My family and I were booked on flight 678 Orlando to White Plains on January 15 (8:25am scheduled departure). We got to the check in counter 45 minutes before the flight and were told by one of the AirTran employees that the flight was closed.
He directed us to a counter where we were supposed to rebook our flight. We protested that we should be able to check in for our flight since we were there before the Orlando minimum check-in time (=40 minutes) but the employee refused. We were told by him that the security line alone was 40 minutes long. After we waited in line we were offered standby tickes for a flight leaving at 5:15pm. After we left the counter we passed by the security line and guess what? There was no line! At that time there was still 20 minutes until the scheduled departure of the flight and we could have made it to the gate without problems. Needless to say, the flight at 5:15pm was fully booked so that we had to wait a full day to get home. Since we had been at the airport prior to the minimum check-in time the irresponsible behavior of AirTran's employees led to a denied boarding situation. At the time of our arrival and after denial of boarding we were NOT presented with a written statement as indicated in their contract of carriage. Since AirTran did not provide acceptable "alternate transportation" as also described in detail in their contract of carriage (we were supposed to arrive at our destination within 1 hour of orignial arrival) we are entitled to a payment equal to twice the sum of the face values of our itinerary. Of course AirTran is not answering my e-mails. I hope enough people will start to boycott this airline so that they come to their senses!!!
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