LX crew telling lies (best-case scenario)
Jan 22, 2012, 5:36 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: GVA
Programs: BA Gold; AF/KL FB Gold; LX FTL; PC Plat/Amb; SPG Gold; HH Gold; Club Carlson Silver
Posts: 235
LX crew telling lies (best-case scenario)
This evening (22 January 2012), I flew LX2816 from Zurich to Geneva (dep 2035, arr 2125). It was an A320 (HB-ILQ). When the drinks cart arrived at my row, I asked for a glass of red wine (appropriate enough to go with my Brie sandwich, wouldn’t you agree?). The female flight attendant told me that alcohol was not served on the flight because it was too short, but that a full range of soft drinks was available. There are several problems with that answer: (1) I have flown many times between Zurich and Geneva (in both directions) and wine and other alcoholic beverages have always been served (even on morning flights); (2) from where I was sitting in business class, I could see several bottles of wine and champagne on the counter in the forward galley. When I pointed them out to the flight attendant, she replied that “it has been decided that there will be no alcohol service on this flight because there is not enough time”; (3) I don’t see what time has to do with the serving of alcohol: if anything, it takes longer to serve coke, or any other carbonated beverage, because of the bubbles – wine (apart from champagne) is not carbonated so this problem does not arise. In other words, the answer I was given by this flight attendant was a transparent LIE!
I subsequently asked the male flight attendant who was handing out chocolates before landing “what is the REAL reason why you aren’t serving alcohol on this flight?” He replied that “we were told not to serve the alcohol on this flight because the wine is not good”. I can understand that a bottle of wine may every once in a while be corked or otherwise unsuitable, but there was at least one unopened bottle of champagne in the galley. Why ban all alcohol service just because one bottle was “not good”? Why didn’t he say, for example, “the red wine is not good tonight but we can serve you white wine or champagne instead”? In addition to being incompatible with the explanation given by the female flight attendant, the male flight attendant’s statement is almost as implausible as hers. It simply doesn’t make any sense to ban all alcohol service just because one bottle or another was tainted in some way.
The problem is not that I didn’t get a glass of wine (I preferred to hand back my Brie sandwich rather than eat it while drinking fanta), but that I was TOLD A LIE by at least one flight attendant. I expect better from Swiss.
The cynics who will read about this incident when I post it on the internet will probably tell me that the crew wanted to keep all the on-board alcohol for their post-flight party. LX2816 was probably their last flight of the day. Again, I expect better from Swiss.
Incidentally, just after we landed, the same male flight attendant made a “humorous” announcement: “in the entire history of aviation no passenger has ever reached the terminal before the aircraft so please remain seated with your seatbelts fastened until the aircraft has reached the gate”. That is the kind of “humour” I expect to hear on easyJet, not Swiss. To me, the whole experience on this flight betrayed a high degree of contempt for passengers. If they expected me to believe their lies, they must think I am an idiot. How many other passengers did they also treat like idiots?
I wish I had had the presence of mind to note down the names of the two flight attendants I am complaining about, but I didn’t. But they were both assigned to the forward galley.
Yours very disappointedly,
I subsequently asked the male flight attendant who was handing out chocolates before landing “what is the REAL reason why you aren’t serving alcohol on this flight?” He replied that “we were told not to serve the alcohol on this flight because the wine is not good”. I can understand that a bottle of wine may every once in a while be corked or otherwise unsuitable, but there was at least one unopened bottle of champagne in the galley. Why ban all alcohol service just because one bottle was “not good”? Why didn’t he say, for example, “the red wine is not good tonight but we can serve you white wine or champagne instead”? In addition to being incompatible with the explanation given by the female flight attendant, the male flight attendant’s statement is almost as implausible as hers. It simply doesn’t make any sense to ban all alcohol service just because one bottle or another was tainted in some way.
The problem is not that I didn’t get a glass of wine (I preferred to hand back my Brie sandwich rather than eat it while drinking fanta), but that I was TOLD A LIE by at least one flight attendant. I expect better from Swiss.
The cynics who will read about this incident when I post it on the internet will probably tell me that the crew wanted to keep all the on-board alcohol for their post-flight party. LX2816 was probably their last flight of the day. Again, I expect better from Swiss.
Incidentally, just after we landed, the same male flight attendant made a “humorous” announcement: “in the entire history of aviation no passenger has ever reached the terminal before the aircraft so please remain seated with your seatbelts fastened until the aircraft has reached the gate”. That is the kind of “humour” I expect to hear on easyJet, not Swiss. To me, the whole experience on this flight betrayed a high degree of contempt for passengers. If they expected me to believe their lies, they must think I am an idiot. How many other passengers did they also treat like idiots?
I wish I had had the presence of mind to note down the names of the two flight attendants I am complaining about, but I didn’t. But they were both assigned to the forward galley.
Yours very disappointedly,
Jan 22, 2012, 6:12 pm
#4
Suspended
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: DCA or IAD (originally DUB)
Programs: UA 1K 1.8MM, Hertz PC, Marriott Platinum/Lifetime Gold
Posts: 7,657
Perhaps you need a thread like this http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unite...ain-about.html for such consequential issues as raised by the OP?
:-:
Jan 23, 2012, 12:45 am
#11
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Warsaw / London
Programs: price is a king
Posts: 820
Perhaps you need a thread like this http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unite...ain-about.html for such consequential issues as raised by the OP?
wonderful read for a gloomy Monday - thank you!
mfk
Jan 23, 2012, 1:00 am
#12
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: mostly not far from AMS, otherwise NUE
Programs: FB Silver, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 2,381
Surely refusing a passenger alcohol on a 50 minute flight must be a violation of the Geneva Convention (oh the irony!). And then they dare exhibit traces of humour!
I'm surprised the headline of this thread does not contain the words "flight from hell", "worst flight ever", or "SWISS nightmare".
But seriously: Get over it and get a life.
I'm surprised the headline of this thread does not contain the words "flight from hell", "worst flight ever", or "SWISS nightmare".
But seriously: Get over it and get a life.
Jan 23, 2012, 2:24 am
#15
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Bern, Swiss-o-land
Programs: M&M (LX/LH) Silver, Marriott Platinum, Accor Silver, AF/KL Silver, Swiss Railway
Posts: 791