Which airline(s) do you prefer and why?
Also which budget airline is best? I've read several negative reviews about WOW! Airline (lol) and some others. We flew Icelandair and it was OK at best. Maybe.
We've had good experiences on Delta Air France and KLM, but this off and on Air France strike fiasco gives me pause.
Air France - would never fly this airline again. They have a fabulous new "trick" in their arsenal and it's a doozy!!! Typically when you get bumped from a flight they bump you forward - not Air France - now they bump you back and thus avoid all those pesky EU compensation regs. Yeah, they bumped my husband from a Sunday flight to... Saturday, the day before.
Explanations - they ran the gamut. Funny thing was, for every explanation I could counter it since I was booked on the EXACT same flights, different ticket.
Their excuses to me " we emailed you when we emailed your husband" - um, no, my ticket was booked separately under a different email address. Next?
"Flight was delayed." Really? When were you gonna notify me?"
Flight cancelled. Yeah, about notifying me???
Then the best one. We will not honor your husband's ticket for Sunday. He may either fly on Saturday or on Monday. Period.
But we needed to get home on Sunday soooo... their oh so helpful advice?
Talk to Delta. They are our partner".
Thanks.....
So, end of story, we got put on a Delta flight (naturally not same class of carriage) arrived 6 hours later than originally scheduled... and of course, no reimbursement in difference of ticket price.
I have another name for Air France.....
Avoid: Iberia. I flew them for the first time in May, twice, from Madrid to Lisbon and then from Porto to Madrid just over a week later. Never again, if I can help it.
Both flights were basically on time. No complaints there. But I was hassled on both flights to gate check hand luggage, on Airbus A319s which are not tiny. My 22" carry-on fits vertically in the overhead bin. I'm not used to being hassled like this by European airlines: Air France, KLM, Croatia Airlines, FinnAir, airBaltic, etc. have let me carry this bag on their planes, even when full. Even on prop planes I've been able to leave a larger bag on a cart when boarding the plane and retrieve it immediately as I deplane, but usually I can just carry it on. Not Iberia.
On the first flight, my final destination was Lisbon so checking a bag wasn't a big hassle, though it cost me a half hour at the airport waiting for it. I had had cheaper choices to get to Lisbon e.g. TAP which had an option to let me carry on the one bag in addition to the personal item. That flight left an hour later from Madrid, but I lost a half hour with Iberia because I had to wait for the bag at baggage claim. And I paid about $25 more.
On the flight back, only a few of us were hassled and asked to see if our bags would fit in the "cage." The guy in front of me had to check his bag - he had a US passport so I assume like me he was connecting to a flight home. I had only two hours to connect in Madrid and didn't want to have to worry about exiting security in Madrid to go claim my bag then return through security again. (Someone else here said Ibera did this to them but checked the bag through to the US, even with just a "hand tag" (not computerized and tracked) and their bag made it on time, but that would have given me a lot of anxiety.)
As it was, my bag didn't fit in the "cage" either but when I removed something out of it the agent let me go with it, even though it still didn't quite fit. I had a different agent than the guy in front of me - perhaps why I got through.
And then there are the seats: the coach seat on the first flight was the most cramped I had ever sat in! My knees were jammed into the back of the seat in front of me - and that was before the guy sitting there decided to try to lean his seat back! Sorry, not going to happen buddy. I've flown Southwest in the US many times, and their seats seem like first class by comparison.
On the way back, my Iberia flight was part of an AA "award" flight, and somehow I got assigned an "economy comfort" coach seat in the front. I assume it was a mistake, but they didn't tell me that. Instead, they told me at the gate that someone else was sitting in my seat - ??? Really? So they made me wait to board at the bottom of the jetway until someone could come out and tell me my seat was in fact "available." No explanation was given, but when I sat down and realized how much leg room it had compared to the one on the first flight, I deduced that they had been trying to sell my seat as an upgrade and only let me sit there after no one paid for it.
Although both flights were short, there was no drink service at all (I'm told nothing is free in coach, anyway). I'm glad I had refilled my water bottle! But the flight attendants had time to pass through the cabin trying to sell duty free crap.
I thought Iberia might be a step above budget airlines because they are a "one world" partner (with AA etc.) but not so - RyanAir couldn't be worse than this! How foolish I felt paying more for Iberia than TAP just to be treated this way. Never again, if I can help it!
I prefer Delta because I have tons of FF miles & diamond level medallion status. They have the most nonstops out of NYC as Delta has a strong presence at both JFK and LGA which is why they have my business. I hate connecting flights.
For intraeuropean travel, I like EasyJet and Eurowings as they both have comfortable interiors and decent pricing including the add-on prices.
I avoid United and BA. Both have cramped interiors in economy compared with other airlines I've flown.
That all said, I've never experienced the asinine treatment Nancy described so I am heeding her warning about AF. Whoa.
Mike, we've only flown the majors from the US to Europe, and don't have any particular loyalty. Good and not so good experiences, but the bad are mostly related to situations like weather, strikes, obnoxious customers, and air traffic, that are outside the control of the airline. We always assume mediocre food, tight seats, and surly, bin-hogging seat mates. We choose based on convenient schedules and connecting cities, which people who can fly non-stop from their home city dont have to worry about. Things we consider are the regional jet size on connecting flights (minimal carryon space) and the terminal distances at the connecting site. At this time, the edge for us is Delta connecting in Minneapolis, but that could change. Icelandair just now starting service from KC.
I avoid United and Spirit airlines if I can. United messed up big time when it gave me lounge passes that were invalid when I tried to go in to one at Ohare during one of their flight delays.
Currently my life style prefers Norwegian Air 1st and Wow Air 2nd. The former because of what you get for the prices and the size of the aircraft. The latter because of the prices and they do honor claims under the EU Flight Compensation Regulation 261/2004 eventually if your flight is not canceled for weather or strike related issues (so I ended up getting to what amounts to my money back for a flight I took to France on vacation).
My current preferences are not for everyone, specifically the traveler with little flexibility, old school, accustomed to the way legacy carriers do things, but want to travel can not afford legacy carrier prices so choose something like Wow Air and end up complaining about it.
Norwegian is the best long haul you call it "budget" I call it "low cost" carrier.
Nancy, wow! Those scenarios should inspire a Saturday Night Live or Monty Python parody.
Talk to Delta. Classic.
After reading these posts, I realize that I have been cosseted by American. I hate using FF miles on BA flights because I can't choose my seats for free and BA has punitive surcharges for "reward" flights. I loved flying on Iberia because of the tapas and wine offerings.
With the introduction of their "Basic Economy' nonsense, I'll probably avoid United for just about every trip. And, that's too bad, they used to be my favorite for USA domestic travel, with good food and nice planes, of course this was before the 9/11 changed everything garbage.
I had a horrible flight with United from London to Ohare last year, it was quite an old plane, so as soon as the jerk in front of me reclined her seat, I couldn't see the in-flight entertainment, which seemed to be movies that were streaming, but not on demand.
As of now, Aer Lingus will probably be my airline of choice from the USA to Europe, preclearing USA immigration is a wonderful benefit. And, as of now, they don't charge stupid baggage fees.
Dale, I agree with you. Our last two trips we took Aer Lingus. Love them.
Last 3 yearly trips from SEA to Europe were on Delta. Fine results. Also flew Italia (sp?) last month 3 times with fine results. We always try to book non-stop flights from SEA to Europe so have booked Air France the last three years only to be put on Delta (code sharing).
We like Alaska for domestic flights, adequate legroom, good service, good on-time performance, miles that don't expire. We hope Delta doesn't drive them into the ground, which it's trying to do at their Sea-Tac hub.
Internationally we've been happy with Icelandair when we haven't minded the Reykjavik connection. Otherwise it's been British, Air France, KLM, and Lufthansa. Can't complain about any of them, never had a really bad experience like those others report. We have bad memories of the Lufthansa flight where the kid behind my wife kicked her seatback from Frankfurt to Denver, but we blame the parents not the airline.
We choose our flights based mainly on price and schedule, with availability of Alaska miles as a secondary factor.
I've flown only AA and Delta to/from Europe in the last few years and both have been quite good. My last AA flight home from Madrid to Charlotte was barely half full so I had an empty seat next to me in coach - and that always makes a HUGE difference on a long flight! I'd prefer Delta to AA given the choice between the two.
In the US, I almost always fly Southwest, and they are terrific.
I figured out only recently that Trip Advisor has reviews of all of the major airlines, and they seem to get new reviews daily.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Airlines
I wouldn't say these reviews are necessarily that informative or helpful, but since my bad experience with Iberia recently, I've found myself reading the reviews of Iberia as entertainment almost daily, as new reviews are added almost constantly. Some of the reviews are very legitimate; others (both positive and negative) are silly. Still entertaining!
As a pilot I look at safety first. With that in mind it narrows the field drastically. Any US major, British Airways, Lufthansa, Swiss, Qantas, New Zealand, Cathay, Singapore, Emirates, and Etihad. The last four because a high percentage of their pilots are British. LATAM is not my first choice but they have a good record. Nobody else, period. Air France has terrible pilot training and boy, howdy, do they love to go on strike, or what? Go ahead, sue me.
What happed to Nancy also happed to Mona’s daughter-in-law and granddaughters. HOP, an Air France subsidiary, said the flight was canceled. Only thing is that other family members were on the flight, and it wasn’t canceled.
Dislikes
Aeroflot: Aeroflot from 1992 to 2011 had the highest flight to crash ratio among the major European airlines. I don't know about the last 7 years.
United: Cant remember the last time i few on United when the flight didnt leave an hour late.
Favorites
Delta hands down. Second favorite Malev
Aeroflot lol. No.
James, where did you get that data about Aeroflot???
As far as I can tell, there was one fatal Aeroflot accident since 2000, killing 88 passengers and crew. Previous to that, their only other fatal incident was in 1994. All others were in the Soviet era.
Anybody who flies ANY Russian airline is out of their mind. Remember the one where the captain let his teenage son fly them all into the ground? The little brat put it into a dive that built such G forces neither of the pilots could unpin themselves from the bulkhead to get anywhere near the controls! Nice.
Hey, I hear Malaysia has a flash sale this week!
This is my favorite Aeroflot story: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/4448262/Aeroflot-says-drunk-pilot-no-big-deal.html
As a pilot I look at safety first. With that in mind it narrows the
field drastically. Any US major, British Airways, Lufthansa, Swiss,
Qantas, New Zealand, Cathay, Singapore, Emirates, and Etihad.
Are you actually suggesting that any airline other than the narrow list you provided is "unsafe"? Even Aeroflot and Turkish Air are subject to US regulations on flights that originate in the US. Plus, there are many European Airlines and South American ones as well.
There are many new(ish) posters who express their concerns on this forum about airlines they've never heard of before...it does a disservice to them to try to insinuate that somehow the "field" is considerably narrow based on safety concerns. If you have some data to share to back up those assertions, please do share it.
I don't know that there's any airline I would avoid, but I tend to fly either Delta (and its partners) or American. I did branch out on my last trip to fly BA because they had a direct flight from Marrakech to London.
I have a ton of miles with both Delta and AA. I find it's far easier to book flights I want with miles via AA than via Delta, but Delta seems to have far fewer last minute changes than AA. That's just my experience. YMMV.
I've read some great reviews of Jet Blue's flights. I haven't tried one myself yet, though.
I always fly Economy. In that regard the best trans-Atlantic airline...British Airways...always consistent, helpful, humorous, professional, punctual.
United is all right if you don't mind their lateness but since Paris or Frankfurt is my terminus when flying United, the one hour lateness does not matter.
Air France and Lufthansa are all right depending on the price. If their price is an incentive, then I'll put up with their shortcomings.
Domestic favourites...Southwest and Jet Blue.
Agnes, my list is the cream of the crop IMHO. That isn’t to say those not on the list are unsafe, they’re just less safe, or a lot less safe in many cases. Life is too short to take unnecessary chances. I could bore you to tears with the whys and wherefors, trust me. If you’ve noticed the recent flight scheduling problems due to pilot shortages you’ve been forewarned, it’s going to get worse before or IF it gets better. The problem is that the military budgets are shrinking and there is a rapidly diminishing supply of military pilots. The major airlines get their pick because they pay better. All the rest are left to fight over the scraps. And the scraps are getting lean. Pilots are being hired with appallingly little experience. That’s not a big problem when your highly automated airplane works right but when it doesn’t (and I would refer you to the 2009 Air France Flt 447 crash) it gets ugly in a hurry. And if you think there’s not a huge difference between a US or British military pilot, who likely has a degree in either aeronautical or some other engineering science in addition to $2,000,000 worth of training and hundreds, if not thousands, of hours in state-of-the-art aircraft versus some snot-nosed kid who washed Cessnas to earn hours in the same then maybe you would like to invest in some prime Nebraska beachfront I’m offering.
The best recent example of ineptitude was the EVA Air B-777 that narrowly missed running into Mt Wilson while departing LAX in Dec 2016 with 353 SOB. They missed the mountain by less than 1500’ laterally and 500’ vertically. Trouble is there are towers on the peak far higher than 500’! How do you almost run into a mountain in a perfectly functioning B-777 unless you have no clue what you’re doing?
James said: " I've read all the statistics (for this post)"
Well, then, maybe you would like to edit your original post on Aeroflot (a horrid, horrid death toll) with some minor details as to over how many years (just under 100), in percentage to total fleet, etc, etc?
Otherwise it appears you avoid Aeroflot based on some statistics, which is clearly not the case :-)
Reillyfram, I don't doubt the "grey-ification of pilots" and the lack of experience of younger pilots (that's true of doctors/ surgeons too by the way, but yet every highly skilled person has to start somewhere...they can be aided by a more experienced co-pilot right?). But air travel has never been safer than now and has only gotten safer over time (I'm counting only fatalities and injuries, not "near misses" - the stats bear this out). So I'm not convinced that only the creme de la creme airlines are to be used and every other to be avoided. The average Joe isn't going to know the difference between safe and marginally less safe (even you haven't really defined the incremental difference). When one is making internal flights in Europe and elsewhere, there are some countries that are dominated by national carriers. When I was in Argentina, it was Aerolineas Argentinas - or bust. So being worried about the national carrier compared to some 5-star Etihad Airways standard would do me zero good. I'm willing to accept that improvements in automation, newer planes, and the regulatory scheme in most places I travel to is good enough to take the risk. The only airline I would avoid is one with really old planes (Soviet ones in that case) like the one that crashed in Cuba, or one with a clearly poor safety record of crashes, lack of maintenance, etc. I've never come across the latter because I haven't been to the most adventurous corners of the world yet, unfortunately.
My favorite domestic airlines: Southwest, Alaska Air (including Virgin Atlantic), Jet Blue (no legacy carriers , but if I had to choose the "least disliked", it would be United)
My favorite international: Turkish Air (love the Istanbul stopovers, the low fares, great food and service), Finnish Air was fine too (liked the stopover in Helsinki)
I save up AA miles until we have enough for two RT business class tickets to Europe. I really try to avoid British Airways because you have to pay extra to select your seats ahead of time, unless you are a premium customer with BA; its surcharges for booking reward travel are almost punitive; and the business seats are configured in such a way that when they are reclined, you will either have to step over someone's legs to get to the aisle or someone will be stepping over your legs to get to the aisle.
No real complaints about Iberia or American.
Perilofp; well I thought I had in my next post. (?) But for you i went back to the statistics and I ran across some additional data; my apologies. In this particular chart they factored in crashes vs number of flights over the period 1992 through 2011 (planecrashinfo.com). Truly it isn't important how many mishaps as it is how many mishaps vs total flights. Don't you agree? Aeroflot had only five crashes in that period resulting in Aeroflot being 1,807% over the average accident rate. When considering 2008 through 2011 its only 523% above average. And i would expect that with all that i have read, and the fact that they are using a significant number of western manufactured planes now, maybe they have improved on that as well. Lets hope. So, yes, Perilofp, i guess i should edit my post as you suggest; and I did. Still i bet Aeroflot is 10,000 x safer than a taxi in Rome.
My husband is platinum on Delta-no major complaints and because of his status they treat us well. our only bad delay was an equipment problem in Honolulu where we didnt leave until the next day but we all agreed that if youre going to be delayed that’s the best place. In contrast, our last two interEuropean flights on BA were delayed more than an hour. Our recent flight to Edinburgh sat on the tarmac for an hour and a half and the ac didnt work well and they didnt even have water to sell in coach.
I like this story about our usual go-to airline.
It is exactly that BA requires you to pay extra to select seats why I only pick my seat at check-in and getting my boarding pass then too.
First i flew AA/BA but then their routes to Budapest became too long. So i switched to Lufthansa which was "serviceable" for a number of years, but then i ended up on a Delta flight some years back and its become my favorite. Last month i flew Turkish Air and its a toss up with Delta. Like 'em both. The only problem with Delta was so many of the flights connected through Chucky "D" in Paris. Not my favorite airport so that limits a lot.
For me, it's United Airlines but that's more to do with the fact that routes from Denver to Europe on UA connect mostly through O'Hare rather than the airline itself. I made a promise (to myself) years ago that I will never make a connection through Chicago again after several unpleasant experiences there. Oops-just realizing that wasn't really an answer to the question you originally asked-so here is that answer: I prefer to fly LH, BA and Delta for long haul flights; SW and Alaska Airlines for domestic flights. Not necessarily budget airlines but still my preferences.
James E,
Excellent, thank you! Pleasure to deal with you :-)
I'm a very happy Delta customer for both short haul and long haul flights. I used to be pretty indifferent with respect to using KLM or Air France when a partner airline was needed but now have a strong preference for KLM due to the AF strike mess.
While I'm rabidly loyal to Delta and its partners on the routes they serve, I also dabble quite heavily in airline/airplane geekery, so I enjoy opportunities to fly other airlines, too. My geekery, in fact, is driving my next trip to Europe. In November, I decided to try to find a good price for a flight on one of Delta's new A-350's to nowhere in particular; I found a great deal to Tallinn with return from Riga. I ended up with an itinerary that includes firsts-for-me on an airline (KLM's partner Air Baltic), on 3 planes (A-350, Q400, CS-300), and in 2 airports (TLL, RIX). Jackpot! Plus... there is the minor issue that I get to explore 2 really cool cities!
BTW... Delta changed equipment on the my original itinerary so that the A-350 scheduled for my DTW to AMS flight was switched to an old A-330. The A-350 was moved to the flight that runs 2 hours earlier. I called Delta, explained that I booked the itinerary so that I could fly on the new A-350, and said "please, please, please, please, please, please, pretty please let me switch to the A-350 flight." The awesome phone rep let me change my restricted ticket without charge.
Agnes, you didn’t understand me I guess, particularly if you were blissfully content with Aerolineas Argentinas. I found them maybe one notch above Egypt Air. Their equipment is ancient, the cabin crews were a joke, and on one flight the boys in the ‘office’ did something that still has me scratching my head. Next time I go there I will for sure use LAN incountry.
Aer Lingus is our airline of choice when flying to Europe. We have nonstop service from our home airport (Hartford - Bradley) to Dublin. Bradley is only 20 Minutes from our house, so we can have friends do the drop off and pickup. We also like the fact that you can go through US customs and immigration in Dublin on the way home.
I seem to end up on United and Lufthansa on my trips, but I had the best experiences with KLM and Air France--going to Amsterdam and Paris, it just made sense to choose them anyway. I am loyal to none, and buy based on departure/arrival times and length of layover, if needed.
My worst flight ever was on a 2010 Iberia flight, both because of cramped legroom and a couple of surly attendants.
So, I was somewhat dreading yesterday's 11 hour flight on Iberia from LAX to Madrid. I was pleasantly pleased. Legroom was normal, and the service pleasant. The flight arrived 40 minutes EARLY!
Air Disasters on the Smithsonian channel is one of my favorite shows. Any flight I arrive alive is a good airline to me. No, I am really not a nervous flyer, but I am still grateful to land safely. I agree with the poster who said be grateful for modern aviation. It really is amazing, you can sit in a chair, in a tube, flying through the air and get to the other side of the world in a few hours, watching a movie (sometimes) with a cocktail in your hand. Wow!
I've had a dozen or so flights to Europe, half on US flag airlines, half on Lufthansa. There is no comparison, Lufthansa wins hands down. Although I am a penny-pincher, I'll pay the extra for Lufthansa, it's so much worth it.
Diveloone you are spot on about air travel...lousy food...surly flight attendants....any flight you walk away from is a great flight...let's forget the small stuff...peace
I generally prefer foreign airlines to US airlines. But routings (and comfort) beat other considerations.
Up until a couple of months ago we had only one airline we decided we'd never book, no matter what the price and that was Aeroflot. I've seen first hand a lot of mechanical things in Russia that were in dire need of updating and maintence.
After our family's recent treatment in April and May with 5 of us having problems with 3 out of 3 flights with AirFrance or one of its subsideries, I don't think we'll book AirFrance again. It was about company things not a specific issue with their planes or flight staff.
Regardless of United's record of being one hour late departing for Europe, ie FRA, which I have experienced, or one hour late in arrival, it flies non-stop to London, Paris and Frankfurt from SFO, which makes it advantageous. If you have to connect, the lateness is bad, I don't connect at the destination in Europe.
The "iffy" question is: If Air France, BA, and Lufthansa had exactly the same non-stop routes as United, say Air France flew non-stop to London or FRA, and all three carriers charged the same price, ie, non-stop, same price, same destination, same dep point (SF0 or OAK), would I fly them...maybe. I would fly Air France more often if their prices were not as high, that's why the last time flying to Paris CDG, I chose United, can't recall if that was punctual in dep or arrival. Likewise with Lufthansa.
BA I have found on all their flights from OAK / SFO consistently pleasant, good, enjoyable in Economy, eg in giving me the seat I want at check-in (I don't choose the seat on-line) without someone behind me on the last three flights with them...really lucked out.
Had to add an Aeroflot story... we live by SeaTac Airport in Seattle. Back a couple decades ago there was an incident with an Aeroflot flight coming into land. The runways at SeaTac run north/south. This pilot approached from the Puget Sound side to the west.... heading in for a landing - in the west to east position.... that doesn't work. guess the pilot took a hard left to try to land on the runway.. the plane did come down... but a lot of frightened people in the tower and everywhere else at the airport and the surrounds.
I've flown Aeroflot. But only because I didn't pay enough to my ticket and found out it was a code share with the airline I had booked with. It was a pretty much okay flight.
Note the hammer and cycle logo on the uniform. A little worrisome. Not exactly progressive thinking. That symbol represents a lot of history I don't want to support or be associated with. Akin to having a logo with any of the other notorious symbols of the 20th century.
Terri and James, think of the experience as a character builder.
Or something.
MikefromWestVirginia; An "Experience" certainly. To be fair to the individuals that operate the airline, they seem to be doing a very good job the last five years.
now they bump you back and thus avoid all those pesky EU compensation regs. Yeah, they bumped my husband from a Sunday flight to... Saturday, the day before.
Nancy this is incorrect. From the regs (transatlantic flights are type 3 flights)
The airline is also required to pay cash compensation [600 euros for type 3 flights] as described below, unless one of the following conditions applies:
Also this:
If a passenger is placed in a lower class than that for which a ticket was purchased, the airline must refund 30/50/75% of the cost of the ticket for type 1/2/3 flights.... It is unclear whether the refund relates to the price of the entire ticket, or the segment on which the passenger was downgraded.
I'm no expert (but have claimed 400 euros in compensation once) for a similar case, a last minute cancellation put on another carrier arriving 2+ hours later than original itinerary.
Those scenarios should inspire a Saturday Night Live or Monty Python parody.
How about Fawlty Airline?
Well, if you're on a tight budget you take what you can afford.
My best experience, and favorite airline is Norwegian Air.
