It's time to give airline passengers a break. I understand the need for security and if taking off one's shoes off to keep a bomb from being ignited well okay. But enough is enough already. It's bad enough waiting on the tarmac and on a jumbo jet or 757 at least there are beverages (with payment of course) and a half dozen restrooms and hopefully you're not booked on a flight that has been oversold. I can sometimes see where airlines have no choice but to stay on the ground due to weather and mechanical problems but at what point does an airline have the say when passengers are in a horribly cramped environment without even a say as to an option? Continental Airlines isn't saying much for their ineptness last week when those on board flight 2816 from Houston to Minneapolis were re-routed to Rochester instead because of inclement weather. Upon landing however it turned out that the TSA had gone home which meant that the passengers couldn't clear security if they got off and left the airport. And to that the ground crew wouldn't let them get off and stay in the airport so 47 people (including babies) forced to stay aboard the plane with no food and overflowing toilets.
I should say toilet as this wasn't one of those big jets with some nominal space for walking around no. I have flown these 'puddle jumpers' while working the comedy circuit and if you have to spend any more than an hour on these things you go nuts. I can't even imagine what it must have been like to spend a total of nine hours on one of there planes virtually held prisoner until the airport opened up. WTF? Oh sure Continental apologized only after some passengers were able to document the event on their phones and the media jumping all over this story. But what did the airline offer? A refund and a free ticket for a future flight! Who in their right mind would want to fly Continental anymore? The passengers can't legally do anything because in reality Continental broke no law. What they did do is break their trust with the passengers and someone with some balls should have taken the reigns and tried using common sense. Personally I would have demanded that the door be open or else say I have some type of explosive device on me. Oh sure I would have been handcuffed and taken away but the operative word here is some action would have been taken and spending time in jail would have been far superior than having to contend with screaming babies, smelly overflowing toilets and being offered one beverage as a consolation prize.
The ironic thing is that after I was arrested and the other passengers were escorted off the plane the adverse publicity probably would have gotten me released with the backing of the other passengers. I hate flying to begin with so I'm sure after writing this my name will now be placed on some terror watch list. If ever there was a time to reintroduce the Passenger Bill of Rights now would be a good time. As for all of the airline executives who keep passing the buck on this manner I suggest that they all be forced to remain on one of their commuter aircraft with recordings of screaming babies 24/7 and a bathroom that not only doesn't work but filled to the brim with fresh manure. And if there is any room left put some banking execs in there too. (editorial pics: top left John Sherffius, middle right by Bob Gorrell and bottom left by Jeff Stahler)
It's time to give airline passengers a break. I understand the need for security and if taking off one's shoes off to keep a bomb from being ignited well okay. But enough is enough already. It's bad enough waiting on the tarmac and on a jumbo jet or 757 at least there are beverages (with payment of course) and a half dozen restrooms and hopefully you're not booked on a flight that has been oversold. I can sometimes see where airlines have no choice but to stay on the ground due to weather and mechanical problems but at what point does an airline have the say when passengers are in a horribly cramped environment without even a say as to an option? Continental Airlines isn't saying much for their ineptness last week when those on board flight 2816 from Houston to Minneapolis were re-routed to Rochester instead because of inclement weather. Upon landing however it turned out that the TSA had gone home which meant that the passengers couldn't clear security if they got off and left the airport. And to that the ground crew wouldn't let them get off and stay in the airport so 47 people (including babies) forced to stay aboard the plane with no food and overflowing toilets.
I should say toilet as this wasn't one of those big jets with some nominal space for walking around no. I have flown these 'puddle jumpers' while working the comedy circuit and if you have to spend any more than an hour on these things you go nuts. I can't even imagine what it must have been like to spend a total of nine hours on one of there planes virtually held prisoner until the airport opened up. WTF? Oh sure Continental apologized only after some passengers were able to document the event on their phones and the media jumping all over this story. But what did the airline offer? A refund and a free ticket for a future flight! Who in their right mind would want to fly Continental anymore? The passengers can't legally do anything because in reality Continental broke no law. What they did do is break their trust with the passengers and someone with some balls should have taken the reigns and tried using common sense. Personally I would have demanded that the door be open or else say I have some type of explosive device on me. Oh sure I would have been handcuffed and taken away but the operative word here is some action would have been taken and spending time in jail would have been far superior than having to contend with screaming babies, smelly overflowing toilets and being offered one beverage as a consolation prize. 
The ironic thing is that after I was arrested and the other passengers were escorted off the plane the adverse publicity probably would have gotten me released with the backing of the other passengers. I hate flying to begin with so I'm sure after writing this my name will now be placed on some terror watch list. If ever there was a time to reintroduce the Passenger Bill of Rights now would be a good time. As for all of the airline executives who keep passing the buck on this manner I suggest that they all be forced to remain on one of their commuter aircraft with recordings of screaming babies 24/7 and a bathroom that not only doesn't work but filled to the brim with fresh manure. And if there is any room left put some banking execs in there too. (editorial pics: top left John Sherffius, middle right by Bob Gorrell and bottom left by Jeff Stahler)
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