News Article: Jetstar passengers kicked out of airport

[rhjames]

Not sure that it is relevant as to what QF/DJ did - they have different cost structures/fleets/business models.

I actually think that even if I had been flying QF I would not have expected them to fund an overnight stay in a hotel and would not really have expected them to provide a corporate rate.
..

I agree. The only time I've been given overnight accommodation was international when a flight was late and I missed my connection in USA somewhere. I had to wait for the next day to connect. I certainly wouldn't expect it on short domestic. Plenty of times I've slept in airports overnight (though not recently).

 

[wallacej]

I am more curious to know what other airlines did.. not suggesting that jetstar should have done the same, but were other airlines affected? And if so what happened to their pax?

 

[acampbel]

My experience thus far has been to ALWAYS be looked after by the airline. This has included :-

Hotel, meals and taxi fares when curfew missed BNE/SYD due to power problems at airport.
Airside hotel and meals when stuck at Bangkok for 24 hours due to Indian air traffic controllers' strike.
Rerouting both my SYD/LHR and the girlfriend's MEL/SYD/LHR via HKG so that we arrived in London at the scheduled time (10 minutes before in fact), rather than having to wait a day for the late arrival of the operating craft out of Heathrow.

Apart from the last case the airline and I were both innocent victims of circumstance, and in all cases I'm sure they were under no obligation to put themselves out on my behalf. The fact that an LCC will not do so is not so much of a problem as long as everyone is aware of the fact.

In Jetstars' defence I just booked a SYD/HBA return for the missus as part of a current promotion and there was a pop-up window after I declined insurance that said "Are you sure, because we give no guarantee that we will actually meet the flight schedule." I think this is a recent addition in response to the bad press, so it looks like they are getting the message about differentiating themselves from Qantas. I can just see the next ad campaign from Magda :- "You don't pay for any fancy overheads!"



Cheers,


Andrew

.

 

[JohnK]

...."Are you sure, because we give no guarantee that we will actually meet the flight schedule."....

Absolutely unbelievable. :shock: Is this a joke?

Please God, make it so that I never have to rely on JQ to get me anywhere.

 

[rhjames]

Absolutely unbelievable. :shock: Is this a joke?

Please God, make it so that I never have to rely on JQ to get me anywhere.

The reality is that no airline can guarantee to meet a flight schedule. With rain, wind, snow, breakdowns, connecting flights, strikes, terrorists (even NZ), there's too many events outside their control. Then the airline is entirely at the mercy of air traffic control. They can only do their best - in the case of LCC, their best is a bit less than the more expensive flights.

 

[JohnK]

The reality is that no airline can guarantee to meet a flight schedule.

I understand but if that is the case then they should not be taking money at booking time. The airline should be paid when they take the person to their destination at the agreed contractual time. The airline has no obligation to get me to my destination on time but if I am 1 minute late checking in then I forfeit the airfare and have to purchase a new expensive airfare on a later flight.

I have said it so many times that the airlines have everything in the contract their way and we get shafted most times. They have no obligation whatsoever and we just keep running back to them time after time and accept poor excuses as part of the deal.

I mentioned how in August I flew A3 from ATH-SKG-ATH. Yes it was a cheap airfare but I still expected to get to my destination on time. I get to ATH 3 hours before my departure only to find that the flight after mine was cancelled. I thought OK I am lucky so no problem. What I did not know was that the airline merged the 2 flights but waited for all the passengers of the second flight to arrive before departing. The departure time listed was still the earlier time and I now had 4 hours in ATH. My 2 aunts and uncle were waiting in SKG for the scheduled arrival and the airline did not update it to the new time. They called my mother in Australia to see what was happening and she told them that the flight was delayed in ATH as I called my mother to let her know that I was on my way.

On the return SKG-ATH I got to the airport again 2-3 hours before my flight. What do I find but my flight is cancelled so I now have to spend an extra hour at the airport. By the way there is a flight that is due to leave in 30+ minutes. At checkin I was told that I was put on the later flight. I asked can I go on the flight leaving in 30 minutes and was told no as my ticket did not allow it. What do you mean do not allow it? You inconvenience me by putting me on a later flight but do not help me by putting me on an earlier flight that is half full. Certainly makes sense to me. NOT!

Either way it really is not good enough regardless of the airfare paid. Airline customer service went out the window a long time ago and we blindly accept anything we are told....

 

[dajop]

I don't think an airline can guarantee anything when it comes to weather! Weather forecasters often don't even come close so how on earth (or rather in the air?) could airlines?

However, I'd be interested to here peoples views on the worth of travel insurance in these circumstances, I suspect in many instances it would be worthless as well.

One delay I had was flying (on award) J SYD-FRA on QF, where we had a 2:15 connection for a train to Amsterdam. We were delayed at SIN due to mechanical problems, and assured by staff we would be looked after at FRA. Got to FRA, no help whatsoever except documentation of the delay.

We ended up getting in 2 hrs late and whilst we reachedthe station within 20mins, that was 5 mins late . As we had nonchangeable train tickets we forked out $300 to buy new ones. Upon return to Australia we sent information off to Qantas for refund, but they told us to pursue through travel insurance. Travel insurance company denied the claim as it was due to airline mechanical problems, and they don't cover for that. Then returned claim to Qantas who again denied it, but about a month later after following them up they called to say that they did not have responsibility for the problem, however as I was a valued (Platinum) customer would make an exception in this instance, and deposited the money in my bank account. It seems that the risk is all that of the traveller, even with travel insurance, unless the airline "makes an exception".

Moral to the story? You're on your own!

 

[NM]

Moral to the story? You're on your own!

And the other moral is to understand that non-refundable commitments carry a risk. My work travel is nearly always flexible/refundable, and when its not, the company is willing to accept the risk. When travelling on my own budget I am sometimes willing to take a gamble but am basically a risk-averse traveller.

 

[oz_mark]

I understand but if that is the case then they should not be taking money at booking time. The airline should be paid when they take the person to their destination at the agreed contractual time.

Except that most of the consitions for airlines specifically state that the scheduled times form no part of the contract

(a) The flight time shown on your ticket may change between the date of issue and your date of travel. We do not guarantee the flight times and they do not form part of your contract of carriage with us.

 

[straitman]

Except that most of the consitions for airlines specifically state that the scheduled times form no part of the contract

Having said that it's a moderately realistic expectation to get there within a reasonable time frame to that which was planned. :evil:

 

[rhjames]

Having said that it's a moderately realistic expectation to get there within a reasonable time frame to that which was planned. :evil:

Yes, and that's what normally happens. For me, if you use a LCC, you're accepting the risk of minimum assistance when things happen beyond the control of the airline (eg weather).

 

[JohnK]

Except that most of the conditions for airlines specifically state that the scheduled times form no part of the contract

I thought getting to the destination in one piece and on time was the reason people bought airline tickets.

So what is included in the contract of carriage? We do not guarantee to get you to your destination, your allocated seat is not guaranteed, you preferred meal may not be loaded, we may not load meals on some flights, we do not accept responsibility for your luggage getting to your destination or being intact if it does get there, we are not responsible for any missed connections. Am I close? I am not going to bother reading it as it does not deserve to be given any respect.

 

[Yada Yada]

Now here is an interesting comparison...

Virgin trumps Jetstar
By Joel Christie February 08, 2008 12:00am

VIRGIN Blue has taught its cashed-up rival Jetstar a lesson in customer service, feeding and sheltering passengers stranded overnight because of cancelled flights.

It came just six days after Qantas-owned budget carrier Jetstar kicked 300 passengers out of Sydney airport overnight, forcing them to take refuge from a thunderstorm in bus shelters.

On Wednesday night another storm grounded four flights and low-cost carrier Virgin Blue offered to compensate travellers up to $200 for last-minute accommodation. It also pressured Sydney airport into keeping its domestic terminal open.

Virgin Blue employees also worked overtime to hand out refreshments including bottled water, orange juice, biscuits as well as chips.

"Virgin Blue has been really good and has kept us well informed," said Kate, from Sydney, who gave her first name only.

Lisa, from the US, said: "I'm from LA and I'm not happy about the rain or the situation, but they (Virgin Blue) have been absolutely amazing."

But John McCallum, from Wollongong, said he was disgruntled by the situation. "When they tell you at midnight that you need to find accommodation, what are you meant to do? You are stuck" he said. But it was a far cry from the hundreds of Jetstar passengers forced to either camp outside the terminal or walk - with their luggage – to the 24-hour international terminal 2km away.

There were reports of a pregnant mother being forced out into the rain with a bathroom and a diabetic woman unable to take her insulin shots because she could not find food.

On Wednesday, Virgin Blue passengers simply grabbed their luggage and filed into waiting cabs headed to hotels they would later be repaid for.

Others stretched out across the domestic terminal, making seats into beds, chatting among themselves and watching television.

It was an easy PR victory for Virgin Blue, which asked the airport to stay open, offloaded food from the plane and kept back four staff members to help stranded customers.

In contrast, the day after the Jetstar disgrace last week, its spokesman Simon Westaway said: "As a condition of carriage for weather-related delays, we're not compelled to find accommodation . . . Unfortunately it was out of our hands."

The Jetstar fiasco, which left politicians and consumer groups outraged, was the biggest publicity nightmare for the low-cost airline since it took to the skies four years ago.

The incident also raised serious questions about the true value of budget airline travel, a market Qantas set up Jetstar to specifically enter.

There have already been concerns that the sometimes ridiculously low airfares advertised by budget carriers are overshadowed by taxes and surcharges.

Now Jetstar faces an investigation by Victoria's consumer affairs lobby, with hundreds of passengers vowing to never fly the airline again.

Customers on Wednesday's grounded Virgin Blue flights, to Melbourne and Brisbane, said they had paid slightly more for their tickets.

Link to story...

 

[lovetravellingoz]

Wonder what the comparison may have been though if the Virgin incident was 6 days prior to Jetstar though

 

[Yada Yada]

Wonder what the comparison may have been though if the Virgin incident was 6 days prior to Jetstar though

Virgin Blue has always proved adept at capitalising on situations like this. And why not!

Jetstar shot itself in both feet and then managed to shove both of them in its mouth trying to defend the situation. It was their call to make, and make it they did!

 

[oz_mark]

Virgin Blue has always proved adept at capitalising on situations like this. And why not!

Jetstar shot itself in both feet and then managed to shove both of them in its mouth trying to defend the situation. It was their call to make, and make it they did!

Certainly Virgin Blues PR engine has shown itself to be head and shoulders above Jetstar's in comparison.

 

[dajop]

Virgin Blue has always proved adept at capitalising on situations like this. And why not!

Jetstar shot itself in both feet and then managed to shove both of them in its mouth trying to defend the situation. It was their call to make, and make it they did!

All about value and non-price competition, isn't it? If DJ can get good PR out there like this, and can persuade people people to fork out a few extra $ to fly them instead of JQ for exactly these reasons, then they'll do well. I've noticed that often in the more recent sales they've been priced a good $5-10/sector above JQ, things like this certainly could help persuade the masses that it is worth paying those extra $.

 

[wallacej]

I have posted in a thread one time before, that DJ had cancelled a flight, and those pax that were not local to SYD were put up in Hotels around the airport at DJ's cost (not as above where pax pay and are refunded later).

We were put on a flight for the next morning, and given a full credit to use on my next flight to the value of that sector.

This was done months ago, so what happened in this story is not unique, but I guess the timing worked to DJ's advantage in this situation...with media obviously a little more focussed on this type of situation at the moment.

 

[Commuter]

I guess with Virgin trying to get away from its 'low cost' image and trying to attract more business travellers, they might be trying to behave like a full-service carrier.

By the way, have they stopped saying 'Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls' yet?

 

[wallacej]

By the way, have they stopped saying 'Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls' yet?

I haven't heard them use that for a quite some time now...certainly not on board. Not sure if they still do it at the gate though. Normally in the lounge when that call is made.