Biggie Fries

My last flight in CA ....

It was in J. And they had a good movie on, too, I think one of the John LeCarre books. Too bad they shut it off with about 25 minutes to go an hour before landing in NRT.

I wasn't going to complain, though. If it hadn't worked with the folks smoking around me, why were they going to care about a lousy movie?

moondog

As much as I feel sorry for the OP, I feel compelled to point out 3 things:

1) CA honestly is evolving into a decent airline, to the extent it is on a path to leave the US legacy carriers in the dust during the course of the next 5 years;
2) It's common knowledge that CA uses its own ticket numbers on *A awards; while this can cause a bit of panic, if you call them, they will find your reservation somehow; and
3) The OP should have compelled US to sort things out with CA (i.e. accept no runaround; US sold him his ticket, so make them accountable). Short of that, any correspondence with CA should have been done via Beijing because their reps in TPE have almost no power at all.

globaltravelers

2. Yes air china can find your ticket or ca pnr IF the agent wants to. They can find your routing IF it is convenient for them.

3. It was the beijing call center that we called many times. It is the exact same phone numbers as the listed china call center. Is there a listed number for the vip? Please share it for future stranded passengers.

Ca canceled the flight ahead of the typhoon, rebooked some passengers (the ones that showed up at the airport) on another carriers without telling the rest of the passengers, then pulled us from the gate because they want usair or us to take responsibilty and payment, as air china ca do not want to pay for our 1 hour short flight to shanghai.

All because their taipei staff decided that a reward ticket does not have the same rights as a normal paying tickets, in event of irregularities from the airline.

In the end it cost air china a lot more to put us on the direct flight tpe- jfk. And it cost us, the passengers, missed connections, missed opportunities (a380), extra costs (taxi, hotels), extra time ( 2-3 hours arguing at the airport counter), missed flight ( Tpe-pvg on the china airline).

Most of the flights operating at the taipei airport at the height of the storm on thursday morning from 6-9 am were still operating, 1-2 hour delayed but still flying.

globaltravelers

While we were at the airport, we observed the same tactics used on some other passengers: just get them out of the counter, and ask them to phone and sort it out with other airlines or travel agents themselves.

moondog

I don't have any special CA phone numbers; whenever situations like yours arise, I simply press those guys hard, to the extent that I break out legal jargon.

Since this requires effort, I always try to offload the task at hand onto the issuing carrier (e.g. UA, US, BD, etc); I simply don't tolerate the "passing of the buck" routine.

Air Rarotonga

Why don't you just sue CA for all this things :-)
I doubt that you would feel better after... Just write it off as your experienced adventures abroad :-)

DCdeacon

But it's not the issuing carrier's responsibility, it's the operating.

moondog

Sometimes it's best to play (really) dumb.

globaltravelers

It is already written off now.

The many phases of emotions with air china:
1. Ca canceled my flight: d'oh. I may be screwed.
2. Call to ca call center: i am even more screwed. Feeling down.
3. Plan b: ok feeling not too bad, in the hole for 5k. Still down.
4. Ca rebooked on another flight? Yeah i can make it! Feeling up.
5. Got boarding pass, passed the security and customs, boarding.... Yeah i can make it to my next flights! Sq a380 here i come... Feeling good and way way up.
6. Denied boarding: what? I am royally screwed. Felling way down.
7. Arguing with ca: on well since i am already and totally screwed, might as well enjoy the discussion.

globaltravelers

Playing dumb with air china? Will not get you anywhere.

Playing dumb with usairways? Not possible as it was time sensitive. If we had more time and notice of cancelation, maybe possible.

Indelaware

I wonder if the only way to get them to care is for destination countries to insist through either heavy fines (or denial of landing rights) whenever one of CAs birds arrives having been smoked on enroute. I can't see any polity having the kind of backbone to do it though.

Globalist

I really wonder if life would be so much easier if the carrier you enter the contract with would remain responsible even though they outsource the actual flight to a partner airline.

If US Airways would have been responsible here they could have used their professional network/systems to solve the issue while the passenger usualy has no idea who to contact in the operating carrier simply as they never made the booking themselves and then are dependant on a call center that might misunderstand them which leads to escalating emotions and more faults like the OP described.

Hint for *A to change that responsibility

Globalist

travelinmanS

Why would any country care about a foreign airline's smoking enforcement? Also which country is in a position to anger, not only Air China, but the government of the PRC over some smoking on a flight, most likely by the pilots or cabin staff.

globaltravelers

Before the trip start: yes the ticketing operator is responsible to reroute you. In the past, for example, aeroplan had requested seats and even bought seats at full fare to accommodate passengers that were affected by flights cancelation on other airlines (for us on oz f, and some others on sq f).

After the trip start and in the event of irregularities or cancelation: yes it would be easy and nice, for the passengers to contact the ticketing operator, and get new tickets new flights issued easily on the operating carriers or on another carriers. But really, who is going to pay, and which airline is going to accept that?

Especially at the taipei station where typhoon and cancelation is a common occurence, so trying to save money is a little understandable...

Indelaware

Surely you jest in asking why. The dangers of second hand smoke are well known. Having someone smoking on a plane endangers the lives of all person aboard the aircraft. So too it is known that smoking can lead to unplanned fires and explosions.

1. Presumably on any given scheduled airline flight landing in a particular country there are aboard that flight citizens and residents of the destination country. States have not only an interest in, but a vested duty to protect, the lives of its citizens and residents. States therefore have an interest in the enforcement of smoking bans on aircraft and a duty to ensure compliance with those bans. Moreover, states also have an interest in, and a responsibility to ensure, the comliance with its laws.

2. States have an interesting in seeing that flying is safe, especially when involved with flights to/from a state's territory. Smoking on an airplane is unsafe, not only with regards to health, but also with regards to safety from fire. Indeed, to use the words of the UK government, "Airplanes are already kept smoke free as it would cause a risk to the flight."

3. To the extent that a state's laws prohibit smoking on foreign aircraft operating to/from its territory, a state has a responsibility to enforce that law. This is the case with US law. Under 14CFR§252.5(a) "Foreign air carriers shall prohibit smoking on all scheduled passenger flight segments: (1) Between points in the United States, and (2) Between the U.S. and any foreign point."