Favorite airline

[knutm1980]

Just curious with you plane junkies.

Q: What is your favorite airline of all time?
Q: When did you start flying?
Q:When were you born
Q: What is your least favorite airline

A: Haven't flown with them for years, but from what I remember when I flew frequently globally..Singapore Airlines. Their economy beats most business class's hands down..including cathay
A:I really don't know, early 80's..first flight I can remember was flying TAP from Oslo to Lisbon ca. '85..I was quickly educated by the old man TAP stood for Take Another Plane.
A: Probably LAM, Lineas Areas De Mozambique..or also known as 'Late And Maybe'. Waiting at the gate, we are duly informed, the plane has not actually left Maputo yet. This was in Copenhagen. Flew them quite abit in the mid 80's on their old 737-100's and their DC-10 which I've heard had a slight accident and was written off. Must be the closest to death I have ever been.. 
A: 1980

simples, see.

edit: Added a least favorite airline Q

[Jona L.]

Just curious with you plane junkies.

Q: What is your favorite airline of all time?
Q: When did you start flying?
Q:When were you born

A: Haven't flown with them for years, but from what I remember when I flew frequently globally..Singapore Airlines. Their economy beats most business class's hands down..including cathay
A:I really don't know, early 80's..first flight I can remember was flying TAP from Oslo to Lisbon ca. '85..I was quickly educated by the old man TAP stood for Take Another Plane.
A: 1980

simples, see.

Lufthansa though my first flights were on good old LTU, which has nowadays been rebranded into the AirBerlin company to which they belonged since ages.

AFAIK, and what my mom told me, 1996 to Menorca (LTU A320, she showed me a photograph of us standing infront of the plane taken by the stewardess )

1993...June... but as per signature, flown a lot in those couple of years

Ryanair... crap seats (but you know that in advance), and s*** landings... my last 3 resulted in backbone pain, or at least made it worse...

[Benny_Ben1989]

1) By far and a way, the best airline I have flown with have been Qatar Airways  (Virgin Atlantic worst by more than a country mile  )
2) I have been fortunate at my young age to have travelled to 30 countries (31 with Australia in June ) due to relatives living abroad so I dont know when I started flying. First flight I remember was LHR - SVO via MXP with Alitalia in 1998. Mainly remember it as 9 of us were travelling to SVO for my uncles wedding and ALL baggage went missing  ... I wonder if theyve found any of it yet?? 
3) 1989    best year for everything

Many Thanks,
Ben

[schro]

Eastern
Piedmont (pre US merger)
Valujet

/thread

[Dave4468]

Emirates
Erm, 1996 I think. Not sure of the aircraft but my parents think it was British Midland/BMI
1991

[ARASKA]

Frontier (the only airline that I remember flying)
US Air (in 1999 so I don't remember)
1999

[knutm1980]

1) By far and a way, the best airline I have flown with have been Qatar Airways  (Virgin Atlantic worst by more than a country mile  )
2) I have been fortunate at my young age to have travelled to 30 countries (31 with Australia in June ) due to relatives living abroad so I dont know when I started flying. First flight I remember was LHR - SVO via MXP with Alitalia in 1998. Mainly remember it as 9 of us were travelling to SVO for my uncles wedding and ALL baggage went missing  ... I wonder if theyve found any of it yet?? 
3) 1989    best year for everything

Many Thanks,
Ben

Never flown either, but I have heard others share your sentiments on those two airlines. This thing with Virgin Atlantic though, is it relatively recent they started flopping? I seem to remember they used to get a lot of praise.

Been quite lucky with my old man working abroad when I was young, been to 38 countries, and I have most of Europe to do still which is weird, considering I am European..

[Pilot Oatmeal]

God so many to choose from... well I've been 48 countries and flown across the Atlantic 127 times in my life (discounting concorde...), mostly with Virgin/BA/American and U.S Airways.

1.  British Airways - well I flew on Concorde, gotta be there, plus they are the best to fly with transatlantic imo to Miami. imo.
2.  Air Canada - best Airbus I've flown on absolutely gorgeous, amazing leg room and IFE
3.  BMI - Not really flown lots of short haul but this was a great experience, as the captain let me turn off the APU when we arrived at the gate after a cockpit tour...

[dave111]

Q: Favorite airline?
A: Well, I have not flown very many different airlines, so I'm not really in a position to make comparisons, but, I am from Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP / KMSP) so my favorite airline past or present is our hometown airline, Northwest. I always had good experiences when I flew with them. I was quite disappointed when they merged with Delta. This is only about the 13th largest metro area in the US, so having a major airline based here was a big deal. I worry that in the future MSP will no longer be an important hub, and our local economy could suffer as a result.

Q: When did you start flying?
A: I have been traveling by air since before I can remember, so I'm not really sure. People love to complain about flying, but it's my favorite way to travel. (Has anyone seen comedian Louis C.K.'s bit about people complaining instead of appreciating modern conveniences, particularly flying?) To me, it's one of the biggest miracles of modern technology. No other mode of transportation can take you to distant parts of the world in mere hours.

Q: Least favorite airline?
A: I shouldn't say this since I haven't flown with them, but, Southwest. For every person I've met who loves them, I've met two who regret flying Southwest. Plus, I hate their TV ads, I feel they cut corners on safety and ignore regulations, and that, because of the fare pressure they put on other carriers, they and other discount airlines are partly responsible for the problems with the US airline system. Sure, everyone wants flying to be affordable, but you get what you pay for. (I won't say more here, but see the PBS Frontline episode, "Flying Cheap")

[Zombie Slayer]

Q: Least favorite airline?
A: I shouldn't say this since I haven't flown with them, but, Southwest. For every person I've met who loves them, I've met two who regret flying Southwest. Plus, I hate their TV ads, I feel they cut corners on safety and ignore regulations, and that, because of the fare pressure they put on other carriers, they and other discount airlines are partly responsible for the problems with the US airline system. Sure, everyone wants flying to be affordable, but you get what you pay for. (I won't say more here, but see the PBS Frontline episode, "Flying Cheap")

Short answer, you haven't flown them. Southwest has just about the best, if not the best, safety record of any airline in the world. In almost 41 years of operation, operating over 3400 flights a day, WN has had just 1 hull loss (BUR over run in 2000) and a single fatality (MDW over run in 2005). The 2 highly publicized decompression incidents have been traced back to a faulty Boeing manufacturing procedure, NOT faulty WN maintenance practices.

As for the second part of your statement, WN is not responsible for the financial state of US legacies, years of mismanagement is to blame. Adapt or die, plain and simple. Is flying the luxurious experience it was in the 50's? No, not for the majority (the premium classes have undergone vast improvements in recent years, IMHO) but it is safe and affordable. And lastly, "you get what you pay for," true. On WN you get no change fee, free checked and carry on bags, free refreshments, the most generous seat pitch in standard Y in the industry, and the lowest complaint ratio in the industry (.22 per 100,000 enplanements in Feb 2012).

[dave111]

I knew saying anything bad about Southwest would get a response from someone - that's the way it is, you either love em or hate em. I don't want to start a flame war, in fact I wish I'd listened to my better judgment and left that part out of my post. I recognize I can't be impartial about it, and I'll leave it at that. (But when I say I can't be impartial, I don't mean that I'm conceding that you're right.)

I don't mean to disparage anyone who works for them, I'm sure they're good at their jobs. I don't like the people in charge of the big legacy carriers either, in fact it's them I hate most of all. But if every airline was like Southwest, with its domestic-only point-to-point route system (in other words, Southwest only flies routes that are very profitable), who would provide service to small cities and regional airports, who would provide international service? Maybe you're right, maybe it's not fair to blame them for other airlines' problems, and really I'm just mad about the state of the airline industry in general, but I can't help but resent that Southwest feeds the general public's perception that the other guys are just out to gouge them.

I can't say much more without getting somewhat political about it, so this time I *will* use my better judgment and just not go there.

[Zombie Slayer]

Dave,

There was just one statement you made in your first post that set me off, and that was the claim of "cutting corners." You are 100% entitled to your opinion and I respect your opinion but your claims need to be based on facts and/or personal experiences. Saying "I feel they cut corners on safety" without ever having set foot onboard a Southwest flight, especially considering their safety record, is crazy. Other than that, I do not disagree with any part of your post  And "flying cheap," saw it and yes, it is scary. Some of the regional flights I have been on (Mesa and Republic, mostly) had a cockpit crew that looked like they were were just out of High School (not judging their qualifications and I never felt unsafe, just an observation).

Don

[Lairyliam]

Q: Virgin Atlantic
Q: April 1993
Q:1979
Q: British Airways

[Dave4468]

In addition to my last answer.

Ryanair. Despite flying on them twice in the last week and being perfectly good flights, in fact one flight had the best cabin crew ever, I hate that airline. I despise everything about it, how its run, how it treats passengers, the attitude of a certain leprechaun, just everything.

[alexgv1]

Ryanair. Despite flying on them twice in the last week and being perfectly good flights, in fact one flight had the best cabin crew ever, I hate that airline. I despise everything about it, how its run, how it treats passengers, the attitude of a certain leprechaun, just everything.

Haha funny, I love them for those same reasons.

[Benny_Ben1989]

Never flown either, but I have heard others share your sentiments on those two airlines. This thing with Virgin Atlantic though, is it relatively recent they started flopping? I seem to remember they used to get a lot of praise.

I flew with them in 2007 to Hong Kong and then I thought they were awful. Flight was so un organised. I know it was 5 ish years ago now but I still remember the sense of irratic working environment the cabin crew seemed to create. I put that down to a one off However, in 2011 I flew with them to Tokyo and as a seasoned passenger, the atmosphere made me feel anxious. Service isnt what their marketing department make out. 

It is a shame, because the cabin's are always well presented, great onboard colourscheme etc etc, and theres huge potential to upset some 5* airlines out there but I feel all their expeditions in the low cost markets (US and Oz) have kind of mingled in and they are very much an 'ordinary' carrier at best.

As I said, I then flew to Doha in Sept '11 and then Dec '11 and had highly professional cabin crew, this will sound cheesy but it did truly seem that it was Qatar Airways' privelege to have you on board. Small touches from check in to leaving Doha Airport dont go a miss and you cant help but put them first choice over any other airline.

I hope my opinion will change in June as im off to Australia with QANTAS hope they have a good service...a looong flight if not!! 

Many Thanks,
Ben

[dave111]

Dave,

There was just one statement you made in your first post that set me off, and that was the claim of "cutting corners." You are 100% entitled to your opinion and I respect your opinion but your claims need to be based on facts and/or personal experiences. Saying "I feel they cut corners on safety" without ever having set foot onboard a Southwest flight, especially considering their safety record, is crazy. Other than that, I do not disagree with any part of your post  And "flying cheap," saw it and yes, it is scary. Some of the regional flights I have been on (Mesa and Republic, mostly) had a cockpit crew that looked like they were were just out of High School (not judging their qualifications and I never felt unsafe, just an observation).

Don

I'm glad to hear you say that; after seeing in the "Your Day Job" thread that you actually do work for Southwest, I felt kinda bad, because I can imagine how I'd feel if someone said bad things about my employer. No hard feelings, I hope.

As for the "flying cheap" thing, I completely agree, I'm not judging the pilots, and I'm never really that worried. I think it's unfair to them, I want them to be paid a fair amount and to have the opportunity to get more flying experience before taking on the responsibility of flying airline passengers. The big airlines shouldn't be trying to save money by outsourcing their flying to regional carriers that pay their crews less.

[Cardinal]

Q: What is your favorite airline of all time?
A: I flew Piedmont as a child all the time, always RIC-DEN. I have many happy memories of those flights. However, as a consumer paying for my own travel, my favorite airline by far has been AirTran. The true test of an airline is how they handle problems, and the few times I ever had a maintenance delay or weather cancellation, and the one (and only) time they misrouted my luggage, AirTran's customer service blew me away with their efficiency and response. I'm really going to miss them.

Q: When did you start flying?
A: The first flight I can remember specifically is in 1982, flying from RIC-DEN via CLT and (after a mx diversion to INT) BNA, and back home via DAY. I have vague memories of flying before then but I can't remember any details.

Q:When were you born
A: 1972.

Q: What is your least favorite airline
A: US Airways. They never fail to disappoint.

[knutm1980]

I flew with them in 2007 to Hong Kong and then I thought they were awful. Flight was so un organised. I know it was 5 ish years ago now but I still remember the sense of irratic working environment the cabin crew seemed to create. I put that down to a one off However, in 2011 I flew with them to Tokyo and as a seasoned passenger, the atmosphere made me feel anxious. Service isnt what their marketing department make out.  

It is a shame, because the cabin's are always well presented, great onboard colourscheme etc etc, and theres huge potential to upset some 5* airlines out there but I feel all their expeditions in the low cost markets (US and Oz) have kind of mingled in and they are very much an 'ordinary' carrier at best.

As I said, I then flew to Doha in Sept '11 and then Dec '11 and had highly professional cabin crew, this will sound cheesy but it did truly seem that it was Qatar Airways' privelege to have you on board. Small touches from check in to leaving Doha Airport dont go a miss and you cant help but put them first choice over any other airline.

I hope my opinion will change in June as im off to Australia with QANTAS hope they have a good service...a looong flight if not!!  

Many Thanks,
Ben

doha airport..ugh. heh..Hope their new airport improves the shambles that place currently is. Spent a few days there in and around Doha..biggest building site I ever been to. Did not fly Qatar though..but know people in the UAE who prefer them over Emirates who I haven't tried either. 

I haven't flown Qantas since about 1990 or so. Roundtrip Harare-Perth-Sydney-Singapore-London. We ended up having the same stewardess on every single flight. I remember the service being good, but I was only about 10 or so, so my judgement might have been impeded by colouring books and cookies I think.

[Benny_Ben1989]

I agree about the feeling with Doha Airport however I dont think even they expected the rapid success and expansion that Qatar Airways was to enjoy 

Doha itself is absolutely lovely now though and when the time comes I will beg, steal, borrow and slaughter for tickets to the 2022 world cup there..so a little time to prepare

With regards to QANTAS, under more careful inspection, apparently my LHR - BKK and HKG - LHR legs are operated by BA 747's. BKK - SYD is a 747 and BNE - HKG is an A330

Many Thanks,
Ben