Triangle Trip

I finally took a Delta flight from JFK to LAX since Delta’s announcement of all LAX flights departing out of Terminal 4 as opposed to the normal Terminal 2 and 3 gates. I found my experience a bit confusing for the following reasons:

1.  Poor Pre-Flight Communications – Prior to my flight to LAX, Delta did not notify that my JFK to LAX flight was departing from Terminal 4. If I was a first time Delta flyer (or anyone without a Delta Medallion profile), I would not have received the original Delta email telling me that all LAX flights were leaving from JFK’s Terminal 4 (or for some, read my previous post on Triangle Trip). Furthermore, I could have easily forgotten or never read the email.

2.  Delta’s website lack information – On Delta.com’s flight status page, only the gate information was provided (Gate 22). Gate 22 resides in Terminal 4 was no where to be found. Delta is wrong to assume its passengers know where Gate 22 is at JFK. Regardless if I was a frequent flyer or a novice, there is no way I would have known to go to Terminal 4 for Gate B22. There is actually a Gate 22 at Terminal 2 where most of Delta departure gates are located. As a matter of fact, I don’t recall Delta displaying Terminal information for any its JFK flights which was somewhat OK since Terminal 2 and 3 are linked. Regardless, the website does not provide adequate information to its travelers.

3.  Lack of signage outside the airport (JFK) – On my way to JFK Airport, the JFK Expressway does not have any signs stating Delta has departing flights from Terminal 4. The lack of signage led to my limo driver asking me several times if he was supposed to drop me off at Terminal 4 instead of Terminal 2 or 3. Delta should work with the Port of Authority of NY & NJ to address this issue ASAP.

4.  Poor signage inside the airport (JFK) – Once I arrived into Terminal 4, I do not see Delta checkin agents/kiosks or any signs that tells me where Delta’s located. I can clearly locate ticketing/checkin counters of other airlines such as TAM, Virgin America, etc. Again, Delta needs to work with JFK airport management to address this issue.

Due to the lack of pre-flight communication, inadequate information on the website and signage at JFK, I could have missed my JFK to LAX flight because I would have ended up at Terminal 2 or 3. Taking the AirTrain from Terminal 2/3 to 4 could take 20 minutes as the connection between Terminal 2 and 3 and the AirTrain station can be quite challenging, especially those passengers with bags.

I have been using (Fly) Clear since mid-January 2009. My Clear membership has saved me on a couple of last minute to the airport, high blood pressure runs to the gate. The ability to skip the amateurs at the TSA security line is wonderful but it is not worth $199 per year. I was fortunate enough to get this year’s membership for free thanks to Starwood. Here are the reason why $199 is not worth it for any traveler:

1.  Clear is not available in major cities/airports – take a look at this list. How can Clear expect me or anyone to invest in them if they are not in the US’s #2, #3 and #4 cities. As a frequent commuter in and out of LAX, Clear is no where to be found. I have seen “coming soon” signs forever. Below is the latest screenshot from Clear’s website stating it will be at LAX by winter 2009.

Clear is also not in Chicago or Houston or Dallas which are huge hubs. I can use Clear to get into Candlestick Park but I cannot use it to get through LAX, ORD or DFW security. If I may also add that LAX TSA checkpoint is the worst in the nation. LAX security has limited space available to unpack your personal items before the checkpoint and repack your items after screening. LAX is also a top 5 worst airport in the US.

2.  Clear registration requires me to provide all sorts of personal data in exchange for skipping a line. Who are these people fooling? When I use Clear, the agent still requires me to show him/her my Clear ID and match me up against my fingerprint (for some, their retina). What’s the point of giving Clear my fingerprint when I have to provide an ID. Shouldn’t my fingerprint be tied to my ID?

3.  When you have airline status, skipping the TSA security line does not really help you much. The $199 membership fee is just too steep for business travelers with status. $199 a year definitely does not make sense for the casual travel. However, if Clear partners with the airlines to offer the following benefits to travelers without status: priority boarding, waiving baggage fee or getting a slightly better seat. Now that is a true value proposition. $199 per year to skip someone once awhile is just not worth it.

4.  Increase customer loyalty to gain adoption. I have not seen any referral programs or benefits for me to renew my membership. After what I have pointed out so far, I see no incentive for me to renew my membership when it ends this December.

We have just provided a month worth of free consulting to the Clear team via this post. I look forward to hearing from Clear management as this post can potentially save their company and jobs.

I’m a Delta Gold Medallion member and was running late for a 4:40 flight. I tried to check in via Delta’s mobile site but the site was going through some maintenance since it was over the weekend. I got to JFK at 4:12PM, just missing the kiosk 30 minute check in window. Instead of arguing with a machine, I thought I could just talk to someone at the Medallion desk as I was in Terminal 2.

I met up with an agent at the Medallion desk to explain to her my situation, and the first thing she said to me was: “did you know that you are late.” Then the agent said Delta has given up my seat and the next flight was sold out. I then asked her for a receipt of my original flight so I can get pass security to make the 4:40PM flight as it is parked 90 feet away once I clear security. I also told her I am a Clear member which allows me to skip the security line. Terminal 2 was empty. I may have skipped two people had I used my Clear card.

The agent refused to help until I calmly asked for a supervisor. The agent finally printed me a standby ticket for the 6:50PM flight and the time was 4:25PM. It took me nearly 15 minutes to get an agent to complete a task that takes 2 minutes at most.

I was able to breeze through security and got to the gate at 4:30PM. I went to talk to the gate agent who was calling standby passengers. He quickly gave me a seat and told me to board the plane. Unfortunately it was a middle seat but it saved me a few hours at the airport and having to deal with the standby list. Had the agent at the ticketing desk, I would have had a better seat.

While I was pleading my case with the ticketing agent, I also noticed another agent was telling another passenger the same story on the next counter. That passenger was trying to get a ticket printed for a 4:50PM flight and I believe he was a Gold Medallion as well.

I don’t understand Delta’s Medallion service desk at JFK. Here we have two Gold Medallion members trying to make a flight with a paid ticket and the flight is not full (as I got on). Instead of helping your loyal customers with status board the plane, Delta agents at JFK are looking for ways for the passengers to miss the flight and go on standby for a following flight which causes more work for the gate agents.

As a frequent traveler in and out of JFK using Delta, I have also noticed Delta ticketing agents at JFK likes to argue with passengers. I have seen multiple arguments between ticketing agents and passengers – over sized baggage, confirmation fees, etc. I had a similar experience with Delta’s LAX crew and the were very accommodating – I got to LAX at 12:10PM and boarded a 12:35PM flight without any issues. Delta management needs to take a hard look at its JFK crew and reprimand the staff. I have written letters to Delta customer service about my experience but only got a standard reply. I will escalate this to senior management to ensure action is taken. I urge everyone spend some time to do the same. It is the only way to be heard. We all must keep in mind that there are still choices for air travel. If you fly 50,000 miles a year in this economy with an airline, they should take notice and respect your input.