SAS EuroBonus - This is why I still fly SK

I know I have been .....ing about SK service lately - and true: the inflight product needs a serious overhaul - and new seats on longhaul!!

But Travelled CPH-ARN today. The plane went tech - very obviously so as one of the loading trucks smashed into the fuselage leaving a very visible hole in the hull.
Obviously this 737 bird was in no state to fly, but a very efficient gate and OPS team switched everyone on to an incoming MD80 just arriving from AMS which was thus rerouted on to ARN. Everyone reseated and on the way arriving into ARN with a total of 35 min(!) delay.
Well done SAS.^
This is what LCC's cannot do - once something goes wrong on them it usually goes really wrong (thank you DY for leaving me stranded some months ago after they cancelled a flight with no ground staff to help and only one (!) norwegian phone number to call for help - obviously not being able to get through so had to arrange my own flight home on another airline)

I know I have been .....ing about SK service lately - and true: the inflight product needs a serious overhaul - and new seats on longhaul!!

But Travelled CPH-ARN today. The plane went tech - very obviously so as one of the loading trucks smashed into the fuselage leaving a very visible hole in the hull.
Obviously this 737 bird was in no state to fly, but a very efficient gate and OPS team switched everyone on to an incoming MD80 just arriving from AMS which was thus rerouted on to ARN. Everyone reseated and on the way arriving into ARN with a total of 35 min(!) delay.
Well done SAS.^
This is what LCC's cannot do - once something goes wrong on them it usually goes really wrong (thank you DY for leaving me stranded some months ago after they cancelled a flight with no ground staff to help and only one (!) norwegian phone number to call for help - obviously not being able to get through so had to arrange my own flight home on another airline)

I can also "vote for SK" here. This is indeed the reason why I on both business and private do choose SK. For business I do not want to wait or get stranded - I travel every week and do not have the time for delays. On private trips then I do not want to loose a day of vacation time just to save a few Euro. My time is more worth that this.

Several time I have been "saved" by a re-booking or transferred to another *A flight to limit the delay. again LCC cannot do this as they are only a part of their own limited equipment to work with.

/HerrO

That's really good handling of the situation -- only a 35 minute delay. However, this occurred at one of SK's main hubs. You'd pretty much expect them to have staff and equipment on-hand there. I wonder what would have happened if this occurred at CDG, LHR, etc?

That's really good handling of the situation -- only a 35 minute delay. However, this occurred at one of SK's main hubs. You'd pretty much expect them to have staff and equipment on-hand there. I wonder what would have happened if this occurred at CDG, LHR, etc?

+1 or OP could just be lucky.

Or Kiruna!

Yeah, I experienced a very long delay and annoyance when a ground vehicle hit the aircraft at LHR. I managed to put myself on the next flight but then just before boarding they paged me and said that I had been offloaded. I was in C and *G. When I arrived in the lounge I had checked the next flight. It was full in M but had 2 or 3 seats in C so they gave me a seat on that flight. They told me I was bumped because of unaccompanied minors (presumably from my flight). I suppose they didn't have the cojones to bump someone in M on that flight.

Arrived in ARN 6 or 8 hours delayed.

Arrived in ARN 6 or 8 hours delayed.

And €250 richer, right?

And €250 richer, right?

No. That's an interesting question. It was a few years ago. Hmmm.... I remember contacting SAS and nothing came of it. I think it was before the Hermann-Walentin decision end of 2008. It was in the summer, maybe 2008.

That's really good handling of the situation -- only a 35 minute delay. However, this occurred at one of SK's main hubs. You'd pretty much expect them to have staff and equipment on-hand there. I wonder what would have happened if this occurred at CDG, LHR, etc?
Naturally there would be no-way they could come up with a new plane in 35 min, but actually I'd think in that situation it would be even bigger advantage to be on a legacy instead of an LCC.

I can see that even FR could maybe come up with a new plane if something like this happened to them at one of their major hubs, but at an outstation with no other flights from the carrier in question that day, I'm sure SK (or any other legacy) would be much more co-operative in re-routing you on an other *A, or if need be any other alliance flight, or putting you in a decent hotel if need be, whereas your average LCC will basically say "here's your 50€ back, now go annoy someone else".

Unfortunately the latter may be a sound business decision, as most people just give up at that point, and even the ones that don't are only entitled to the same compensation they should have gotten in the first place if they fight it through the courts. You ask from me, EU should enforce it's rules by making the compensations at least double if they are not paid voluntarily when they should.

Today was one of these days which makes we wonder why I still fly SK (I know - location is everything....). what is the logic in reallocating a seat of an EBG member from front row of M into row 31, next to the engine on this MD80???? with about 20% seats on the flight being empty in the cabin? do they really think I fancy seating next to huge engine blocking my window, in noise, worst air, and be the last to leave? And sadly this happens to me regularly ...

Today was one of these days which makes we wonder why I still fly SK (I know - location is everything....). what is the logic in reallocating a seat of an EBG member from front row of M into row 31, next to the engine on this MD80???? with about 20% seats on the flight being empty in the cabin? do they really think I fancy seating next to huge engine blocking my window, in noise, worst air, and be the last to leave? And sadly this happens to me regularly ...

SK is very bad with reallocating seats due to equipment change. Faced it a few times (I'm flying M quite rarely) and always worked from isle seat in a first rows to middle seat in the last rows, even if aircraft is not full.

Today was one of these days which makes we wonder why I still fly SK (I know - location is everything....). what is the logic in reallocating a seat of an EBG member from front row of M into row 31, next to the engine on this MD80???? with about 20% seats on the flight being empty in the cabin? do they really think I fancy seating next to huge engine blocking my window, in noise, worst air, and be the last to leave? And sadly this happens to me regularly ...

I agree with the seatchanges on equipement change - or as is most often the case: The M/Y divider is being moved. I too have experienced having a nice seat which then suddenly was placed in a different class and then they move everyone around. Anyway this has also happened to me on KL numerous times, so I am not sure it is airline specific.
My point of the thread however still remains: when things really go wrong the SK crew seems to make a difference and try to help the passengers get to their destination - obviously this takes more time at remote stations than at their hubs - but they still try (and succeed) far better than any LCC.

I also find that a an EBG if I do not select a seat or say something I end up in row 31. In particular when checking in from another airline.

(Yes I know I can pre-select seats but sometime TA forgets....:rolleyes:)