Delta Airlines you suck... LIP

jennieliz

Seriously, charging people returning from war for their bags... classless.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_borufk9RTc&feature=share

https://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/06/08/earlyshow/main20069976.shtml

Rebekah1021

I was reading that this morning. 

KrisBriMcBunny

yeah I read that too and was like WTF????  These people put their lives on the line and sacrificed soooo much. 

DELTA YOU SUCK !!!!!!

EliseB0323

Not to defend them, because I think they suck too, but the Government has an agreement with Delta that returning servicemembers can check 3 bags without charge. These guys had more than 3 bags. The Delta people were just following policy, but they should have been able to make exceptions. The Army should reimburse the Soldiers for the baggage fees -- they can claim them when they file their travel claim.

JENandJEH

EliseB0323:

Not to defend them, because I think they suck too, but the Government has an agreement with Delta that returning servicemembers can check 3 bags without charge. These guys had more than 3 bags. The Delta people were just following policy, but they should have been able to make exceptions. The Army should reimburse the Soldiers for the baggage fees -- they can claim them when they file their travel claim.

 

Yes, the Army will reimburse these guys for their fees but the fact of the matter is that there are MANY servicemembers who do not have that money to pay up front and wait to be reimbursed.  I understand that Delta has a policy but being charged for baggage that you don't have an option to bring home with you or leave behind is a slap in the face to these guys who have been gone, away from their families and in the line of danger for possibly up to 15 months and just want to get on a plane and start their journey home. 

KrisBriMcBunny

JENandJEH:

EliseB0323:

Not to defend them, because I think they suck too, but the Government has an agreement with Delta that returning servicemembers can check 3 bags without charge. These guys had more than 3 bags. The Delta people were just following policy, but they should have been able to make exceptions. The Army should reimburse the Soldiers for the baggage fees -- they can claim them when they file their travel claim.

 

Yes, the Army will reimburse these guys for their fees but the fact of the matter is that there are MANY servicemembers who do not have that money to pay up front and wait to be reimbursed.  I understand that Delta has a policy but being charged for baggage that you don't have an option to bring home with you or leave behind is a slap in the face to these guys who have been gone, away from their families and in the line of danger for possibly up to 15 months and just want to get on a plane and start their journey home. 

ditto this 100%

EliseB0323

JENandJEH:

EliseB0323:

Not to defend them, because I think they suck too, but the Government has an agreement with Delta that returning servicemembers can check 3 bags without charge. These guys had more than 3 bags. The Delta people were just following policy, but they should have been able to make exceptions. The Army should reimburse the Soldiers for the baggage fees -- they can claim them when they file their travel claim.

 

Yes, the Army will reimburse these guys for their fees but the fact of the matter is that there are MANY servicemembers who do not have that money to pay up front and wait to be reimbursed.  I understand that Delta has a policy but being charged for baggage that you don't have an option to bring home with you or leave behind is a slap in the face to these guys who have been gone, away from their families and in the line of danger for possibly up to 15 months and just want to get on a plane and start their journey home. 

Yes, I agree. But DoD contracting is at much at fault here as Delta. It's not just Delta policy that led to this, but DoD policy as well. And frankly, the Soldiers know how much baggage they are allowed to take on a commercial flight. There are other ways to get personal items home from a deployment besides carrying them with you.

ali-1411

JENandJEH:

EliseB0323:

Not to defend them, because I think they suck too, but the Government has an agreement with Delta that returning servicemembers can check 3 bags without charge. These guys had more than 3 bags. The Delta people were just following policy, but they should have been able to make exceptions. The Army should reimburse the Soldiers for the baggage fees -- they can claim them when they file their travel claim.

 

Yes, the Army will reimburse these guys for their fees but the fact of the matter is that there are MANY servicemembers who do not have that money to pay up front and wait to be reimbursed.  I understand that Delta has a policy but being charged for baggage that you don't have an option to bring home with you or leave behind is a slap in the face to these guys who have been gone, away from their families and in the line of danger for possibly up to 15 months and just want to get on a plane and start their journey home. 

Oh please, why wouldn't they have the money?  They do get paid....

Agreed that Delta sucks, I hate the airlines these days.  But it does sound like they were just following policy and there was a screwup somewhere from the gov't orders and their contract with Delta.  These guys will get reimbursed, they could have sent their stuff ahead, what's the big deal?

EdithBouvierBeale

JENandJEH:

EliseB0323:

Not to defend them, because I think they suck too, but the Government has an agreement with Delta that returning servicemembers can check 3 bags without charge. These guys had more than 3 bags. The Delta people were just following policy, but they should have been able to make exceptions. The Army should reimburse the Soldiers for the baggage fees -- they can claim them when they file their travel claim.

 

Yes, the Army will reimburse these guys for their fees but the fact of the matter is that there are MANY servicemembers who do not have that money to pay up front and wait to be reimbursed.  I understand that Delta has a policy but being charged for baggage that you don't have an option to bring home with you or leave behind is a slap in the face to these guys who have been gone, away from their families and in the line of danger for possibly up to 15 months and just want to get on a plane and start their journey home. 

 

why? do they not get paid while they're deployed?

 

EliseB0323

Just saw an update on this. The Soldiers will be reimbursed by the military for the bag fees. Delta has apologized. However, speculation is the Soldiers are going to be in trouble for posting the video.

JENandJEH

Of course they get paid, but depending on their rank, even with the deployment pay it may not be enough to give them extra money for savings or emergencies.  There are plenty of people who work in the civilian sector who don't have an extra $200 laying around to cover something like this.  In a perfect world, everyone would have an emergency fund but it just isn't always possible due to a wide range of factors.

 

As for being able to send things home early, you are certainly right that they can, however, they do have certain things that must be carried with them at all times.  When my husband came home last month, he had 4 bags with him that all had things that could not be shipped ahead.  Weapon must be with you at all times, computer and sensitive items documents must be hand carried, one of his rucksacks was full of his body armor and the other had his sleeping bag, sleeping mat, towel so he could shower, his extra uniform and boots and toiletries.

 

I agree that the airline was following policy and that there was a breakdown in communication and the DoD catches some of the blame but I still feel that it was a pretty low thing for soldiers to have to deal with.  I'm sorry to have interjected my opinion and gotten people worked up, I tend to get a little hot when it comes to soldier issues.

jamie.renee

JENandJEH:

Of course they get paid, but depending on their rank, even with the deployment pay it may not be enough to give them extra money for savings or emergencies.  There are plenty of people who work in the civilian sector who don't have an extra $200 laying around to cover something like this.  In a perfect world, everyone would have an emergency fund but it just isn't always possible due to a wide range of factors.

 

As for being able to send things home early, you are certainly right that they can, however, they do have certain things that must be carried with them at all times.  When my husband came home last month, he had 4 bags with him that all had things that could not be shipped ahead.  Weapon must be with you at all times, computer and sensitive items documents must be hand carried, one of his rucksacks was full of his body armor and the other had his sleeping bag, sleeping mat, towel so he could shower, his extra uniform and boots and toiletries.

 

I agree that the airline was following policy and that there was a breakdown in communication and the DoD catches some of the blame but I still feel that it was a pretty low thing for soldiers to have to deal with.  I'm sorry to have interjected my opinion and gotten people worked up, I tend to get a little hot when it comes to soldier issues.

I agree.  Also, many soldiers don't always have a ton of money on them while deployed.  Many of our friends and even us would have an account set up for deployments.  My husband did not have the debit card for our main account while in Iraq.  So if he spent the money I put on that account (which was a good amount but not everyone is the same) he would have been SOL.  Some people just flat out don't have the extra money for whatever reason.

And yeah, not everything can be sent home early.  My husband came home with 3-4 super heavy bags each time.  Almost every bit of it was things he had to have with him.  We lived in Germany when he deployed both times so he would not have run into this kind of issue since they took military flights but it still makes me mad.

I can see the guys who posted the video getting in trouble.  It was a crappy situation but you just shouldn't do that, especially while in uniform. 

jamie.renee

JENandJEH:

Of course they get paid, but depending on their rank, even with the deployment pay it may not be enough to give them extra money for savings or emergencies.  There are plenty of people who work in the civilian sector who don't have an extra $200 laying around to cover something like this.  In a perfect world, everyone would have an emergency fund but it just isn't always possible due to a wide range of factors.

 

As for being able to send things home early, you are certainly right that they can, however, they do have certain things that must be carried with them at all times.  When my husband came home last month, he had 4 bags with him that all had things that could not be shipped ahead.  Weapon must be with you at all times, computer and sensitive items documents must be hand carried, one of his rucksacks was full of his body armor and the other had his sleeping bag, sleeping mat, towel so he could shower, his extra uniform and boots and toiletries.

 

I agree that the airline was following policy and that there was a breakdown in communication and the DoD catches some of the blame but I still feel that it was a pretty low thing for soldiers to have to deal with.  I'm sorry to have interjected my opinion and gotten people worked up, I tend to get a little hot when it comes to soldier issues.

I agree.  Also, many soldiers don't always have a ton of money on them while deployed.  Many of our friends and even us would have an account set up for deployments.  My husband did not have the debit card for our main account while in Iraq.  So if he spent the money I put on that account (which was a good amount but not everyone is the same) he would have been SOL.  Some people just flat out don't have the extra money for whatever reason.

And yeah, not everything can be sent home early.  My husband came home with 3-4 super heavy bags each time.  Almost every bit of it was things he had to have with him.  We lived in Germany when he deployed both times so he would not have run into this kind of issue since they took military flights but it still makes me mad.

I can see the guys who posted the video getting in trouble.  It was a crappy situation but you just shouldn't do that, especially while in uniform. 

Starr57

Honestly, when DH was deployed, we certainly had an extra $200 'laying around'. With hazard pay, separation pay, etc. on top of no taxes being taken out, we were doing ok. The fees will be reimbursed and Delta was following policy. They could have made an exception for these soldiers on a one off basis, but they chose not to. That's their right as a business.

As far as the soldiers getting in trouble for posting the video, I absolutely agree with that. You do not use your position as military personnel to get perks. That's not the point of the job. Complaining about not getting special treatment just makes you and your service branch look awful and entiltled.

EliseB0323

Starr57:

Honestly, when DH was deployed, we certainly had an extra $200 'laying around'. With hazard pay, separation pay, etc. on top of no taxes being taken out, we were doing ok. The fees will be reimbursed and Delta was following policy. They could have made an exception for these soldiers on a one off basis, but they chose not to. That's their right as a business.

As far as the soldiers getting in trouble for posting the video, I absolutely agree with that. You do not use your position as military personnel to get perks. That's not the point of the job. Complaining about not getting special treatment just makes you and your service branch look awful and entiltled.

I agree with this. I am a huge supporter of the military, and believe military people should be respected and treated well. But I work for the military and every day I see Soldiers (and their spouses) whining about stuff that is well within their control, and/or policy that they are well aware of.

EdithBouvierBeale

Starr57:

Honestly, when DH was deployed, we certainly had an extra $200 'laying around'. With hazard pay, separation pay, etc. on top of no taxes being taken out, we were doing ok. The fees will be reimbursed and Delta was following policy. They could have made an exception for these soldiers on a one off basis, but they chose not to. That's their right as a business.

As far as the soldiers getting in trouble for posting the video, I absolutely agree with that. You do not use your position as military personnel to get perks. That's not the point of the job. Complaining about not getting special treatment just makes you and your service branch look awful and entiltled.

you posted exactly what I was thinking