A month ago, I e-mailed KLM Customer Care in South Africa concerning the unwillingness/inability of the JNB ticket office (another of those wonderful merged KLAF offices!) to issue boarding cards.

I have now discovered that KL in SA have forwarded my e-mail to KL in the Netherlands, who in turn have forwarded it to KL in Sweden! The latter have informed me that "your matter will soon be looked into". That's nice, but what on earth gives them the idea that KL in Sweden are in a better position to explain check-in procedures at JNB than KL is SA are?

Sometimes they are just beyond belief!

Johan

-----Original Message-----
From: Johan Rebel
[Sent: 05 December 2005 05:21 PM]
To: Customer Care.ZA - JNBMB
Subject: JNB check-in


Good day!

I am due to fly from JNB to AMS on KL592 today, December 5. For reasons beyond my control, I arrived at the airport much earlier than I would have liked, at 3 p.m. I proceeded to the AF/KL ticket office, where I asked the friendly and helpful agent to check me in and issue a boarding card. As a WBC pax with only hand luggage I assumed this would be a routine procedure, as it is at other KL stations. Wrong! The agent told me that I would have to wait until 6.15 and then stand in line with everyone else, allegedly because of "security reasons".

With all respect, this is a bunch of bull. I fly regularly between SA and Europe, using a variety of airlines. When I first fly to JNB on a domestic connection, I proceed to the SAA check-in desk or service counter at the first airport of departure and ask them to check me in for my connecting flight and issue a boaring card, whatever the airline. Upon arrival at JNB I then go directly through immigrations, bypassing check-in entirely.

I have a simple question :

if a SAA service counter agent at a puny airport such as MQP can check me in and issue a boarding card for my KL flight to AMS later that day, why on earth is can your ticket office agents at JNB not do the same thing?

I think it is very poor service to ask your premium passengers traveling only with hand luggage to wait for over three hours in the charming JNB departure hall before being allowed the privilege of fighting their way through the usually long queue of waiting pax to finally check-in.

I look forward to your explanation.

Sincerely,

Johan Rebel