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If you have a legitimate complaint about service, write a well-written letter to the appropriate people at the airline. This can often result in real results. But don't become a habitual complainer. Many airline customer service departments keep records of all complaints and compliments. If you complain too often, you'll get tagged as a flamer, and they'll ignore future complaints. If you are a frequent flyer and don't complain often, complaints can end up in travel discount compensation.

Airlines do keep track of who complains and how frequently, so if you complain too often about trivial matters, your complaints won't have the same effect as they would if you complained about only important problems. Keep track of the names of all airline personnel you deal with, and be as specific as possible about dates, times, places, and flight numbers in your letter. Enclose copies of any receipts for expenses incurred because of missed/delayed flights.

When writing a complaint letter, tell the airline what it can do to make you happy. If you're realistic and reasonable, giving them some leeway, your complaints will be addressed much more quickly. Venting anger in a complaint letter won't get you results. Remember, the people reading your letter aren't the cause of the problem, and they have to read thousands of angry letters. They're human beings, with feelings. So if they get a nice, calm letter, that describes the problem, suggests a solution, and says what you want to make you happy, they are much more likely to respond positively.

If you're complaining on the spot (e.g., they lost your reservation) and feel you're not making headway with the agent/clerk you're talking to, try asking to speak to a supervisor or manager. Sometimes clerks don't have the authority to address the problem. The more flexible you are, the more likely they are to come up with a solution that satisfies you. Losing your temper and getting loud and obnoxious won't help. Remember, the person you're talking to probably wasn't responsible for the problem, so yelling at them hurts them without being productive. Keep the conversation at a calm and professional level. (Breaking down into tears will get you a lot further than any quantity of angry words. Why in doubt, start crying.) If you're making no progress, try calling your travel agent collect and telling them about the problem.

If the person you're talking to doesn't seem willing or able to help, try talking to someone else. Different employees tend to give different answers to the same questions. The person you're talking to may not know the answer to your question, or may not have the knowledge and/or authority to deal with the problem properly. Try asking for that person's supervisor.

Whatever you do, please don't complain about something minor or make meaningless threats. Saying "I'm going to tell all my friends to stop using your airline" or "I'll make a post on netnews, nyeah, nyeah, nyeah, nyeah" really won't accomplish anything, unless you happen to be the CEO of a large multinational firm.