Senior passenger forced to leave business class on Qantas flight, leaving his wife alone
- Replies 0
It’s a sad truth that airline travel isn’t the treat it used to be. From invisible fees to cramped cabins and sky-high fares, flying with certain airlines these days has become quite an ordeal for many.
Unfortunately, Qantas has come under fire for another incident on one of their flights that left an elderly couple separated due to an unforeseen circumstance.
The daughter of the couple, Maree Sinclair, described how her parents had to sit apart on a Saturday flight to Singapore that they had bought tickets for months ago.
She said that what was supposed to be a joyous trip as part of her mother’s 80th birthday celebrations quickly became an incident to remember for all the wrong reasons.
She further explained that her parents had already checked in on Friday night and pre-allocated seats in business class. However, when they returned to the check-in counter on the day of the flight, Qantas attendants told them that the flight was oversold and allegedly ‘made up a story’.
'They made up a story saying that if everyone turns up, one of them will have to be flying in premium economy,' Sinclair said.
Sinclair’s 78-year-old father pointed out that they’d bought 14 tickets—2 in business class and 12 in economy—for their trip a couple of months ago.
According to the daughter, the airline allegedly lied twice to the two seniors.
'The first lie was there’s no premium economy on the flight on Saturday, so therefore, if they were being bumped, it was to economy, not premium,' the daughter said.
'The second lie is it’s actually not system generated, it’s actual airport staff that decide.' she added, explaining how her parents were told there was a computer-generated system ‘that chooses by status who gets bumped’.
'I think they just thought “You know what, this will be an elderly couple, they’re not going to cause any dramas afterwards, and, you know, hit the media or put our name out there”.'
Furthermore, the couple was initially set to fly in Qantas’ Boeing 787, which had become unavailable, so the flight was changed to an A330—which had fewer business class seats and no premium economy seats.
As a result, her 78-year-old father was bumped down to economy, leaving his wife alone in business class.
A spokesperson from Qantas assured that the couple will both be together in business class on their return flight.
'We appreciate this was a negative experience and have tried to contact the customer to apologise and explain why it was necessary to change their seats for this flight. We will ensure that the customers are seated together in Business for their return flight home,' said the spokesperson.
The couple’s daughter added that when her father was bumped down to economy, there was a spare seat next to him, but he was not allowed to go and speak to his wife.
'He wanted to go up and tell her…[that] she could sit next to him because there was a spare seat, and they wouldn’t even allow him to do that,’ the daughter said.
Since the incident, Qantas has given him a 75 per cent refund of the flight cost plus a $100 Qantas voucher, which Sinclair shared isn’t likely to be used.
'They’re looking at going overseas next year to Europe, and there’s no way they’re going to try doing business class with them because what if that happens on their big trip to Europe?'
This news comes after the sudden departure of Qantas’ CEO Alan Joyce.
He was set to retire in two months but handed over the role to Vanessa Hudson earlier than expected.
'In the last few weeks, the focus on Qantas and events of the past make it clear to me that the company needs to move ahead with its renewal as a priority,' Mr Joyce said.
'The best thing I can do under these circumstances is to bring forward my retirement and hand over to Vanessa and the new management team now, knowing they will do an excellent job.'
'There is a lot I am proud of over my 22 years at Qantas, including the past 15 years as CEO. There have been many ups and downs, and there is clearly much work still to be done, especially to make sure we always deliver for our customers. But I leave knowing that the company is fundamentally strong and has a bright future,' the former CEO added.
This incident isn’t the first time this has happened either, just recently, 78-year-old Vietnam veteran Stephen Roy Jones was downgraded from business class to economy on a Qantas flight to make room for an employee.
The veteran had already paid for a comfy, spacious business class seat but instead found himself cramped at the back of the plane in economy.
Mr Jones penned a strongly worded letter to Qantas, to which the airline responded by offering him 5,000 airline points as a 'goodwill gesture'—which he didn't think was a fair way to express 'goodwill', given that he had paid for a business class seat and not a measly corner in economy class.
You can read more about this incident here.
Have you ever been ‘bumped' in a flight before? Share your experience with us in the comments below!
Unfortunately, Qantas has come under fire for another incident on one of their flights that left an elderly couple separated due to an unforeseen circumstance.
The daughter of the couple, Maree Sinclair, described how her parents had to sit apart on a Saturday flight to Singapore that they had bought tickets for months ago.
A senior couple was separated on their Qantas flight to Singapore. Image source: rawpixel.com on Freepik (left), Qantas (right).
She said that what was supposed to be a joyous trip as part of her mother’s 80th birthday celebrations quickly became an incident to remember for all the wrong reasons.
She further explained that her parents had already checked in on Friday night and pre-allocated seats in business class. However, when they returned to the check-in counter on the day of the flight, Qantas attendants told them that the flight was oversold and allegedly ‘made up a story’.
'They made up a story saying that if everyone turns up, one of them will have to be flying in premium economy,' Sinclair said.
Sinclair’s 78-year-old father pointed out that they’d bought 14 tickets—2 in business class and 12 in economy—for their trip a couple of months ago.
According to the daughter, the airline allegedly lied twice to the two seniors.
'The first lie was there’s no premium economy on the flight on Saturday, so therefore, if they were being bumped, it was to economy, not premium,' the daughter said.
'The second lie is it’s actually not system generated, it’s actual airport staff that decide.' she added, explaining how her parents were told there was a computer-generated system ‘that chooses by status who gets bumped’.
'I think they just thought “You know what, this will be an elderly couple, they’re not going to cause any dramas afterwards, and, you know, hit the media or put our name out there”.'
Furthermore, the couple was initially set to fly in Qantas’ Boeing 787, which had become unavailable, so the flight was changed to an A330—which had fewer business class seats and no premium economy seats.
As a result, her 78-year-old father was bumped down to economy, leaving his wife alone in business class.
A spokesperson from Qantas assured that the couple will both be together in business class on their return flight.
'We appreciate this was a negative experience and have tried to contact the customer to apologise and explain why it was necessary to change their seats for this flight. We will ensure that the customers are seated together in Business for their return flight home,' said the spokesperson.
The couple’s daughter added that when her father was bumped down to economy, there was a spare seat next to him, but he was not allowed to go and speak to his wife.
'He wanted to go up and tell her…[that] she could sit next to him because there was a spare seat, and they wouldn’t even allow him to do that,’ the daughter said.
Since the incident, Qantas has given him a 75 per cent refund of the flight cost plus a $100 Qantas voucher, which Sinclair shared isn’t likely to be used.
'They’re looking at going overseas next year to Europe, and there’s no way they’re going to try doing business class with them because what if that happens on their big trip to Europe?'
This news comes after the sudden departure of Qantas’ CEO Alan Joyce.
He was set to retire in two months but handed over the role to Vanessa Hudson earlier than expected.
'In the last few weeks, the focus on Qantas and events of the past make it clear to me that the company needs to move ahead with its renewal as a priority,' Mr Joyce said.
'The best thing I can do under these circumstances is to bring forward my retirement and hand over to Vanessa and the new management team now, knowing they will do an excellent job.'
'There is a lot I am proud of over my 22 years at Qantas, including the past 15 years as CEO. There have been many ups and downs, and there is clearly much work still to be done, especially to make sure we always deliver for our customers. But I leave knowing that the company is fundamentally strong and has a bright future,' the former CEO added.
This incident isn’t the first time this has happened either, just recently, 78-year-old Vietnam veteran Stephen Roy Jones was downgraded from business class to economy on a Qantas flight to make room for an employee.
The veteran had already paid for a comfy, spacious business class seat but instead found himself cramped at the back of the plane in economy.
Mr Jones penned a strongly worded letter to Qantas, to which the airline responded by offering him 5,000 airline points as a 'goodwill gesture'—which he didn't think was a fair way to express 'goodwill', given that he had paid for a business class seat and not a measly corner in economy class.
You can read more about this incident here.
