileage tickets with fee/taxes on British Air amounting to $1086 EACH person round trip, San Jose CA to Stuttgart Germany. We can't even reserve our seats on the British Air flights (O'Hare to Heathrow, Heathrow to Stuttgart and return until 24 hours in advance). Of course, we can on the San Jose to O'Hare portion because that is on an AA flight.  About a month ago, I noticed that the portion of our itinerary was missing, so I called AA, through which we booked (online). That's when I found out that instead of arriving in Stuttgart at 8:30am, we would arrive at 6:30PM, sitting around Heathrow for 8 hours, instead of sleeping and walking around Stuttgart. Because British Air changed their flight from O'Hare an hours later so that we would miss the a.m. flight from Heathrow to Stuttgart and instead get to wait for the late afternoon flight.    At least we didn't have to change hotel reservations. We did have to adjust our car rental reservation. It could have been worse, but this wasn't the reservation I booked. We might have selected a different flight to avoid the 8-hr layover at Heathrow.   Second, I did try to change a flight I booked with AA for April, but it would cost $200, so I am keeping it. However, if they change that timing after Daylight Savings' Time change, I could be in for the $200, as I have paid for a bus tour so that I cannot fly earlier that day. Wait and see. Stay tuned.   I am glad you are tackling this issue because it has created havoc in my flights before. I don't even understand why these adjustments are necessary. They make NO sense to me.    I realize that my situation is not as dire as many. I hope you are able to get some of these changes stopped.   Good luck, and thanks for being there.    V.J.   In response to No Snow Job: The dumbest thing about those exit pods is that a much simpler and cheaper solution exists -- one-way revolving doors, like they have at DFW, and Terminal T at Atlanta Hartsfield. No claustrophobic pod, but no chance of anyone entering where they're not allowed. S.L. Re: US/AA Merger Watch Just to let you know that a change because of the merger of American and U.S. Airways has already been announced which will affect many passengers in one BIG negative way. Using the Amex Platinum card, passengers on American have access to the Admiral's Airport Club. We were just informed that as of March 22, we will no longer have that complimentary access. I called Amex Platinum and asked whose decision that was and was told it was solely the airline's choice, not Amex. I then told them I object since that Club is used by my wife and I both with our Amex Platinum cards. I also then filed a complaint with the Arizona Attorney General's office writing that they were correct to object to the intended merger and that I thought passengers were already getting worse treatment by the merged airlines. I expect the official Attorney General's complaint I created to be passed on to the airline with little if anything coming of it, but my wife and I both have the Amex Platinum cards and were quite annoyed over this change.  Again, we just wanted you to know, and are not asking for any action on your part. As always, thank you for helping those who fly the 'so-called friendly skies'. Thanks, M.J.F. Re: "Weather" Cancellations  Has flyersrights.org ever looked into the un-necesary cancelation of flights by airlines?  Now instead of being trapped on the tarmak passengers are trapped at airports for days.  And the airlines have their get out of jail free card (it was due to "weather").  I would be curious to kow how many of these "weather" cancellations were really due to a full crew not being there, or a plane being diverted to a more important destination, leaving thousands stranded at airports for days over this Christmas holiday season.  Something to think about. Thank you, F.E.   The "coding" of flights has been a thorn in our side since day one. Contractually the airlines owe the passengers nothing if it's a "Force Majeure"  or "Act of God" which all weather falls under.  Trouble is I have evidence that the airlines change their flight codings every day, and my evidence goes so far as to prove that air traffic control related codings are mostly complete lies and the employees of the airlines get bonused on the ratio of flight delays and cancellations that are coded or changed coding that benefit the airline meaning changing a mechanical to weather delay or cancellation etc. Simply put:  Airline employees, station managers and customer service agents at each airport change codings several times a day so that they don't have to compensate passengers. Kate Hanni founder emeritus, FlyersRights   Just to show how FR really 'helped'. Friends of ours were flying from ITO to LAX and were sitting on the runway while United tried to fix something. At three hours, the pilot said, we have to cancel the flight. First class passengers got their hotel paid for; the others didn't. They were rebooked to leave the next day on the fixed plane. The pilot clearly indicated that he cancelled the flight only because of the three hour rule. Yay, FR M.K.   The 3 hour rule says aircraft stuck on tarmac must be returned within 3 hours to terminal to allow passengers to deplane if they wish.     If this aircraft that had mechanical problems that were fixable within 3 or even more hours, it could still have taken off.      It is self serving and probably a misrepresentation for the airline to blame the 3 hour rule rather than equipment or maintenance failure for a flight cancellation, since this minimizes their financial liability.       Also, pilots generally have a financial incentive to leave the gate and not return as long as possible since they receive "flight pay" at $100+ per hour for sitting on the tarmac away from terminal vs. virtually nothing for "standing by" at the gate or in the terminal.     Paul Hudson  President, FlyersRights

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