Although I commend Southwest and everyone involved, I'm more bothered by why he couldn't have been afforded even basic additional attention to get him on the flight on time without having to delay take-off. I'm not saying they did the wrong thing, but once you delay a previously on-time flight, you start affecting other people on that flight who might have tight connections.
The fact that they couldn't get him pushed through in the two hours he was there before the flight is the problem. The pilot just fixed the problem that shouldn't have been an issue in the first place. The entire support/service system let this guy down until the very last possible moment.
Do not complain about a two-hour security line for a domestic flight. Do you want the terrorists to win? I will wait 15 hours and submit to a TSA full body cavity search if it makes the flight safer.
I'm not saying they did the wrong thing, but once you delay a previously on-time flight, you start affecting other people on that flight who might have tight connections.
Hopefully if they were informed of the situation, every person on the plane would acquiesce to a 12 minute delay. I know I would.
Out of curiosity, who would get to decide who gets "additional attention"? The airline? If that were the case then you could expect to see an "additional attention in screening for only $25" upsell on airline ticketing sites within a week...
This is a great example of what happens when you give your employees the freedom and authority to do what they think is right, instead of enforcing a blanket set of rules. People are naturally compassionate and willing to do extraordinary things. It often is mostly a matter of getting out of their way to let them do what comes naturally, and rewarding them when they do something amazing.
Imagine what his experience would have been like had the other people he'd encountered had felt similarly empowered.
Incredible story. So happy this pilot got the proper recognition and appreciate he deserved, instead of scolding him for making the plane late. Southwest really is just far and away the best run airline of its class. They don't treat the people who fly on the airline like crap, and they are rewarded for it.
This kind of story does a lot to assuage the sort of misanthropic "it's-end-of-the-world-and-people-don't-care-about-each-other" feeling I normally get when often dealing with big corporations. It's awesome to know that people still do the right thing to help other people even when those helpful things might inconvenience their business. It's just heartwarming.
Also, it makes good business sense. Especially for Southwest to say they're "proud" of the pilot for doing it. They ought to be proud. It shows they actually care, and that's what builds long term relationships with customers.
So I think the bigger story here is not that the pilot held the flight (really, it's not all that exceptional for a pilot to hold a flight for a late arriving passenger), but that Southwest is sophisticated enough to relay "hey, this dude's grandson was just murdered" to the pilots and flight crew.
It's also worth stating that even though other pilots on other airlines would have done the same thing, good for that particular pilot for doing it on that particular day.
I fly Southwest almost exclusively because their policies make me feel like a human - particularly their no-change-fee / full-credit policy. Don't charge me $100 for changing an entry in your database!
I basically exclusively fly Southwest now. They fly pretty much everywhere I need to go from Denver and they've never really let me down.
They've made some changes to their frequent flyer program that kind of suck (apparently it's now based on what you spend, not flight segments)... but I can deal with that.
I'm excited to see what the pending merger with Airtran looks like. Hopefully it will extend their reach and maybe give them some routes down in the Carribean:)
It certainly isn't specifically tech, but it does show how much treating a customer properly can have a huge effect on that customer and thus your business. Because of that pilot, Southwest is now getting a ton of great free press. Seems like a great lesson for any startup. Also, the article mentions that the flyer who was delayed was a repeat customer (as he had a number of free flights). You should treat your loyal customers well.
Short version: Given the fact that it's sitting on top of the front page with 87 points, the community seems to disagree.
Long version: I don't specifically come to HN to read about why Google stopped doing something with H-2xx in Chrome. I don't specifically come to HN to read about Clojure 1.2. I don't specifically come to HN to read about a fantastic human interest story based on excellent customer service and human decency. What I do come to HN for is the over all quality of the content whether it's technical in nature or not.
It is an extremely narrow view to hope that articles submitted to HN are only technical or related to whatever narrow "belongs on HN" viewpoint you hold. I enjoy reading about Clojure but I also enjoy reading about a tiny little thing going right for humanity because one person (and by extension a huge company) did what was right and I think the community at large does as well.
Yes it most certainly does. How many articles have been on the front page about Zappos's insanely over the top customer service. No it doesn't having anything to do with coding, but it has everything to do with starting a company.
If don't think that customer service stories belong here you don't really get all aspects of starting a company.
Everyone here should aspire to have their employees go above and beyond like this
"As my husband walked down the Jetway with the pilot, he said, “I can’t thank you enough for this.”
The pilot responded with, “They can’t go anywhere without me and I wasn’t going anywhere without you. Now relax. We’ll get you there. And again, I’m so sorry.”
I'd agree with you if this were just a link to a local news story covering the event, but since the bulk of this article is an anecdote about two ways of doing customer service -- compassion vs. indifference -- and what a difference it can make, especially when the company stands behind it - there's definitely a business lesson to be learned here.
Hacking isn't only about software. He showed up 2 hours in advance and was still unable to board his flight in time. If any system is screaming out for a hack, it's the screening process in US airports.
Think 'Step Mother' to her husband's daughter. This would explain why she wasn't the one rushing to denver and rather made it so the father could make it.
[+] [-] rewind|15 years ago|reply
The fact that they couldn't get him pushed through in the two hours he was there before the flight is the problem. The pilot just fixed the problem that shouldn't have been an issue in the first place. The entire support/service system let this guy down until the very last possible moment.
[+] [-] hop|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] watchandwait|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] symesc|15 years ago|reply
The airline doesn't control anything but the departure of the aircraft.
The issues with this guest getting TO the aircraft are in the hands of security and the airport itself.
[+] [-] sliverstorm|15 years ago|reply
Hopefully if they were informed of the situation, every person on the plane would acquiesce to a 12 minute delay. I know I would.
[+] [-] evgen|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] donohoe|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] scottyallen|15 years ago|reply
Imagine what his experience would have been like had the other people he'd encountered had felt similarly empowered.
[+] [-] edw519|15 years ago|reply
Egg: Who cares?
I aspire to build a company with raving fans like Southwest's.
Nice story. Thank you, OP.
[+] [-] symesc|15 years ago|reply
And all great companies have great people, which is yet another chicken/egg question.
[+] [-] meterplech|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] phuff|15 years ago|reply
Also, it makes good business sense. Especially for Southwest to say they're "proud" of the pilot for doing it. They ought to be proud. It shows they actually care, and that's what builds long term relationships with customers.
[+] [-] rookie|15 years ago|reply
Alternate source: http://www.elliott.org/blog/southwest-airlines-pilot-holds-p...
[+] [-] mrkurt|15 years ago|reply
It's also worth stating that even though other pilots on other airlines would have done the same thing, good for that particular pilot for doing it on that particular day.
[+] [-] nopal|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] aneth|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] acangiano|15 years ago|reply
Maybe they use Oracle. :-P
[+] [-] enjo|15 years ago|reply
They've made some changes to their frequent flyer program that kind of suck (apparently it's now based on what you spend, not flight segments)... but I can deal with that.
I'm excited to see what the pending merger with Airtran looks like. Hopefully it will extend their reach and maybe give them some routes down in the Carribean:)
[+] [-] msmith|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] meterplech|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] scotch_drinker|15 years ago|reply
Long version: I don't specifically come to HN to read about why Google stopped doing something with H-2xx in Chrome. I don't specifically come to HN to read about Clojure 1.2. I don't specifically come to HN to read about a fantastic human interest story based on excellent customer service and human decency. What I do come to HN for is the over all quality of the content whether it's technical in nature or not.
It is an extremely narrow view to hope that articles submitted to HN are only technical or related to whatever narrow "belongs on HN" viewpoint you hold. I enjoy reading about Clojure but I also enjoy reading about a tiny little thing going right for humanity because one person (and by extension a huge company) did what was right and I think the community at large does as well.
[+] [-] topherjaynes|15 years ago|reply
If don't think that customer service stories belong here you don't really get all aspects of starting a company.
Everyone here should aspire to have their employees go above and beyond like this
"As my husband walked down the Jetway with the pilot, he said, “I can’t thank you enough for this.”
The pilot responded with, “They can’t go anywhere without me and I wasn’t going anywhere without you. Now relax. We’ll get you there. And again, I’m so sorry.”
[+] [-] terrym|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] qjz|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] shasta|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] brown9-2|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Rodney|15 years ago|reply