Here's the letter that I sent to BA customer service. What can I expect from them? Is this normal behaviour on their part?
I'm mad as hell !!


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I wanted to send this mail yesterday as soon as I got home, but it took me 24 hrs to cool off after the disgusting experience that I had on BA flight 143.

I was travelling from BRU to DEL on 6th of May, connecting through LHR. I was assigned seat 21A in BA 143 from LHR-DEL. When I boarded, I noticed a gagging stench surrounding seat 21A. I let it go thinking that the awful odour must be from the bathrooms that were situated over 8 rows behind.

Right before take off, I felt that my trousers were a bit damp. I touched my seat and sure enough it was wet. I then smelt my fingers and to my utter horror, I found that it was the smell of URINE !!!!! The seat was
soaked in urine. By this time, the flight was already in the process of taking off and the seat belt sign was on. I decided to move to 21 B as the whole row was empty. I checked to see if that seat was damp too. It was as soaked in urine as the seat I was sitting on.

I could do nothing but spread a couple of blankets on the seats and try to hold my nose until we took off. As soon as the seat belt sign was switched off, I walked over to two flight attendants serving our cabin and informed them of what just happened. I was given a pair of trousers and the offer to find and make myself comfortable in any seat that I wanted in the rather empty coach cabin. I was told by the attendant that I would get a voucher by the end of the flight.

I was very very upset by the whole experience but I knew that it wasn't the crew's fault. So I found a comfortable seat and just tried to bear with it.

At the end of the flight, a crew member came to me and offered me a voucher for cleaning my trousers ! I was totally aghast. I just couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the voucher for dry cleaning. The presumption on the part of BA crew that I would actually like to wash the trousers that were soaked in someone else's urine and that I would like to ever wear them again left me speechless. When I questioned the crew member about the voucher, I was told by him "The other crew members said you didn't complain much otherwise you would have been given a lot of goodies free". That statement left me dumbfounded. Does this mean that I get punished for being a good sport and not creating a scene at 35000 ft?

I would like you to know that I'm not new to travelling. I'm a CO Gold (will be platinum soon) and AA Gold. My job requires me to travel 4 days a week in the USA. I have been supporting my company's Europe/Asia operations for the past few months and have been flying international airlines a lot.

This by far has been the MOST DISGUSTING and INSULTING experience I've ever had in ANY FLIGHT !

The behaviour of the crew, while being very efficient/sympathetic, left a lot to be desired. I have been treated in a much better manner even by local US airlines for much smaller transgressions on their part. To make a passenger sit on a seat that has been urinated on and then to say that the passenger deserves only a dry cleaning voucher becasue she didn't complain enough, is, in my opinion telling the passenger that her business is not wanted by the airline. The least the crew could have done was to offer me a seat in business class, if not first class and check on me once or twice during the flight to see how I was doing.

I was shown no sympathy at all beyond being offered a pair of trousers, was not asked if I was OK at any time during the flight once I chose a new seat and was not given anything to compensate for my harrowing experience. This tells me how much British Airways values my business.

I'm going to make sure that all my colleagues, friends and fellow travellers whom I chat with on several travel bulletin boards are made aware of this experience. Don't be surprised if you find many of your passengers sniffing and checking the seats before they sit in any of your planes.

It will be a very long time (if ever) before I fly BA again. If you want me back as a customer, you will need to work very hard to make me forget the utterly disgusting, insulting and most uncomfortable flight that I ever took.

Still fuming,