Feb. 23, 2000
The inconvenienced passengers will be
compensated for their trouble, according to the America West’s Customer First policy,
which spells out under what circumstances passengers are entitled to compensation, company
spokeswoman Patty Nowack said.
America West management declined to say
whether the airline will offer further compensation for travelers affected by the canceled
flights.
America West canceled about 160 flights
nationwide Thursday and Friday, stranding thousands of passengers, many of them overnight
in Phoenix. The company said it gave out 1,500 hotel vouchers in Phoenix for passengers
whose flights were canceled.
A computer hardware problem in the
company’s system that provides flight briefing information caused the canceled flights. A
backup system was used over the Presidents’ Day weekend.
The carrier’s schedule was back on
track over the three-day weekend, except for weather-related delays, Nowack said.
Some customers spent the weekend trying
to sort out problems from Thursday’s canceled flights.
Maryellen Federico of Scottsdale
finally got her luggage back Sunday. She was booked to fly to Long Beach, Calif., on
Thursday but never made the trip after several flights were canceled.
Federico spent about 10 hours with the
airline on the phone and in person trying to locate her luggage, she said.
America West at first wanted to charge
her a $75 fee for canceling her $116 flight to Long Beach but later provided her with $100
in travel vouchers, Federico said.
America West’s Customer First policy,
which went into effect in December, says the company will pay for a hotel stay for
passengers who are stuck overnight because of a canceled flight.
The company also will pay for
transportation to and from the hotel if there is no hotel van, and will provide a
five-minute long-distance phone call and $25 for passengers without baggage who need
toiletries.
The company also pays for meals: $5 for
breakfast, $7.50 for lunch and $10 for dinner.
Other carriers have similar policies.
The nation’s major air carriers
implemented customer-service policies in December after a rash of customer complaints last
year prompted Congress to consider adopting customer-service regulations.
| AmWest Seeks to Make Amends by Peter Corbett,The Arizona Republic |
||
| America West Airlines plans to contact thousands of passengers delayed or stranded last week when 160 flights were canceled because of a computer glitch. |
| CONTACTING AMERICA WEST |
| Passengers affected by America West’s cancellation of about 160 flights last Thursday and Friday can contact the company by phone at (480) 693-6719, by e-mail at customer.relations@americawest. com, or by mail: America West Airlines, Customer Relations Department, 4000 E. Sky Harbor Blvd., Phoenix, AZ 85034. |