Travel on AirTran

[Anonymous]

not related to family friendliness, but overall competence...

this was the only airlines i ever knew to not have ANY record of a person's flight reservation and payment. don't know if it was a fluke or what, but it was a good thing the person had their printed out confirmation

[Anonymous]

Didn't they just declare bankruptcy?

[Anonymous]

That's ATA, not Air Tran.

[Anonymous]

As for the pre-boarding thing ... I think it really is useful if you're toting a carseat. It's difficult enough to navigate the narrow aisle with a small child but then have you carry a bulky carseat and it's an acrobatic feat! Not only that, but you're inconveniencing everyone else boarding b/c you're hitting them in the head with it and then holding up the line as you try and keep an eye on your child while getting the sucker strapped in. Now try this with 2 kids and you'll want to run screaming from the plane!

[Anonymous]

Very few airlines still allow family preboarding. Bizarre but true. Apparently they would rather us take forever getting settled and delay departure? I don't get it. But Air Tran is not unique in this.

I have not found Air Tran any better or worse than any other domestic carrier. It all seems hit or miss to me, depending on whether you get pleasant, competent staff who are having a good day or grouchy miserable staff who just want to go home... American has been awful to me... United has been awful... Spirit has been awful... and all of these at other times have been just fine. (I do think I've had slightly better customer service in general from Southwest.)

I am dying to fly Virgin America -- the one notably *good* flight I've ever been on was Virgin Atlantic to London a few years ago. I wonder if they can bring that level of customer service to the US? If they really good, with competitive prices, I think they could blow the other guys out of the water. Which I would watch with relish.

[Anonymous]

I too have flown airtran to florida since my kids were 1 and 3. I didn't find anyone to be unfriendly or unkind. I have found them to be cheap in price and on time with each trip, too. The low airfare was our main goal when choosing an airline. Maybe that makes me different from others. Plus, from what I hear about the airline industry, I just don't expect much anymore in the way of customer service or going out of your way type attitudes (not that I experienced anything negative with Airtran re: this).

[Anonymous]

If you are traveling with an infant on your lap why would you need to pre-board? I can see pre-boarding when you've got a car seat to install. I've got two kids and have through both situation. I've seen plenty of posts about airlines denying you to bring a carseat on board unless you've purchased a ticket. Sure it is nice if they allow it if there is space, but I'm not aware of any regulations mandating it. The airline industry is huge and your individual experience really depends on the specific gate agents and flight crew that you deal with.