Not-So-Random Act of Kindness
On June 18 I was traveling from SEA to LAX (VX 704). I checked in at the desk with the two friendliest ladies I've EVER met in 11 years of business travel. This was my fourth time flying VA in about two months, and they reinforced what I didn’t think was possible – that there’s a company bringing back customer service to an industry that has all but thrown it out the emergency exit.
I was flying first class that day, and figured I'd have no problem getting through security and grabbing a latte on the other side, with plenty of time before my flight. Unfortunatley, I mistakenly put the flight in my calendar as 3:30, not 3:10 -- which wouldn't normally have been too big of an issue except that TSA was conducting new security tests that day, the lines were longer than I've ever seen them, and there was no first class/premier line (they were short-staffed and had closed it). So I tried the Alaska security line instead, where I stood in the premier line for 15 minutes -- and never moved. When the stressed out TSA rep found out I wasn't flying Alaska, he told me I couldn't go through there and would have to go back to the VA checkpoint.
By this time it was 2:50 and I realized I was likely going to miss my flight, so I went back to the check-in desk where my two new BFFs looked at me with concern and said (almost in unison), "What happened?!" I explained the situation to them and promptly burst into tears (probably from their compassion and my lack of sleep/caffeine). They looked at each other, and immediately took action. One of them took me directly to the front of the security line, walked me through to the other side, and told me to run – which I did, Forrest Gump-style. They radioed the gate to advise I was coming, and when I got there (out of breath), they helped me get situated, offered me a drink, and made sure I was comfortable for the entire flight.
