Devil's Advocate
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I've already stated that United's premium coach (Economy Plus) product remains worst-in-class with no benefits beyond pitch, but here are some additional factors that seem unique to United, at least among the various airlines I've flown over the years.But this sort of situation isn’t exactly unique to United - it can happen with any airline.
Back when I first signed up for airline points programs your name did not have to match your documents exactly. When that rule changed every other airline let me modify the common short version of my first name to the full legal version without issue. United alone refused to allow this and told me to submit an official change of name or marriage document showing both my previous and changed names. I calmly explained the problem with this demand and they responded by adding SSSS to my active reservations. I honestly have no words for the way United manages to turn what should be a minor inconvenience into a major recurring headache.
United still holds the record for worst food I've been served on any plane, bus, boat, train, you name it.
![1720493782932.jpeg 1720493782932.jpeg](https://cdn2.imagearchive.com/amtraktrains/data/attachments/34/34552-ba481ef3d546489c3406d53b98bfa4a9.jpg)
United's soft service for intrastate Texas flights is basically water on request while the other airlines still run a full drink service.
The international connecting service at UA's TX hub is so annoying and tedious that I end up driving to/from IAH instead.
For me the last straw was how United handled the David Dao incident. The event itself was pretty bad but what really turned me away was how United's top brass attempted to control the narrative by initially praising their staff and blaming everything on their paying customer.
Recap of events: https://www.cnn.com/2017/04/13/trav...ight-lawsuit-family-attorney-speak/index.html
Moreover, I’ve never had an issue with my violin on United.
There's a Harvard Business School study on the fallout of United's treatment of Dave Carroll. It's not so much that the guitars were broken, that could happen to any airline, but the way UA chooses to respond to everyday adversity is absurd to me and many others.
Current day article: https://www.inc.com/bill-murphy-jr/...s-guitar-15-year-anniversary-music-video.html
Like you I've flown numerous airlines and while many failed to provide excellent service United seems to excel at providing poor service.I've flown all legacy airlines, and multiple international airlines and while airline "misadventures" can occur on any carrier, I 've only encountered the lying and gross incompetence on United.
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