Man travels on America's 'worst' airlines to see if they're just as bad as people say

A Welsh man decided to book flights with two of America's "worst airlines" to see what they're really like - and he filmed his entire journey to show others the truth. Airlines differ in popularity, quality and price - but most people booking a flight often make their choice based on what's cheapest rather than which airline has the best reviews.

Simon Wilson is a well-known YouTube content creator, who focuses his channel and videos on travel. He frequently takes on travel challenges, such as rolling a dice to decide whether he'd carry on travelling or head home, or spending no cash while exploring a foreign country.

In a recent video, Simon chose to fly with two US airlines which have racked up a string of one-star reviews online.

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Standing outside Miami airport in Florida, Simon began: "I am going to be testing the US's worst one-star airlines. My first flight is from Miami to Atlanta, Georgia. It cost me $134 (£99) and it is with Frontier Airlines.

"Are you ready for the reviews? I'm not reading a lot of good things about Frontier, but they can't be that bad, can they?"

He then read out a series of savage one-star reviews which slated the airline, with one reviewer calling their flight the "worst travel experience of my life".

Simon then headed to the Frontier desk at the airport - and got off to a brilliant start with an "amazing" staff member who sorted a seat upgrade to an exit row - which is usually more spacious - for free. He then told the camera: "How amazing was that lady? We're off to a good start.

"Not only did she save me $25 (£18) to check in at the counter, I also didn't pay for an exit row seat. Frontier are getting a five star for check-in desk."

After boarding the aircraft, which he described as "rammed", Simon struck up conversations with fellow passengers, expressing his astonishment and admiration for Frontier.

The YouTuber then purchased two bottles of water and two small tubs of plain Pringles for $18.56 (£13.83), grimacing at the cost.

He said: "So far, this flight's been really good. The staff have been great. The Pringles were great. The company is great. And it's like a new plane as well. This is not one-star so far, but let's make sure we land first."

At a later point, Simon spoke with one of the cabin crew members, mentioning the terrible reviews the airline has garnered.

He then told her: "It's been great on the plane, but even the check-in desk was great. So, I don't know what everybody's complaining about."

Simon's acclaim of Frontier persisted: "Everybody on this plane is just so nice. The staff are really nice, the check-in desk lady, like, helped me out with this seat.

"Everybody's so nice. I think Frontier are my new favourite airline."

However, one traveller informed him they disliked Frontier because there was no WiFi available.

Simon remained impressed with the carrier though, particularly when he discovered the price they paid for their seat - $58 (£43.19). After the plane landed, the traveller declared they'd rate the journey "10 out of 10" and would continue to assess Frontier on "a case by case basis".

He concurred and stated: "10 out of 10. I'd definitely fly Frontier again without question.

"My next flight is to New York from Atlanta with Spirit Airlines. The flight cost me $194 (£114) and is just over two hours."

As he did with Frontier, Simon recited several damning online critiques of the airline, with one traveller labelling Spirit "the worst airline known to mankind".

However, the content creator enjoyed another positive experience, contrasting sharply with the reviews.

He declared Spirit Airlines a "10 out of 10 for the check-in experience", and also praised the airline crew as "very friendly".

In contrast to Frontier, Spirit does provide WiFi aboard its aircrafts.

He then said: "First impressions, I'd say the Frontier plane is probably better. Like the seats are better and the trays and stuff, but service so far has been equally as good on both."

Simon purchased more refreshments, choosing another bottle of water and tub of Pringles, which totalled $10.48 (£7.80), proving pricier than the Frontier journey.

Wrapping up, Simon said: "The last two flights I have taken have been far from one star and I would highly recommend both of them. Service was 10 out of 10 on both."