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What
If My Airline Folds? These aren't the best of times to be an air traveler. US Airways' chairman has said that in the event of a second bankruptcy
filing there's only a one to two percent chance the airline would
survive. And his airline just filed for Chapter 11 protection. Delta is grasping at straws to stay afloat. United is still mired
in bankruptcy with emergence nowhere in sight. American has been
disturbingly quiet. ATA just went under. Northwest is busy making
- and then unmaking - ludicrous pricing decisions. The last airline to go belly-up was TWA, which was absorbed into
American. I'm not sure that most of today's travelers remember when
Eastern or Pan Am ceased operations. It's anyone's guess who will be first to liquidate (and yes, I
believe there'll be more than one). But the real question is: What do I do? Protect your investment. Buy on credit. You may be offered some
protection from your credit-card company if your airline fails to
deliver the product it promised. Insure your trip with travel insurance.
As long as your carrier is not on the "Do Not Insure" list, your
investment (less the premium) is protected. This is reasonable for
the leisure traveler, but probably cost prohibitive for the road
warrior. Check with your travel professional to see who made the
list and who did not. Protect your itinerary. When your plane is grounded, most legacy
carriers will protect you on their planes. I imagine that protection
will run you $100 in the form of a fee charged by the carrier. But
don't expect to be on time to your destination. You will need to
modify or cancel your downline reservations. Be particularly careful
in markets that are served by only a few carriers-if US Airways
stops flying, American will take up what slack it can in the Caribbean,
but rest assured that there is more slack than American can handle.
Expect to be delayed at least a full day if not more. Look out for code shares. Code shares are our worst fear. This
"scheme" (to coin a British term) was to benefit the passenger,
allowing greater reach by sharing equipment. In the beginning, no
one ever imagined a partner to stop flying. When they do, chaos
will reign. Lufthansa's people on US Airways' planes, Emirates'
people on Delta's planes, Singapore's people on United's planes,
Continental's people on Delta's planes. The list is long and frightening,
but in this world of code shares, when one airline stops flying,
it will probably affect the operations of ten to twenty other carriers.
Remember, the code share partner entered into the agreement because
they did not have the equipment to do it on their own in the first
place. What can you do? Step away from the Web. Go back in time to the days when you always dealt with a human.
Imagine the volume that online agencies (including the airlines
own sites) automatically handle on a typical day? Now imagine the
day when an airline stops flying. The online sites do not have a
mechanism to handle the magnitude of this situation. The carriers'
own reservation lines average a 20-minute hold on a good day. Can you imagine the lines at the ticket counters? One call to your
agent will be able to tell you exactly what is available and when.
But more importantly, your agent can re-ticket you immediately.
(Please don't ask us to "fix" an Expedia record or one that was
done elsewhere-we have no access to that information for your protection
and security.) So, listen up - do not book online, do not book too far in advance,
use your credit card, purchase insurance if it is feasible, prepare
for the worst, and be sure to keep your travel professional's business
card handy. You may want to look into redeeming some of those miles
as well. I think everyone is safe for the rest of the year. The lucrative
holiday period is approaching. But no matter who and when, it will
be a mess and the impact will be felt worldwide. While it may very well be the end of an airline, it is not the
end of the world. It will take some time to sort it all out, but
with a dose of patience, a pinch of manners-no make that a heap
of manners-and a clear head, we will get through this mess. Who will be the first? Who knows?
Back toWriting
WRITER'S BIO
John Freyne is the President of Carlson Wagon-Lit
Travel in Annapolis, Maryland. His agency is dedicated to single parent
families and has been the booking agent for Single Parent Tours for the
last two years. To book a trip, please call John, Janet or Lynda at [1]
410-757-5520. At night, John, a single dad, goes home to his three kids.
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