Every once in a while I`ll be at the airport and I`ll see someone jumping up and down because something is wrong with his or her ticket or it`s impossible to get a flight or the person has been delayed or bumped.
I`ve thought the person shouldn`t jump up and down. After all, the airlines do a pretty good job of getting us here and there for business as well as pleasure.
Well, recently I was at O`Hare International Airport and I was jumping up and down. I kept saying to myself, ”Take it easy, kid.” But I was having trouble following my own advice.
I had been booked on a TWA flight from St. Louis to Chicago. Returning, I was booked on an American flight. When I got to the airport to fly back to St. Louis, I went to the American gate, got out a magazine, and got lost in a story.
`We have a delay`
All of a sudden, the attendant at the gate announced, ”Ladies and gentlemen, we have a delay. We are experiencing mechanical problems. It will be at least 45 minutes before boarding, but we are looking for another airplane.”
When I heard they were looking for another airplane, I knew it was going to be a long wait.
Immediately, I walked to the American ticket agent. I told her that I wanted to switch my ticket to TWA, since TWA has planes leaving O`Hare every hour for St. Louis. She said ”no problem,” scribbled something on my ticket, and told me to go to the TWA ticket agent and get a boarding pass.
I waited in line for 35 minutes. ”Oh well, I`ll soon be on my way,” I comforted myself as I stood in line. When the TWA reservationist saw my ticket, he said that I would need to go back to American and get an endorsement number in order for TWA to honor my ticket. There was no persuading him otherwise.
I made the trek back to the American agent, who told me that the guy was wrong and I didn`t need an endorsement number-whatever that was. After looking at my ticket, the American agent also said, ”You know, the plane you are scheduled to leave on is starting to board. You might as well fly American.” I was agreeable.
Where`s the plane?
I picked up my bag and once again went through security and headed for the American gate. When I got to the gate, there was no plane in sight. The agent there said they were still looking for another plane. I then persuaded him to tell me what gate the next TWA plane was leaving from.
Of course, I had to walk to another terminal and again go through security. By this time my feet reminded me that I was in high heels. ”Oh well,” I told myslf, ”you won`t have to go to Vic Tanny tonight.”
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When I got to the TWA gate, the plane was already boarding. When I had told the TWA guy a fraction of my story, he told me that I would have to go back to American to get an endorsement number or owe more money.
I whipped out my credit card. I didn`t care if I had to pay more money. He said I still had to go to American. And I only had 10 minutes.
At American, this time I went to the front of the line. I hate line jumpers, but I no longer felt like being a nice person. In fact, I felt like lying down on the floor and having a temper tantrum.
When I got back to the TWA gate, I had no reservation on that flight and no boarding pass. After a five-minute wait while they went through the standby list, my name was called. I was the last passenger to board. The man before me had refused a seat because it wasn`t first class. As the man refused the seat, I thought, you`re making a mistake, mister.
What I now know is that sometimes when a passenger jumps up and down at the airport, veins popping out on his neck, and red in the face, just maybe there is a legitimate reason for such a display.