Spirit Airlines Consumer Reviews - Page 5

FT. LAUDERDALE/LATROBE, FLORIDA -- I would like to begin by saying that prior to adding all the new routes, Spirit actually didn't suck. However, it seems to me that their route to plane ratio is off….by A LOT. I am forced to fly Spirit due to my family situation. My mother has stage 7 Alzheimer's and my father is her caregiver. They can't drive to Pittsburgh to pick me up from the airport so I have to fly into Latrobe, which means I have to fly Spirit. However, I would like to warn any potential new Spirit customers as to what they can now come to expect from this airline.

I have flown on Spirit the 4 times this year and with all four flights, I have been delayed and there has been a SEVERE lack of communication on the part of Spirit as to why/how. Spirit has had inaccurate information posted at the airport, with the desk people and also on their automated phone system. My most recent flight was on the 20th of April, returning the 23rd.

Every single flight Spirit had at Ft. Lauderdale airport was delayed INDEFINITELY (they actually switched gates once – changed the flight departure time thrice AND even threatened cancelling once) and the best excuse Spirit could come up with was that the planes just hadn't arrived yet. I AM NOT KIDDING. Apparently, when Spirit offered the flights and posted the times online, they actually didn't check how long it takes their planes to get from point A to point B. Then, adding insult to injury, they gave a lousy $7 food voucher as compensation. YOU CAN'T BUY A SANDWICH AT AN AIRPORT FOR SEVEN DOLLARS IN 2012.

As I mentioned, all other flights were delayed as well, due to aircraft just not being there! After waiting 5 hours, we finally boarded the plane, and again the only reason given was ‘well the plane is coming from South America'. That's awesome but I'm pretty sure they should have been able to plan for that, seeing as they make the schedule. On the return flight things got even more fun! I phoned Spirit to ensure my flight was still as scheduled and the automated system told me (over and over and over) that the flight was CANCELLED! It told me to hold on for a customer service representative.

When said representative answered he informed me that there was a 15-minute delay only. Interesting. Then I phoned the actual airport and the man at the Spirit counter told me there was NO DELAY AT ALL. I asked him to double check and he returned telling me it would be over an hour delay. I ended up going to airport at scheduled time JUST IN CASE. Now, I realize that there was a freak snowstorm on this particular day (which is the only reason I phoned Spirit upon waking up) however, that was not the reason given for my delay. In fact, I asked if it had anything to do with the weather and was told no.

This is not the way a business should be able to act and remain in business. I have never, ever witnessed a business that relies on its customers yet cares so little about them. It is disgusting. Now, I am currently waiting on my aunts to arrive and unfortunately they made their reservations with Spirit prior to my issues with the airline. Guess what!? THEY ARE DELAYED WITHOUT CAUSE! Wow – what a surprise!!! Spirit needs to understand that they will cease to exist if they don't cater to the people who buy tickets. Pretty simple logic but, obviously, Spirit doesn't have intelligent people at the helm.

Spirit needs to up their customer service in a big way and begin to offer free tickets as compensation when a flight is delayed, you know, like other airlines. Nobody wants to be delayed, however, the sting is dramatically reduced if a free trip is offered and the airline has another chance to change the first (or in my case) most recent impression(s). I will fly with them until my mother passes, but I promise that it will be the final time I fly with Spirit unless things change drastically. So, please – the extra $80-$100 you may save by choosing Spirit probably won't be worth it when your flight is delayed, without reason, without compensation and without a care.

FT. LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA -- I arrived at the airport at 4:30 AM because my flight was leaving at 6 AM on the dot. I saw a large crowd of people waiting in various lines and should have known there would be a problem. I proceeded to the kiosk to check in since I was NOT checking in any bags and only had a my purse and suitcase that fits in the overhead bin of the plane. I saw that they were charging $38 for checked bags and entered 0 since again, I knew I could bring my bag on the plane. I printed the boarding pass and headed to security when the woman stopped me and told me I had to PAY for my bag even if I was NOT checking it!

At first she tried to tell me it would not fit. Having flown just recently over Thanksgiving I knew this was a lie, and I overhead her then speak to another agent in Spanish that I would have to pay. They assumed that I did not understand what they were saying but stupidity comes in all colors because her small mind would never guess that I speak several languages FLUENTLY. Never mind the fact that other airlines only charge to check bags but not Spirit who will get as much money as they can out of you.

Since I already had my boarding pass I proceeded to the "full service" line with other frustrated passengers. This line was NOT moving and I saw the other 2 lines go ahead of me with no employees offering the help us in the "full service" line which was really no service. I went back to the kiosk to attempt to pay for my bag and was charged $40 when originally it was $38. To my surprise after I paid $40 the machine refused to print out my receipt!!! I had no proof of paying! Back to the line I go! 45 minutes had already passed and at this time they were calling for all passengers bound for NY (which was me).

So I went to the service agent along with a few others. He then proceeded to tell me that I had not paid for my bag. I told him I did and that the machine would not print out a receipt. He told me to go the fast bag line (which I was just standing in) while pointing to the self service line! Well which one is it? He pointed to one line while simultaneously saying to go to another! I then got back in line to the line that he pointed to. Then someone made an announcement that if you had a boarding pass to go to the fast bag line! I had already been in that line twice!!! Now I switch BACK to that line!

While waiting in that line I see an employee ushering people in a separate line and overhear him saying that line was not NY bound passengers! He never made an announcement so then I go to that line! Over an hour has passed at this point. I finally get to see an agent told her I paid $40 for the bag and the receipt would not print out. She printed a receipt and told me to go through the security to gate L-9. I was so frazzled at this point after going through security. I'm rushing to get to the gate.

When I get to gate I realized I have been so stressed out by Spirit airlines and their circus act of check in process that I had misplaced not only my receipt, my boarding pass, AND my driver license! The agent at the gate asked for my information, printed me another boarding pass since I could not locate mine. Another agent handed me my pass then had the nerve to tell me I never paid for my bag!!!

"Jerome", who had stopped me from boarding before, "Jerome" who pointed to one line while telling me to go to another, "Jerome" who now thinks that somehow I snuck past the agent without paying $40 for my bag, was now trying to stop me AGAIN at the gate while the plane was fully boarded. The other agent told me to board anyway. Does "Jerome" want to call my bank to verify the charges? At this point it was around 5:55 am and the plane was scheduled for 6. I had spent all that time going in circles in their check in zoo with no agents there directing people where to go or what to do.

Once the plane got off the ground. I was going to request water on the plane. No, never mind that since Spirit charges for anything and everything. I had not eaten nor had anything to drink and was certainly not going give them another dime for water.

Fortunately, or unfortunately I should say my DL now needs to be replaced because of that nightmare of Spirit. Incompetence at its best I know I will be sticking to American Airlines from now on. It was not a deal as I will have to pay an extra $80 for bags. Now my trip will cost more money than had I used American, Usair, or any other major airline. Total ripoff and not worth the headache.

FLORIDA -- I was vacationing with my family in Orlando, Florida from Tuesday, November 29 to Sunday, December 4, 2011. On Friday, December 2, I received a voicemail from Spirit airlines. It was hard to understand because the woman had a very thick Indian accent, but from what I could understand from the message, she said that our flight has been downgraded for December 4th and I needed to call them to be accommodated.

So I call back (while I'm in Disney World) and she says the flight from Orlando to Atlantic City has been cancelled due to mechanical issues. So I ask why they can't get another plane by Sunday, since it is Friday afternoon. She said they were unable to do that and I would have 3 options in order to get home. OPTION #1 - Fly out Monday, December 5th at our original time 10:44 am-12:57 pm. OPTION #2- Fly to Ft. Lauderdale at 8:50 am, arrival time 9:50 am. Then depart Ft. Lauderdale at 3:15 pm and arrive in Atlantic City at 5:35 pm. That's SIX HOURS of doing nothing!

OPTION #3- Drive to Ft. Lauderdale and take the flight there later that day. I had NO choice but to choose Option#2 since I had to be at work Monday morning and Ft. Lauderdale was a 4 hour drive from Orlando! I asked how would I be compensated for the inconvenience because my mother suffers from Multiple Sclerosis and is in a wheelchair and she said we would each receive a $500 voucher for a future round trip flight.

I would need to call back to get the voucher number so I called the next day (Saturday) and the man would not give me the numbers! After arguing with him for several minutes that I was entitled to it, he eventually gave them to me and said that I had 2 months to book a flight because after that, the vouchers would expire. So I ask him what date would they expire and he tells me December 31, 2011! Ummm… that's not 2 months!

Fast forward Sunday, December 4th. We arrive at the airport and check in by 6:45 am. As we sat at our gate waiting to board the place, I looked over at the next gate and to my SHOCK, my original flight to Atlantic City was flying out ON TIME! So I immediately approach the woman behind the Spirit counter and ask if that was a mistake and she said NO! So explained that the plane was changed from a bigger plane to a smaller plane, therefore people had to be bumped off the flight! The flight was cancelled and downgraded.

So I ask, how do they determine who gets bumped off? She says they do it by when you book your reservation. I booked my reservation in early September and the plane was empty so that was a LIE! So I call the customer service number and I get a man with a very thick Indian accent and I ask him why I was bumped off the place. He could not provide an explanation so I told him to transfer me to a manager. The manager, David ** with an even THICKER Indian accent tells me that he has in his computer that I agreed to be bumped off the flight!!

I ask him why the hell I would agree to that, especially when I have my mother in a wheelchair!! No explanation again! I told him I was NEVER given the option of being on the smaller plane! I told him to play the conversation from Friday, since they claim they record it and he said he was unable to do that!!

And from my observations from our Ft. Lauderdale flight, there was only 1 other family that was also flying back to Atlantic City which was 2 older grandparents with their young grandchild. So they couldn't find room for 6 people on the new flight?? WORST AIRLINE EVER!! And I will NOT be using the vouchers because it is NOT worth the aggravation and wasted time! You really to do get what you pay for!!

During my last travel to Peru I broke some ribs swimming at the beach in Lima and wasn't supposed to lift anything over 10 lbs. As my wife and I arrived at the airport in Lima to return home via SPIRIT AIRLINES January 16, 2009 we had a friend assisting us with our luggage and the security of SPIRIT allowed him to assist us inside the secured area until it was time to check in our luggage. All of a sudden we were confronted by many (SPIRIT) Security officers which acted very aggressive about our assistance.

At the initial confrontation we were yelled at by them while a ticket handler reach across the scales and grabbed my black carry on suit case as security attempted to distract me. They made our friend leave and I was forced to load our suitcases on the scales without any assistance. Due to their weight policy our luggage weight had to be balanced. While I was having to adjust the weight in the suit cases I asked the ticket girl for my carry on, she denied taking it but I saw her take it during the confrontation by security. Her supervisor came and supposedly reviewed video footage and claimed that their employees did not take the suit case.

We were also advised that if we did not make it to catch our flight in time we would miss the plane and would have to purchase other tickets to fly back to US. But I was in so much pain having to load our regular suit cases on the scales because they made my friend leave the secured area and refused to provide us with assistance. I tried to complain to SPIRIT employees at Ft Lauderdale when we arrived there but we were told to file our complaint at Hartfield-Jackson so we did.

I also sent a letter to SPIRIT AIRLINES explaining the incident and their response was they were sorry about my lost luggage and suggested that my homeowners insurance would cover the lost items in the suit case. My response is that I'm not a homeowner and if I were it wasn't homeowners insurance employees that stole my suitcase. Please use caution when traveling to and from Lima via SPIRIT AIRLINES. I DOUBT THAT I'm the only one that this has happened to. But their employees stole my carry on suitcase in front of me and they still haven't offered to resolve this issue.

I have been given a wild goose chase by the FAA and even the FBI won't get involved because the matter occurred abroad (outside US territory). I can't even successfully get assistance from the Peruvian Consulate in Atlanta. I will travel back to Lima next week via DELTA AIRLINES because the reason that I had chosen to use SPIRIT was because DELTA was constantly misplacing our luggage and had offended in 2007 and SPIRIT had cheaper rates. I suggest flying Delta to Lima. At least you'll eventually get your luggage. Delta might misplace your luggage and you'll at least get it back. That is more than I can say about SPIRIT. They stole my suitcase in front of me and are still calling me a liar.

It is Saturday evening and I sit here alone thanks in part to Spirit Airlines. It has now been over a month since my children or myself have seen my husband. Today was supposed to be the day we reunited for at least a brief period until his job transfer goes through in March. We have been in Michigan, he in Florida, since the end of June. I woke early, as did he, both excited as we got ready to leave for the airport. At 4 am he pulled into his parking spot at Ft Myers Airport and was sitting at the gate by 430 am. His departure was to be at 641 am. Everything seemed normal, he boarded the plane and was in his seat at 627.

With no announcements or words from the flight crew the plane sat there for over a half an hour until finally the passengers were asked to gather their belongings and head back off of the plane. Without going into detail they were told the plane had mechanical issues that were being worked on and they would re-board when the issue was resolved. So there he sat again at the gate with no further word until the pilots exited the plane with luggage in hand and casually announced, to a passenger who inquired, that the flight had been cancelled. This was the first anyone at the gate had heard the flight had been cancelled. It was now approximately 930 am.

The passengers at the gate exploded with anger and yelling. The employees of Spirit at the podium had no information. Passengers were routed to the ticket counter to try to re-book. Apparently the next flight was full and the few tickets remaining for the evening flight had been scooped up by the first passengers to arrive at the counter. My husband was not first in line, nor last, his wait in line lasted until 1222 pm, almost 3 hours. There were no tickets to be had that would work for him since he had to be back to work Wednesday morning.

Because he couldn't re-book he was told he was not entitled to the free travel voucher all the other passengers, lucky enough to get on one of the next flights, received. Over 8 hours at the airport and nothing! While he was sitting on the runway not getting any information I was on the phone with Spirit trying to find out anything I could about the delay. What I got was a pleasant Indian woman who told me his flight would be departing at 641 am, it was now after 7 am already.

When my husband was back at the gate waiting for the plane to be fixed I called Spirit again, and got yet another pleasant Indian woman on the phone. She told me the flight was delayed but the new departure time was 730, it was now almost 800 am. I tried to explain this to her and she first told me that yes she understood and his flight would be leaving at 641 am. Now irate I explained to her that it was after 8 am eastern standard time in the US. Her reply... "but the flight has been rescheduled to take off at 730". At this point I asked to speak to an American supervisor, she asked me to hold.

In about a minute she came back on the line and said she spoke to her supervisor there were mechanical issues with the plane and it would be departing at 730. I was ready to scream. "Please let me talk with an American supervisor" I asked. "Hold please..." 2 minutes later, "supervisor is on another call would you like to wait." "Yes I would..." Another two minutes pass, supervisor is still on phone. I hang up and decide to go a different route and choose a different option on the call to try to get to someone American.

No such luck, this time a pleasant Indian man answers. I ask to speak to an American supervisor. He tells me there are only Indians and that all of Spirit Airlines Operations are handled in India. I ask him if there is a phone number to the ticket counter at Fort Myers Airport. He gives me a number which I thank him for and he thanks me and asks me if I would like to apply for a Spirit credit card before I hang up. I tell him, since my husband is sitting at the airport trying to get a new flight booked thanks to Spirit, I'll pass thank you.

So the final straw... I call the number he gave me... It is indeed to the Fort Myers Airport, I go through all the options to get to the actual ticket counter in the airport and low and behold... Welcome back to India! I will never buy another ticket from Spirit. I have been flying with them for years and years, but never again.

MIRIMAR, FLORIDA -- Partial Copy of Email sent to various Spirit Representatives & Corporate Managers as follows... Our flight was delayed out of St Thomas and as a result we arrived late into Ft Lauderdale, missing our connection. We were told that a supervisor would be meeting us at the gate to rebook our travel. This was the first of many lies various Spirit representatives and supervisors would tell us. Upon arrival in ft Lauderdale no supervisor was present at the gate. We were told to run to the gate for the departing Myrtle Beach flight and we would make it.

Next lie, plane was gone. At that gate we were told to go back to gate h5 (where we landed) and they would help us, next lie. A group of 20+ passengers went back to gate 5 and were told we had to go to ticketing that they would help us. This one was a major lie. Upon arrival at the main ticketing counters we were told a supervisor would be right with us. After a 2+ hour wait a supervisor had us go back to the counters to be issued our meal, transportation, and hotel vouchers, as by this point there were no more departing flights.

We also told our checked luggage had continued to myrtle beach and fortunately common sense dictated that if the plane had departed when we landed that our luggage was now on the carousel to be claimed (which it was), so fortunately for us we caught onto the fact that this organization will say anything and do nothing to help their stranded customers and we retrieved our luggage.

We requested that we be put out on the earliest next available flight, on whatever airline, as federal regulations dictate airlines must comply within these situations and were told that Spirit's travel agent would book that or the next Spirit flight (which was 7:15 pm the next evening) and that our travel arrangements would be faxed to the hotel that spirit provided the voucher for in a few hours. So we, along with 20+ other passengers left the airport to the hotel and awaited the fax that never came.

After a horrible night's sleep, thinking that there must be an oversight regarding the lack of faxed travel arrangements, I contacted Spirit's wonderful (put the jobs back in America guys) 800 number and was told after explaining the whole situation that we were in the computer as no shows, Spirit would not be rebooking our flight to anywhere and that we were on our own. A supervisor repeated the same thing to me as well. I have to truly say your company has set a new standard in ineptitude with this one.

The supervisor then advised me that Spirit's only flight out was booked and even if it was not that I would have to pay full price, if I had a problem with that I needed to return to the airport to deal with the day supervisor who would have access to the same information that I was a no-show and start all over again, with another incompetent representative of your organization.

We found out that your company after telling 20+ passengers, who suffered because of your flight delay, had not received their promised faxed flight information either and returned to the airport to be further jerked around by your company. Suffice to say we lost numerous business meetings that result in revenue for our company today and my son lost a day of school. We lost the money we paid for checked luggage (prepaid).

Because we were so jerked around and believed nothing your company had to say and since you refused to honor our demand of booking us on the next available and literally left us stranded in fort Lauderdale, we made our own travel arrangements since we feel spirit had more than ample time and opportunity to do so and honor their verbal commitments. As a result, we are asking for reimbursement for expenses occurred and compensation for our hideous ordeal.

As of this posting it should be noted I emailed a complaint to Spirit's website on March 23rd and have received no response. I then emailed a corporate customer service management type, today, March 25th, and was told I would receive some communication by close of business today (it is 9:11 pm est, they must work really late, at what I'm not sure.

After buying tickets for a trip from Myrtle Beach to Atlantic City, my friend and I found these reviews of Spirit and were a little afraid that we had made a mistake. Since the tickets were non refundable, we went ahead with an open mind and decided to do everything we could to make our trip easier. We checked in and got our boarding passes online the night before our flight, made sure we only had carry-on luggage, put all of our valuables in separate tote bags that would fit on our laps or the floor under the seats, and arrived at the airport with plenty of time to spare.

The check in line did seem to be a little long, but since we had our boarding passes already, we avoided that and went straight to security, and found that we actually could have arrived later than we did and still have time to spare. The plane was full to capacity, so one of the employees came to the gate about 30 minutes before boarding time and requested that as many people as possible check (for free) their carry-on luggage. We chose to do so.

The people who chose not to check their luggage spent quite a bit of time trying to find a place to put it all once we boarded, and several people had shoved shopping bags, coats, computers etc. in the carry on compartments, then got attitudes when the flight attendants removed them and asked them to hold them (even though everyone was asked NOT to put anything in the compartments except luggage).

We departed on time, it was a smooth flight and landing, and we actually landed a few minutes early. The flight attendants were friendly and helpful. By the time we got to the baggage pick-up area, our luggage was there. The flight back was just as uneventful.

So I think that most of the bad reviews are from people who did not read the regulations or recommendations (clearly posted on the website) regarding luggage or arriving early if they needed to check in, and were unprepared or thought they should get special treatment (like the woman across from us with a carry on suitcase, 3 large shopping bags, a tote bag, and a coat shoved into the carry on compartment who got angry when the flight attendant asked her to remove some of it so her seat mate could fit in his carry-on bag).

I see a lot of reviews of $50 a night hotels that people think should be 4-star resorts, and that is what some of these reviews remind me of. True, some of them were legit because bad things do sometimes happen..... flights get delayed, people get bumped, there are bad customer service reps, things get stolen out of suitcases..... but I have found that happens with almost every airline at one time or another.

True, they charged 3.00 for a soda, but hey, it said that on the website and we were prepared. We bought sodas after we went through security and took them on the plane with us. We did not purchase seat assignments, but luckily managed to get seats together since we checked in early, both on the flight up and back. However, we were prepared to not sit together if we had been assigned separate seats.

If you are going to get tickets that cheap, they are going to have to cut corners somewhere..... I would rather see them sell overpriced sodas and snacks (not to mention hawking their credit card and $9 fare club during the flight) than sacrifice maintenance on the plane.

One thing though: The complaints about the cramped, uncomfortable seating are NOT over-exaggerated. My knees touched the back of the seat in front of me, and the seats were hard. It was so bad that my friend and I joked about not having room to bend over and get the life jackets from under our seats if we needed to. It was like being on a school bus with wings...

Other than the seats, overall it was just an average flight, no better or worse than most others I have been on. The price was right, and I would fly them again, just not a long flight as I don't think I could stand that uncomfortable seat for more than an hour or so. All in all I think you get what you pay for.

I have been a customer of Spirit Airlines for many years and for the most part, have never been fully satisfied with the service I have received. I have tried my best to stay away from your airline, due to your cramped aircraft, non-complementary beverages/food/blankets/pillows, and your rude and inconsiderate employees; but I was lured, for the very last time, by the offer of a non-stop flight from Detroit to Cancun, Mexico, with the less than moderate price of $500 per person.

Myself, my wife and my son had taken a week off from work and school, for my son, to take this trip; a trip we have been planning for five weeks, and been searching for, online through a third-party travel agency, since our last vacation in June of 2009. To our dismay my family and I arrived at your terminal (Spirit) at Detroit International Airport at around 3:30 am to be told by a rude ticket agent, who announced to my family and the rest of the pseudo-passengers of never to exist flight 285, that our flight had been cancelled due to maintenance issues, ones that they would not specify.

They had told us the next flight on your airline available to Cancun was on this coming Tuesday, having fourteen seats available, and Wednesday, having 30 seats available. We were also told that there were no available flights with a different airline, anywhere, anyhow. We were then told, rudely once again, to make a line to be dealt individually by your horribly condescending ticket agents to "€œweigh our options."

Options being: 1. Be refunded for our plane tickets (but not for our lodging, parking, excursions, and not to mention our time). 2. Take a shortened vacation on Wednesday, not being guaranteed that the flight would not be cancelled, delayed our overbooked (something I have found your company to be notorious for).

I decided to take option one, being no point to take a three day vacation to Cancun, being due back Saturday afternoon and spending two out of those three days traveling. At last we were insultingly offered $100 per person voucher to a flight to somewhere else, however still on your horrible airline. Given "€œbargain" tickets now days are around $500 dollars per person, a $100 voucher wouldn'€™t even cover one ticket between three of us.

For my money lost from the Resort I had booked, and had to cancel, the $6 charge for two hour parking at U.S. Park (time which was all spent waiting in line to being told of our cancelled flight, and waiting to be reimbursed for our tickets) and the time I have spent not only researching and, inevitably, wasting for a decent deal for a nice vacation for my family and myself, I demand a much better offer than this.

This is completely unacceptable, unforgivable and immoral, for you to do to my family and me, as not only customers but as people. I expect a much higher level of service and satisfaction from an international company of your stature and success (even though the exact definition of YOUR success can be argued).You will never see my business again.

I traveled on Spirit Airlines for the first time this week. For the most part, I did not experience many of the negative issues that many other reviewers have mentioned. In fact, I found Spirit's planes to be new (statistically, they actually have the second newest fleet in the US), pretty clean, on time and the staff exceedingly friendly. Were it not for one major shortfall, I would rate these guys 4-stars.

The problem is this: Apparently Spirit Airlines either did not intend their planes to be used by human beings or is entirely unfamiliar with the dimensions of an average human specimen. If you happen to hail from a quasi-human race, such as a mid-size breed of house elf or whatever type of being that guy with the Axe from Lord of the Rings happens to be, you might call the seats on a Spirit plane "cozy", perhaps even "charming". If not, you will most likely find the legroom allotted to you on your Spirit Airlines plane one thing: insulting.

I have traveled on probably 100+ airlines around the world in my heyday and can easily say this is a new low. Either the ergonomics guy at Spirit needs to entirely relearn his trade or was told by the higher-ups that the free drinks were going to be substituted by free shoe horns and axle grease, because that is what it will take to get you into these seats if you are under 5'6". If you are anything close to 6', get ready for two hours of excruciating pain.

All of the passengers in my area were talking about this the entire flight. We formed a sort of camaraderie and I made several new friends on that flight. It's sort of like how guys who were prisoners of war together develop a life-long bond. It was a harrowing experience. Our attitudes changed from comedic and jovial at the onset of the flight until the point at which, by the end of the flight, we had all vowed never to do this to ourselves again. We shared our grief, shed our tears together and offered one another our shoulders to cry on. I met a lot of first time Spirit passengers that day, but believe me when I tell you, no repeaters.

I am a simple guy with simple needs. If you have an airline and decide not to give me a free can of soda subsidized by inflated airfares, I am all in favor of it. In fact, if I were to take any other mode of transportation, be it car, bus, train or horse, and I want a can of soda, I will have to buy it. I can't even comprehend why someone once decided that if we travel by air, we should be given a free can of soda. It makes no sense.

Along the same lines, I don't need a movie or other preoccupation to keep distracted- I have reached the point in my life where I can keep myself entertained for an hour or two. But I do expect that if I purchase a ticket to travel somewhere, I should be able to do so free of physical pain. It may sound like a tall order, but it is possible- I've seen it done.

It's not even the pain itself that bothers me, but something else. Maybe it's the fact that Spirit thought I wouldn't notice, wouldn't care, or that I would simply accept it as a given due to the sorry state of air travel these days. You ALMOST have a winning concept here Spirit. You are very close. But at some point, an hour or two of agonizing pain and discomfort is not worth saving a few bucks.

My husband and I flew Spirit Airlines to our final destination of Punta Cana. The flights were cheap but were charged $25 each for our checked bags to and from Punta Cana. Our flight left Atlanta and flew into Fort Lauderdale, where we had a 2-hour layover. We then traveled from Fort Lauderdale to Punta Cana. The flight down was uneventful. We arrived on time and our luggage was intact.

My only complaints for the flight down were the small seats and the lack of service. I am a small woman (125 lbs, and 5'3”) and even I was cramped. I felt sorry for my husband and the man sitting beside him. The flight attendants basically were useless. The only task they performed were to show the safety procedures. Other than that, they stood in the front of the plane and drank coffee. The flight home was another story.

We left Punta Cana on time and arrived in Fort Lauderdale on time. Those were the only good that came out of the trip home. Once we landed in Fort Lauderdale, we had a 4-hour layover. Well, we were supposed to have a 4-hour layover. We were informed that the plane was delayed, but no one could tell us for how long. They kept saying we were waiting for the crew to arrive from NY. We boarded the plane at 8:45 pm (we were supposed to leave @ 8:10). We were on the plane for approx 15 minutes before we were told that the power needed to be turned off for 2-3 minutes in order to get the computer rebooted.

The power was completely turned off and then turned back on. We then sat for another 20 minutes, before we were told that the reboot did not work and that the power would need to be turned off for 15 minutes and we were not allowed to stay on the plane while that happened, so we would all have to gather all our belongings and deboard the plane. We were told that we would be reboarding in approx 20-30 minutes. One hour later, we were still in the terminal and had heard nothing. Around 10:35 we were able to reboard the plane. We sat on the plane for 2 hours waiting on the “paperwork” to show up.

At around 12:45, we were told again that we needed to gather our things and deboard the plane once again. They said that they hoped to get us out as soon as possible. After sitting there for 20 minutes, a spirit employee came out and said “flights cancelled, go to the ticketing both and reschedule your flights”, and he left. We all head to the ticketing and stand in the long line to get vouchers, and reschedule our flights. We were some of the last in line and were told the only flight left was the 8 pm the following day. I asked for a refund for the Fort Lauderdale to Atlanta portion of the flight and was told that they would not give me a refund.

They said that once I boarded the plane in Punta Cana, I was no longer entitled a refund. I gave up and took the hotel room and the taxi vouchers and left. At the hotel, I booked a flight home on Air Tran, and good thing I did because from what I have heard, the 8 pm flight the next night was cancelled also. After speaking with the hotel staff and several of the TSA agents, we were told that this is an everyday occurrence with Spirit Airlines. The hotel staff said that Spirit Airlines fill up the majority of their hotel every night, often even having to fill the hotel next door also.