All travelers know that there is a slight chance you will be delayed when dealing with any airline. A few minutes, or maybe an hour, is an acceptable wait time because things happen. But when one hour turns into a 30-hour delay, then it becomes a big problem.
Passengers on Alaska Airlines flight 367 took to Twitter to vent because of the many delays between Boston to Los Angeles. It all started when the airplane sat on the tarmac for two hours because there was something wrong with the air, with unbearable heat. Once it was fixed, things started going according to schedule. Or so they thought. Soon after takeoff, a burning smell filled the aircraft, prompting pilots to divert to Buffalo International for safety.
Aggravated, passengers were asked to leave the plane. They were forced to wait without knowing anything about what was going on or being able to leave the airport. Crew members tried to cheer them up by offering whatever snacks and beverages they had on the plane, but of course, that wasn’t helping. The crew and captain did eventually give brief updates but then went missing for hours while passengers weren’t able to get comfortable or get any sleep.
https://twitter.com/norfsidenesquik/status/1081822544473325569
Finally, passengers were put on another plane to head back to Boston instead of LAX, but another delay was waiting for them when they got there. This time, there was a 90-minute wait as the aircraft didn’t have a gate to pull into. The Airbus pulled into Boston at 7 am, but the airline rebooked everyone for a 4:30 pm flight, so that was another nine hours they were stranded.
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Things just got worse from there, and as you can imagine, the airlines’ Twitter feed was blowing up. The airline couldn’t give all passengers hotel vouchers, but they did provide some passengers with a $20 food voucher to help them get through the day. Airport food is pretty expensive, so we doubt that was enough. It wasn’t until Sunday evening that passengers landed in Los Angeles, more than 24 hours after their scheduled arrival time or 30 hours of total travel time. “This was a really, really difficult experience for our guests, a terrible experience,” Alaska spokeswoman Bobbie Egan said. “We are deeply sorry for what our passengers had to go through.”
To add insult to injury, passengers’ checked bags were nowhere to be found, but Alaska Airlines is considering giving each passenger $1,000 for the inconvenience.
