Oh FFS!!!!! (rant)

[barq]

How disappointing.

 

[k-dog]

I've decided that it's a miserable way to travel anyway.

I was in Manchester on Thursday - got the train to the airport at 4:30 for a 6:15 flight. Was home aroud 8pm.

If I'd got on the Edinburgh train at the station (instead of the airport "express") I would have been home around....


8pm.

And not sweaty and tired and hungry...

 

[Amanda P]

How can airlines get away with selling the same seat twice?

If I tried to sell anything else twice, that'd be fraud. Only transport companies, it seems, are allowed to get away not only with

(1)setting up a contract (to get you from A to B at a given time) and then breaking it with no penalties, but also

(2)setting up the same contract -for the same seat - with several people, all of whom pay, but only one of whom will actually travel.

Unbelievable.

as Mr Meldrew said...

 

[simonali]

The more expensive tickets will be flexible, meaning that a business person (for example) could use a ticket on a different flight and not bother turning up for the one they said they wanted to be on. The airline therefore sells 110% of the seats on the plane to take account of this. Sometimes though, everyone turns up!

 

[Evilcat]

Yield management on airlines is a massively difficult area: if airlines could do it successfully 100% of the time then there would never be any operational downgrades/upgrades or denied boardings. It's not just people on flexible tickets, but staff travel, award travel (airmiles and the like) and the fact that you can keep seats reserved without being ticketed on many airlines. Many airline frequent flyer schemes guarantee top tier passengers seat availability too, no matter whether the flight is full or not. Add unplanned changes of aircraft into the mix and the picture is hugely complicated. Some do it better than others: Singapore Airlines is known for very good yield management with hardly any people denied boarding (or upgraded) but other airlines find it more difficult.

The core of the problem is that an airline (at least in the current climate) is usually a very low margin business: filling the last few seats on the plane can make all the difference.

EC

 

[Dave5N]

Did you make it? CM?

 

[cookiemonster]

No. The earliest seat they offered me was Sunday evening. Waste of time.

I did get my money back and not just the air fare.

 

[Dayvo]

Sorry that you missed out on the conference, CM!

One of my best mates saw/heard the Dalai Lama in Melbourne last year.
My mate's tall and was standing behind a group of short monks. The height difference was about 18 inches, and as the DL walked passed, he saw my friend, looked at the monks, and burst out laughing.
My mate said seeing the DL and sharing that 'moment' with him, was an undescribable feeling.

 

[cookiemonster]

I have attended HHDL's teachings before when he was in Scotland an couple of years ago and in Hamburg last year. Also, I met him when he opened the new Gompa at the Buddhist centre that I used to go to in London in 1999. It was only a brief handshake but I was floating on air for days after.

He is in Germany, Frankfurt, Summer 2009 so I may go along to that.

 

[andyoxon]

I once fell foul of overbooking on a BA international flight from Harare to London, and as a result arrived at the church in Cheadle to see my cousin processing out of the church having just been married - I was supposed to be there the day before. But the reception was good. Anyway I always try to check in as early as possible now - it's the only way to beat the overbooking if the flight is crucial.

 

[col]

Do they make it clear on booking,that if you dont get there before a certain time,you might not get the flight because of overbooking?I know about the normal time that is needed to be allowed,but why should you go even earlier,?It seems unreasonable to make it a game of roulette?

 

[andyoxon]

One of those 'chaotic' processes I think. IMO check-in within the first half-ish of normal check-in time; but sometimes delay in getting to check-in are unexpected of course...

 

[Evilcat]

All airlines have conditions of carriage which detail what happens in the event of being denied boarding, but they rarely make it very clear that you could get bumped if the flight is overbooked. Long haul carriers will usually ask for volunteers first, incentivising them with frequent flier miles or cash -- some people go out of there way to look for such 'oportunities', buzarrely enough.

I fly a lot (probably too much) and have never been bumped: not only is it worth checking in early online but it's also worth getting to the airport in reasonable time too as most airlines seem to operate a last in, first off approach when they need to.

However, sometimes there is nothing you can do. I was upgraded once when my plane had technical problems and got changed from a 747 to a smaller plane. I was happy (!) but there were a few disappointed passengers who got bumped to later flights.

EC

 

[cookiemonster]

I had already checked in online before leaving for the airport which makes this even more annoying.

 

[friendlybike]

All airlines (budget and flag carriers) routinely overbook. There is a 'no-show' rate of about 10% on most flights.

According to EU law now, it is about 20% I think...
I really, really but really HATE THAT!!!! And unfortunatly it is not only low cost who does it...!!!!