Good IRROPS experience with A3
#1
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: SE1, London
Posts: 23,359
Good IRROPS experience with A3
There have been storms across the Aegean Sea today. Not a good time to try a 45 minute connection in ATH from HER to the last LHR flight and inevitably the inbound to Crete was delayed by over an hour. However I was pleased with how A3 handled things
* paged in the departure hall and asked to go to landslide ticket desk for rebooking
* offered an overnight in Heraklion and the first flight out connecting to the 0910 to LHR
* I requested to take the delayed flight and overnight in ATH, then fly home. This was granted.
* Sofitel booked for me at Athens, dinner and breakfast
* my voucher upgrade to C was preserved for the Athens to Heathrow sector (was originally booked in Y from HER)
* got to the Sofitel, room ready and meal voucher for the buffet and a bottle of water waiting. Booze not included but that seems perfectly fair
Listening to other passengers I was definitely offered better options - M&B Gold helping out there perhaps? Other people were being rerouted via ATH and MUC on random LH flights.
My first overnight IRROPS in 16 years frequent flying! Very impressed with how A3 handled things. Based on this and the inflight experience they are my favourite airline in Europe.
* paged in the departure hall and asked to go to landslide ticket desk for rebooking
* offered an overnight in Heraklion and the first flight out connecting to the 0910 to LHR
* I requested to take the delayed flight and overnight in ATH, then fly home. This was granted.
* Sofitel booked for me at Athens, dinner and breakfast
* my voucher upgrade to C was preserved for the Athens to Heathrow sector (was originally booked in Y from HER)
* got to the Sofitel, room ready and meal voucher for the buffet and a bottle of water waiting. Booze not included but that seems perfectly fair
Listening to other passengers I was definitely offered better options - M&B Gold helping out there perhaps? Other people were being rerouted via ATH and MUC on random LH flights.
My first overnight IRROPS in 16 years frequent flying! Very impressed with how A3 handled things. Based on this and the inflight experience they are my favourite airline in Europe.
#2
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2014
Programs: Top Tier with all 3 alliances
Posts: 11,570
There have been storms across the Aegean Sea today. Not a good time to try a 45 minute connection in ATH from HER to the last LHR flight and inevitably the inbound to Crete was delayed by over an hour. However I was pleased with how A3 handled things
* paged in the departure hall and asked to go to landslide ticket desk for rebooking
* offered an overnight in Heraklion and the first flight out connecting to the 0910 to LHR
* I requested to take the delayed flight and overnight in ATH, then fly home. This was granted.
* Sofitel booked for me at Athens, dinner and breakfast
* my voucher upgrade to C was preserved for the Athens to Heathrow sector (was originally booked in Y from HER)
* got to the Sofitel, room ready and meal voucher for the buffet and a bottle of water waiting. Booze not included but that seems perfectly fair
Listening to other passengers I was definitely offered better options - M&B Gold helping out there perhaps? Other people were being rerouted via ATH and MUC on random LH flights.
My first overnight IRROPS in 16 years frequent flying! Very impressed with how A3 handled things. Based on this and the inflight experience they are my favourite airline in Europe.
* paged in the departure hall and asked to go to landslide ticket desk for rebooking
* offered an overnight in Heraklion and the first flight out connecting to the 0910 to LHR
* I requested to take the delayed flight and overnight in ATH, then fly home. This was granted.
* Sofitel booked for me at Athens, dinner and breakfast
* my voucher upgrade to C was preserved for the Athens to Heathrow sector (was originally booked in Y from HER)
* got to the Sofitel, room ready and meal voucher for the buffet and a bottle of water waiting. Booze not included but that seems perfectly fair
Listening to other passengers I was definitely offered better options - M&B Gold helping out there perhaps? Other people were being rerouted via ATH and MUC on random LH flights.
My first overnight IRROPS in 16 years frequent flying! Very impressed with how A3 handled things. Based on this and the inflight experience they are my favourite airline in Europe.
#3
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: All over
Programs: Most
Posts: 10,839
A3 has duty to care per EC261/2004. Nothing unusual here.
#4
Join Date: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,845
Good to see another airline pro active and a pretty decent hotel too. ^
#5
Join Date: Feb 2015
Programs: A3 gold, BA silver, IHG platinum, Hilton Gold
Posts: 51
Definately agree,
Last time I had a delay that meant I would loose my connection (mid-July SKG-ATH-LHR trip) I got rebooked for the next available flight next day and got offered hotel etc.
My SKG-ATH sector was in P booking class, and ATH-LHR was initially P , but upgraded using voucher .
The new ticket didnt get issued using the same booking classes: it was M class for SKH-ATH and D for ATH-LHR. That means I more than doubled my earned miles
Last time I had a delay that meant I would loose my connection (mid-July SKG-ATH-LHR trip) I got rebooked for the next available flight next day and got offered hotel etc.
My SKG-ATH sector was in P booking class, and ATH-LHR was initially P , but upgraded using voucher .
The new ticket didnt get issued using the same booking classes: it was M class for SKH-ATH and D for ATH-LHR. That means I more than doubled my earned miles
#6
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: PAS, Paros Greece
Programs: A3 *G
Posts: 1,368
The new ticket didnt get issued using the same booking classes: it was M class for SKH-ATH and D for ATH-LHR. That means I more than doubled my earned miles
#7
Join Date: Nov 2012
Programs: BA Bronze, United 1K, HH Gold, SPG Platinum, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 3,477
You are a very lucky traveller. I should book all my trips on your flights! But you would not like it because I must have close to 140 IRROPS, with 35% of them involving overnight stays in hotels with a 50/50 ratio of the airline taking care of me. The other 50% of the overnight IRROPS, I had to fend for myself but at least I never had to sleep on an airport cot or bench or floor. My flights are on Star Alliance or OneWorld.
#8
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Heraklion, Greece
Posts: 7,557
You are a very lucky traveller. I should book all my trips on your flights! But you would not like it because I must have close to 140 IRROPS, with 35% of them involving overnight stays in hotels with a 50/50 ratio of the airline taking care of me. The other 50% of the overnight IRROPS, I had to fend for myself but at least I never had to sleep on an airport cot or bench or floor. My flights are on Star Alliance or OneWorld.
#10
Community Director
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Norwich, UK
Programs: A3*G, BA Gold, BD Gold (in memoriam), IHG Diamond Ambassador
Posts: 8,448
You'll be fine for sleeping if anything goes wrong. KLouis boat, by dint of appearing in A3's in-flight magazine on more than one occasion, is probably now the officially designated accommodation for IrrOps under EC261. I trust a suitably high rate has been negotiated with the airline ...
#11
Join Date: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,845
You'll be fine for sleeping if anything goes wrong. KLouis boat, by dint of appearing in A3's in-flight magazine on more than one occasion, is probably now the officially designated accommodation for IrrOps under EC261. I trust a suitably high rate has been negotiated with the airline ...
#15
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Heraklion, Greece
Posts: 7,557
Well, not painful, it simply reminded me of the national elections of that day. I (the "people") was pushing to the left and it simply wouldn't turn (see the most recent developments of our brand-new government). And it's going to cost me money...
@NWIFlyer: As my answer has nothing to do with either A3 or frequent flying and, in addition, it represents a political statement, please feel free to delete it!
@NWIFlyer: As my answer has nothing to do with either A3 or frequent flying and, in addition, it represents a political statement, please feel free to delete it!