I'm supposed to be in Minneapolis right now, but because my Delta flight from Milwaukee was canceled due to mechanical trouble -- not weather -- I'm sitting at my desk. And I'm fuming.
I was scheduled to spend the day with our partners at Fox Sports Wisconsin, discussing how we can find new and better ways to work together. However, that meeting, which was planned for weeks, will not happen. Amazingly, Delta is giving me nothing for my troubles.
Weather happens. So do mechanical troubles, but it's on the airline to get me to my destination or compensate me for a wasted day. Delta has done neither.
They've more than lost a customer. They've gained a vocal critic.
Delta never told me my flight was canceled. I didn't get an e-mail or a phone call, but before I left for the airport this morning, I checked their Web site. It said the flight was canceled and there were no alternatives.
I called Delta and got a peculiar message. Due to extreme weather, Delta could not take phone calls. It suggested I try again later or visit delta.com, which contained no additional information.
Is Delta's call center outdoors?
In the meantime, I took to Twitter, asking @DeltaAssist for help. "I'm so sorry for this delay; we'll get you there as soon as weather permits," I was told. Then, despite several follow-ups, I heard nothing else for another two hours. Then, @DeltaAssist offered to help me cancel my reservation if I "direct messaged" them. Of course, they aren't following me, so I couldn't even send them this request.
Finally, at 9 a.m., I got a hold of Delta. They said they could reschedule me to arrive in Minneapolis at about 7 p.m., though my return flight was scheduled for two hours earlier. Obviously, this wouldn't work. I asked for a refund; they obliged.
But scheduling a meeting between OnMilwaukee.com and the executives at Fox Sports was complicated and took a lot of work to make sure everyone could get together. Our next opportunity to all sit in the same room won't happen for weeks. Delta should compensate me for this blown business opportunity, right?
According to them, wrong. After I complained, they offered me a $50 credit on my next flight -- or a refund. I laughed. "Or?" I asked. They said that was the best they could do.
I took the refund and will find another carrier for my next flight to Minneapolis. I had thousands of frequent flier miles from Northwest Airlines before their merger, but I will look elsewhere before I cash them in on an important trip; Delta has lost my trust.
An utter lack of communication and assistance from this airline is exactly why consumers have no faith this industry. Delta couldn't have handled this situation worse today.
And because of that, I will never fly on this sub-par airline again.
Andy is the president, publisher and founder of OnMilwaukee. He returned to Milwaukee in 1996 after living on the East Coast for nine years, where he wrote for The Dallas Morning News Washington Bureau and worked in the White House Office of Communications. He was also Associate Editor of The GW Hatchet, his college newspaper at The George Washington University.
Before launching OnMilwaukee.com in 1998 at age 23, he worked in public relations for two Milwaukee firms, most of the time daydreaming about starting his own publication.
Hobbies include running when he finds the time, fixing the rust on his '75 MGB, mowing the lawn at his cottage in the Northwoods, and making an annual pilgrimage to Phoenix for Brewers Spring Training.
