United Airlines bringing 165 call center jobs back home

Here is a bit of feel good news from the travel world – hidden between all the bad news was an announcement from United Airlines that they were going to move 165 call center positions from their International Call Center back to the USA.

The new jobs will be added to their existing centers in Chicago and Honolulu.

This news is great for several reasons – it creates new (and badly needed) jobs here in the US, and it means you can call the call center without having to explain everything twice.

No offense to the hard working people in their International Call Center, but if I’m completely honest, it was always quite the hassle to deal with them, especially if it involved anything a little more complicated than a simple itinerary change.

Of course – with good news also comes some bad news; none of these new workers will be anxiously awaiting your reservations. All the new positions will be used to respond to complaints sent to the airline.

In fact – United Airlines is so tired of people picking up the phone to complain, that as of April 2009, you will no longer be able to call them with your rants, and complaints will only be accepted through email or regular mail.

So much for progress.

United Airlines getting downright silly with their “Travel Options”

Look, I understand that the airlines are in a pretty bad shape. But United Airlines is taking things a little too far.

The Chicago based airline started offering “a la carte” options to their flights last year. What started with basic upgrades to First/Business, has now morphed into a ridiculous array of nickel-and-diming.

Their newest tactic to squeeze that last bit of cash out of you is called “Premier Line”. This add-on starts at $25 (each way) and allows you to use the same check-in line, security line and boarding group that United offers its lower tier elite fliers.

This is insulting to two groups of people; those that actually flew the airline enough to earn status the hard way, and those that spent their money expecting some decent service from the airline. Sure; nobody is forcing you to add any of these options, but I can’t help feel that the airline should be paying more attention to increasing service for everyone, not just those willing to pay more for it.

I’m honestly not sure where this madness will end. Every time I fly United, I expect to see a coin operated door to enter the bathroom or the captain asking for donations to pay the fuel truck driver.

United Airlines – It’s time to make a really weird commercial (oh, and fly too)

Sure, the quality and merits of a TV commercial are a really personal thing, and I’m sure some people reading my article will disagree with my opinion, but this new ad for United Airlines has to be one of the worst airline commercials I have ever seen. It’s Little Mermaid meets Yellow Submarine.

The message United is trying to deliver is that their new international premium cabins with flat sleeper seats are awesome, and that it is time to fly. The message they are actually delivering is that their planes fly really low, and that they apparently know of a top secret island ruled by crab people and tuba playing whales.

Also, am I the only one that is really really tired of Rhapsody in Blue? It’s one thing to take a great American masterpiece and use it for a couple of commercials, it’s another to play it till you want to punch yourself in the face. But like I said; it’s a personal thing, so don’t mind me.

And of course, when they say “flying will never be the same again”, they mean it has finally become a competitive product, and is now potentially on-par with other Transatlantic carriers like Virgin Atlantic and British Airways, who have been offering flat seats in Business Class and First Class for years.