Being on Other Side of Cockpit Door Proves Frustrating

Flying as a passenger proves infuriating for this airline pilot.

Les Abend

Thursday, July 31, 2025 at 08:00 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

Next ski trip the author says he may just skip the ticket counter and fly Abend Air via Piper Arrow. [Courtesy: Les Abend]

Key Takeaways:

The author, a former airline pilot, endured a multi-day travel nightmare characterized by mechanical failures, weather delays, and flight cancellations on both outbound and return legs of a ski trip.
Despite attempting to be proactive with rebookings, the airline's inflexible IT system and customer service challenges repeatedly complicated his efforts, leading to missed connections and unplanned overnight stays.
The frustrating experience exposed significant operational and technological shortcomings within the airline, causing the author to regret his past passengers' potential similar experiences and consider private air travel.

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On the third day of attempting to leave Durango (KDRO), Colorado, after our ski trip, it appeared we would be successful in making the 6 a.m. MDT departure to Dallas-Forth Worth (KDFW). Although not exactly the comforts of an international B-777 flight, we were nonetheless grateful that our American Airlines AAdvantage status got us upgraded to a first-class seat on the CRJ-700.

Nothing could go wrong.