So, I'm off to West Virginia today; fly back tomorrow.
I'm sitting in Detroit Metro...waiting for the flight, and the next gate over is going to Roanoke. And it's overweight (it's a small plane) and she is looking for volunteers. She already has one person who snapped up the chance to make $500 to wait for 8-9 hours, but the flight is still overweight, and she needs more volunteers. Two twenty-something girls say, ok, that's fine.
Of course, in the land of bumping and volunteering, all isn't as it seems. Northwest actually, once they get the weight balance figured out, only needs two volunteers. The first guy isn't going now, he's in for the $300 voucher. The other two won't go without each other. And I'm sitting next to this debacle...the girls saying "I can't go without her" and "I think I'm going to cry" and "Sir, I'll give you $20 if you go" and the guy going "no" "no" and "no". The Northwest agent says "one of you have to choose, one of you have to choose"....
Finally couldn't stand it anymore and walked to the other side of the terminal. Last report was the agent telling the two girls they could both stay, but only one of them was being compensated, and only one of them was going to be confirmed on the next flight, the other would be on standby.
