I love flying! but unfortunately not a lot of positive things are coming out of the airlines. With the cost of oil rising, it doesn’t seem like its going to get any better in the near future. I am immersed in the airline world almost everyday. You see things changing all the time, and most of it isn’t good.  

One of the biggest things the airlines are freaking out right now is about gas. One of the ways to help conserve gas on the ground is limit the APU usage and hook up ground power. The APU on the aircraft provides the plane with power and air conditioning in the summer or heat in the winter. It is like a little engine in the back which supplies those two things on the ground. When ground power is hooked up to the airplane it will only provide you with power for the airplane.

In the middle of an 85 degree day after passengers got off an airplane, I walked off the airplane. The ground crew came running up to me and told me to turn off the APU so they could hook up the ground power to the aircraft as they are now instructed to do. I told him since we are only staying on the ground for a short period of time, i wasn’t turning the APU off so I can provide air for the passengers since it was hot. The ground person came back at me and told me this “Passengers buy tickets to get somewhere, not comfort.”

Unfortunately, this is what the airline industry is starting to turn towards. They are cutting costs and forgetting about why we are here. It makes me sick to see it turning towards this!

You might have a different perspective from being a passenger or you might agree. Share your story and your thoughts! I would love to hear it!