Not Hertz

This happened many years ago, but I still think about it at times, and a recent exchange on Twitter made me remember that I really should have written it up a long time ago.  Better late than never, I suppose.

In 2009, my father was being treated for cancer, and his health was up and down.  I had been planning for some time to take a day of vacation from work on Friday, November 6th, 2009, and stay the weekend.  I had a flight booked on Jet Blue and a car reserved with Hertz.

On Monday, November 2nd, I got word that my father had taken a turn for the worse.  The radiation treatment had caused swelling in his throat, and he was rushed to the hospital to insert a trach tube.  After talking to my brother in Pittsburgh, I decided to change my plans.  I would fly out as soon as possible so I could be with my brother, father, and step-mother.

I called Jet Blue first.  No problem.  It was a $50 fee to change the flight, but I could have the first plane out in the morning on Tuesday.  That was pretty easy, and I was encouraged.

Then I called Hertz reservations through the 800 number.  I'd booked with them because I had a good bit of experience with them.  They were one of the preferred providers when I was at Sun, and I traveled a lot for work when I was there.  The customer service folks couldn't change my previous reservation, but they did offer an alternative: they could book a second car from the 3rd to the 6th, so I had a car the whole time, and they told me that the reservations counter in Pittsburgh would be able to help when I got there.  Nothing they could do by phone; it had to be done in person.  That was less than ideal, but what do I know about their reservations system?

The next morning, I flew to Pittsburgh, and got to the reservations counter.  They told me, no, they couldn't change the two contiguous reservations into one.  They had no idea why the 800 people told me that.  They told me I should call the 800 number again and ask for help.

So, I stepped out of line and into the waiting area, and called the 800 number again from my cell phone.  No dice.  They couldn't do anything for me and told me to talk to the people at the desk again.  So, I got back in line and waited again at the desk.  When I got up there, I asked if there was a manager I could talk to.  The answer was just "no."  They helpfully said that I should call the desk on Friday and ask to have it fixed before having to drive in.  They assured me there was no way I'd have to return just to swap cars; that would be silly.

I took the keys and went off to visit my father.  We had to make some really tough (and possibly wrong) decisions over the next few days.  It was a difficult time, but I'm very glad I made the trip.

On Friday, I called the Hertz desk in Pittsburgh.  I was told that, no, they could not help me.  I could not extend the current reservation.  I could not combine reservations.  The only thing I could do would be to return the car as agreed on Friday and then take another one out.  So, that night, I drove the 20 miles / 30 minutes to the airport, dropped off one ugly champagne colored Elantra, picked up a nearly identical champagne colored Elantra -- the only difference was that the XM radio worked in one and not in the other -- then drove back to my father's place.

That Sunday, November 8th, I dropped off the second car and returned to Boston.  That's the last time I've ever done business with Hertz, and the last time I ever will.

This sort of thing, to me, reeks of a corporate culture problem.  None of the customer service representatives had the remit to fix things.  In a company that is serious about customer service, the employees are given the power to "make things right" -- even if this means breaking company policies.  The service I got indicates the reverse.  Nobody I dealt with had the power to fix anything.

The problem is not necessarily being treated like dirt by every single customer service representative I dealt with.  The problem is having no prospect of things ever getting better, because it wasn't just one or two people having a bad day or not knowing how to make changes.  In fact, the representatives were pleasant to deal with, but completely unhelpful.  A systemic problem like that is something I can't put up with.  So when I need ground transport, it's anyone but them.

A family member asked for a copy of the eulogy I gave at my father's memorial service. I didn't have one, because I spoke off the cuff with just a few handwritten notes. The following is the text, as best I recall it.

My father asked that I speak to you today.

I could tell you stories. I could tell you stories like the time Charlie Law and I towed a broken-down '64 Rambler into my father's driveway. And instead of doing the right thing -- having it towed away -- he helped us try to fix it.

I could tell you that he was my answer man. Any time I had a question about anything -- anything in the world -- I would ask him first.

I could tell you how much he loved music, and wanted his children and grandchildren to have it in their lives. It was important to him.

I could tell you how in the last few months, he was learning a new language, because that's who he was; he was always learning new things.

But instead I'll tell you this:

He worked with his mind, but he respected most those who worked hard with their hands.

He was irreligious, but he loved this church and its people.

He was fiercely rational, but he enjoyed a good conspiracy.

That was my father. He defied conventions. He did and said things in his own way. That's how I'll remember him.

To Schenectady with Ben

Ben and I flew out to Schenectady, NY, today (KSCH). It was about 1:30 flying time, and the first time I've had to buy fuel. I likely could have gotten away without buying any, but I'd end up with less than an hour's worth by the time I got back, and that's too little. That's not a rule I want to break.

The original plan was to stop in at the Empire State AeroSciences Museum that's on the field, but when we got there, we stopped at Richmor, which turns out to be at the wrong end of the airport. We could have taxied over, but Ben wasn't too enthused about walking around the museum anyway, and I just wanted to stretch and get some great vending machine food. ;-}

It's a nice little airport with three runways, one ILS approach, and a lot of Air National Guard activity. When we were landing, there was a C130 landing on the cross runway, so we had to cross "without delay" to avoid them. After we shut down, we watched them practicing in the area, and performing some impressive aerial work -- at least 70 degree bank angle just a couple of hundred feet off of the ground.

We spent some time relaxing in the lobby next to the rental car counter, and then went back out to the plane. The take-off was unremarkable. Switching over to Albany Approach was a bit confused. I expected to go back the direction I had come in, but that's not what they wanted me to do, and they had me head out to the East. Compounding the issue, 13081 seems to have a failing DG; it just wanders all over the place, and I was constantly resetting it to the compass. I ended up flying by compass, VOR, and GPS. The DG was a bit of a distraction. (No, it wasn't a vacuum problem; that was fine.)

Eventually, after a mild scolding, I was left to navigate back home. There was one really good lift-you-out-of-your-seat thump as we were nearing Mt. Greylock, but the rest was fairly smooth. Visibility was great; from about Turner's Falls at 5500, it was easy to see Boston and the ocean beyond.

Coming back into Lawrence, it was very busy. There were two directly ahead of us, and a helicopter and yet another airplane behind. We came into 32 a few knots fast. The landing was smooth, but uncomfortable as I knew I was too fast. We got off promptly at Delta and taxied back to the ramp to shut down. It was so busy that they actually had separate people running tower and ground -- at Lawrence, that's usually just one person talking on both frequencies.

That's another 3.1 for the log book. I think I need about another 10 or so before I can start with real instrument work.

To Hyannis With Ben

I'd planned earlier last week to go to Hyannis on Sunday morning, but as the weekend approached, it looked like Saturday would be the better choice, and I was able to change the reservation.

It turned out well. Ben came along and took pictures along the way, so when I get a chance to unload that camera, there'll be even more to post.

We went by way of Bedford and Norwood, under and around the Class B at 2700. I picked that route after realizing that going direct (if we could get it) would put us out over the water for a bit, and I didn't really want that.

My usual N61976 wasn't available, so I used N13081. Remembering the different identification when talking was probably the hardest part of the trip.

Where 976 has an ADF, 081 has a VFR-only GPS unit. What a difference that makes! It's like cheating, because I can just look at it and get an accurate position. I still tuned the VORs and identified them and watched the needles, but there was a lot less guessing involved.

The bad part of 081 is the mechanical radios. Having no flip-flop tuning makes dealing with ATC much harder, especially as Boston tends not to use the published frequencies all the time; they give you different ones depending on workload. So, it's not uncommon to have both a new squawk code *and* a new frequency to dial in.

It was hazy and warm, but quite smooth both there and back. We stopped for a few minutes in the run-up area at HYA to check in back home, and then took off again. Maybe next time I'll plan for a little more time so that we can actually stop somewhere for that $250 hamburger.

I haven't decided where to go next, but probably somewhere different. Maybe New York.