United Airlines Personnel At Chicago O'Hare Disrespect U.S. Combat Disabled Veteran

United Airlines

233 South Wacker Drive

Chicago, IL 60606

Phone number (800) 864-8331

Website: united.com

Prices: $$$$

My wife and I have been flying United and Star Alliance airlines faithfully for years, both internationally (41 countries so far) and domestically. I also use my United Mileage Plus credit card for most purchases, totaling a great deal in the past few years.

Having accumulated over 100,000 miles, we decided to visit my wife's family in Italy. Redeeming the miles was relatively painless and so was the trip UNTIL WE GOT TO CHICAGO O'HARE ... United Airlines hometown for cryin' out loud!

O'Hare has some of the rudest employees of any airport I have traveled through and that totals quite a few. I love Chicago, but I hate O'Hare! 

I had two United Club passes that we needed to use before they expired, but by the time we landed, we had just an hour and a half before boarding because the plane was delayed departing Portland because ground crew hit the plane with a vehicle, then there was an ill passenger that needed emergency attention upon arrival. 

Upon arrival in Chicago, we found out that the Terminal C (where we landed and were departing from) United Club was closed for renovations, so we went to United's Polaris Lounge immediately next to our gate, assuming they would accept oir passes due to the closure of the Terminal C club. The woman who met us at the door was extremely rude, quickly ushering us out the door because we were just lowly "economy" international pax, not "business or first class". She told me we would have to walk 15 minutes (30 minutes total roundtrip) to the United Club in Terminal B, basically shooing us away. I told her that I am a disabled veteran (it was 11/12, the day after Veteran's Day) and that it was difficult for me to walk that far, particularly with such a short connection thanks mostly to United 's incompetence, but she could obviously care less.

We ended up making the 30 minute walk, leaving us just 20 minutes in the club (a huge waste of $100 worth of club passes) before having to make the return trip to catch our flight to Brussels. I then asked the gate agent about possible upgrades to Economy Plus or Business, but he looked at me like I had a dick growing out of my forehead, laughing as he said "absolutely not!"

Sitting in row 43 (of 46), two of the three dinner options (cream chicken and vegetarian) were gone by the time the flight attendant got to us, leaving only the pasta option which contained tomatoes. My wife is allergic to tomatoes, so I asked what our options were. The flight attendant gave my wife the tray with a small (disgusting) salad, a bread roll, and a cup of ice cream, saying "I guess you'll have to eat that". I told her that was unacceptable, asking how she could expect my wife to go without dinner. Feeling guilty, Anel (that was her name) said that she would give my wife her meal and eat the pasta herself, a very kind gesture. Anel arrived about 30 minutes later with a beautiful pork chop from First Class, so my wife finally had something to eat thanks to her kindness.

I am cancelling my Mileage Plus card, along with the $95 annual fee, as soon as I get home. United Airlines had better train their Chicago employees on customer service skills, particularly considering it is their home city. Some compassion toward disabled passengers, particularly those who sacrificed 20+ years of their lives to protect your freedom, might also be in order.

CombatCritic Gives United Airlines 2 Bombs Out Of 10 ... 1 Extra Bomb For Anel's Compassion ... More Bombs Are Better!

Two Bombs Equates To

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Title: United Airlines Personnel At Chicago O'Hare Disrespect U.S. Combat Disabled Veteran

Key Words: United Airlines, United, airlines, airline, airplane, commercial, Chicago O'Hare, Chicago, O'Hare, airport, veteran, disrespect, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, business, review, Yelp

Translation for Civilians: Tango-Uniform = "Tits Up" 

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Chicago O'Hare Airport - Wild Goose Chase, Premature Closing Left This Weary Traveler Unimpressed

United Club

O'Hare International Airport - Concourse F

Chicago, IL 60666

Web: United.com

My experiences with United Airlines are hit-and-miss, occasionally brilliant, but more often than not disappointing.

After being told by the agent at the United luggage transfer desk in Terminal 5 that my connecting flight would leave from "Terminal 1, Concourse C", I made the mistake of believing him, finding out once there that it was actually leaving from Terminal 2, Concourse F, a 30-minute walk away. By the time I finally found my gate, I was not a happy camper, so I decided to waste one of my two United Club passes I get each year on their Chicago O'Hare (Concourse F) facility. 

With two hours before my departure just a few gates away, I asked the woman at reception what time they closed and was told "10pm, giving me a little less than two hours before I had to board my plane. Tired after nearly 20 hours of travel and 30 minutes of unnecessary walking, I decided to use my last pass and what a mistake that was!

What little food there was available (olives, hummus, pita chips, cheese cubes and Skittles) was mostly depleted at 8:15 when I arrived. An hour after I arrived and 45 minutes before their scheduled closing they started putting food and alcohol away as I was told "last call" by the bartender. Seeing little reason to stick around during the commotion and chaos of employees eagerly preparing to flea work, I decided to leave.

I asked the women at the front desk why the employees were shutting everything down well before closing time and with several customers still in the club, but was told "they want to go home". I said, "yes, but you told me they were open until 10pm and it is only 9:15". One of the women said, "you can make a complaint on the website if you aren't happy".

The only reason they get two stars is because of the free booze (well drinks, bottled beer, and wine), the place was clean, and the employees relatively friendly (a rarity in Chicago O'Hare).

CombatCritic Gives United Club (O'Hare - Concourse F) 3 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

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Title: Wild Goose Chase, Premature Closing Left This Weary Traveler Unimpressed

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United Airlines: We Don't Care (Sometimes), We Don't Have To (But, Maybe We Want To) ... I'm Confused!

United Airlines, Inc.

77 W Wacker Dr

Chicago, IL 60601

b/t Lower Wacker Dr & Michigan Ave in The Loop

united.com

I do not usually write reviews so many weeks or months after the fact, but being in India for four months where Yelp did not yet exist, I felt compelled to add my two cents.

My first two of three United flights to Delhi were both two hours late and I had to rush through Frankfurt Airport to catch my final flight after already spending close to 20 hours traveling (with 7+ yet to go). I somehow made it!

However, when I recently checked my mileage balance on United.com, my final leg still had not been added to my balance, requiring me to submit a request that still has not been answered.

Airlines in general, and United in particular, just do not care about customer service because they do not have to. They know that most of us will probably purchase the cheapest fare, so it will only be a matter of time before we return even if their service is pitiful, which it usually is ... rude check-in and gate agents, aggressive flight attendants, and poor on-time departure/arrival record ... they should change their motto to: "United Airlines,We Don't Care, We Don't Have To"

As my India trip neared its end, I have to say that United came through with flying colors. 

When one of my wife's return flights in mid-January was rescheduled, leaving her a 30 minute layover to clear immigration/customs, re-check her bag, and get to the next gate (IMPOSSIBLE), we contacted United and were quickly dismissed ... "sorry"! But when we got our travel insurance company involved, they were able to change her flights and get her home in time to attend a meeting at work the following morning.

The saga continued ...

I received a call in early February, three weeks prior to my scheduled departure, informing me that my 84-year old mother had been hospitalized and was not doing well.  I contacted my travel insurance company (Allianz Global Assistance/AGA Service Company /Jefferson Insurance Company) thinking that they would be as professional as my wife's, but after 12+ hours of being ignored (on their 24/7 Hotline), I contacted United reservations in New Delhi.  They were not extremely helpful, but when I was finally transferred to an American employee, she was outstanding.  She quickly found me a flight two days later (i had to get from Southern India to Delhi the next day) and WAIVED THE $300 CHANGE FEE ... without even asking.  I was able to get home to see my mother and spend a couple days of quality time before she passed away on 2/12/2015. At that point I was much happier with United.

and continued ...

Then, just three weeks after my mother passed, my wife received word that her father had suddenly died in Naples, Italy where he and her mom live. I logged-in to my United account to search for "bereavement fares", but even though a link appeared in the search results, there was no such information on their website. It turned out that United discontinued their bereavement fares at some point in the recent past. When I called United Customer Care, a deceiving term, I was connected with their offshore "care" center in Manilla, Phillippines where I was quoted $4000 for a single ticket ... $1600 more than the cheapest fare available on Kayak.com and $2350 more than we eventually paid Delta airlines. Thanks for your compassion United!

I had been prepared to give United 6, 7, even 8, Bombs (3 to 4 stars) because of the recent positive experiences detailed above, but finding out post de facto that 15,000 of the 20,000 miles from the US to India and back I paid dearly for were not eligible for frequent flyer credits (K Class) and the $4000 quote for a last-minute bereavement fare changed my mind. So, I will now have to downgrade my previous ratings ...

CombatCritic Gives United Airlines 3 Out Of 10 Bombs With Room To Grow Or Recede Further ... More Bombs Are Better!

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Title: United Airlines: We Don't Care (Sometimes), We Don't Have To (But, Maybe We Want To) ... I'm Confused!

Key Words: United Airlines, United, Airlines, air, plane, airplane, travel, airport, flight, reservation, agent, customer, service, CombatCritic, TravelValue, Yelp, value

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