Football Fan

Came in last night on a redeye from MIA, paid F, am BA GGL. Was meant to carry on at 9:05 to MXP. Flight canceled. Got a message via e-mail and text while still on the MIA-LHR flight that I was rebooked to 10:30 LHR-LIN - which would have been acceptable. But when I went to "Manage my booking", was rebooked to 8:35 pm to MXP, meaning I would get into town at midnight.

All flights to Milan more or less booked out today. Checked in on my phone to the 8:35 pm flight to even get through fast track to the Concorde Room, to try and sort it out here (the line at the connections counter downstairs looked like about 100 people, and the same line seemed to go to the First/Club counters, no difference).

Friendly lady at Concorde Room could only put me on standby for the 10:30 flight. Went down there like an idiot (remember, I was on a paid F booking - pretty sure Lufthansa would have just bumped someone else on that flight, would have picked me up at the plane and handed me the boarding pass for the 10:30 - here - nothing). Didn't get on the flight.

Back up to the Concorde Room. Managed to get a seat on an afternoon flight to LIN. Still not great, over 6 hours later than my originally booked flight, but better than nothing I guess.

These are obviously all first world problems. But if BA treats a GGL (who did more than 7k tier points last year) flying on intercontinental F with such total disregard, I think it says a lot about the state of customer service at this airline.

On the bright side, the ladies at the desk in the Concorde Room do try their best.

DYKWIA

DYKWIA | 2023 edition

Football Fan

If it makes you feel better, I did not act in any DYKWIA fashion. Just waited and when I was told I got no seat, thanked the lady and left.

Doesn't mean that the treatment by BA is right.

KARFA

isn’t the issue you expected someone to be bumped off the flight for you? Or at least you seem to think other airlines would do that and you regret BA doesn’t?

edit: I mean without giving an opinion on whether such a policy would be right or wrong, it is surely the very definition of DYKWIA?

2nd edit: you do raise legitimate issues around ba IRROPS handling, but surely you realise how that comes across and that any sympathy from folks on the forum will quickly vanish when they read that?

Flythe96flag

Experiencing going to the gate and being turned away as humiliating is also interesting.

HogwartsExpress

FWIW I find the apparently instinctive and automatic jumping down of throats of those daring to be mildly critical of BA even less edifying than most of the criticism itself.

KARFA

do you? Where has anyone defended ba IRROPS handling in the thread or challenged the OP on their comments on that part of it?

the comments only seem to challenge the OP on a particular part of their story which does have the whiff of DYKWIA, or do you disagree and think passengers should be bumped for GGLs?

Football Fan

I had a text message that said I was rebooked onto that flight. So, if anything, I was the one who somehow got "bumped" again from it.

And yes, I do think that passengers on an international F ticket (and, in this case, GGL status) should be prioritized. That's how any respectable airline would handle it. BA has many flights from LHR to Milan today, bumping someone who got in on a redeye from the US about 12 hours all the way to the back of the queue without any help is not acceptable.

KARFA

Well I admire your honesty at least.

As you know BA doesn’t do that - and to give my opinion nor should they.

chriswiles

Wow, someone who is 'more VIP than anyone else' and thinks someone with a paying ticket, who shows at the airport, should be bumped off, simply as you were coming in on F? I've seen a few entitled opinions, but this is close to the top. You're basically saying a pleb who paid economy should be ditched and left in tears to accommodate someone with 'status'?

FYI last week my J flight out of IAH was cancelled and I was rebooked out of ORD. I spent an eternity holding for BA to get on a flight out of AUS....which was then 3 hours delayed. I didn't jump on the boards to tell everyone how bad my 'BA experience' was as a result. It happens. It's part and parcel of the life of flying. Annoying, sure.

When I flew domestic F to LAX week before last I heard two American's saying on my flight that their friend had missed their flight out of JFK as it was cancelled last minute, so wouldn't be meeting up with them at LAX. And that was with Delta. Flights get cancelled. But you can't expect others to be bumped off to make your life easier than theirs...

Flythe96flag

Maybe you were bumped in favour of a Premier passenger also connecting from F.

Oxon Flyer

Folks, the moderators have already had to remove other posts(s) from 'the usual suspects' that similarly pounce on the OP with snarky and dismissive 'DYKWIA' comments. This is unnecessary and, as we have already seen, disruptive to the thread.

Posters not wishing to engage in constructive discussion of the issues when we have a new thread critical of BA are requested to just pass on by.

the mod team

Saladman

Or someone who had over 8000 Tier points.

I understand it must be annoying but I’d be pretty annoyed if I got bumped off a flight to make way for someone more important.

Football Fan

The point is not how many tier points or whatever, but the lack of any support or communication by BA. There are now several flights with availability. I saw earlier availability and managed to get changed to that. Still 6 hours later than the flight I booked. Many passengers wouldn't have tools to check that.

Whether you like it or not, if you pay for a premium cabin, it's not an unrealistic expectation to expect, at the very minimum, proactive and consistent communication and a certain level of service. Other airlines show it can be done.

Getting a text saying you are rebooked onto the next flight, only to find out you have actually been changed to a flight almost 12 hours later than your original flight, without any communication whatsoever that says the previous message is not valid anymore is not a positive customer experience, and yes, even less so when you have paid for F.

Call it DYKWIA or whatever, but on most airlines, when you pay for F, at least you get better IRROPS handling.

In my opinion, "DYKWIA" is much more about the attitude when dealing with staff. And I surely display none of that. I always thank them for their efforts and treat them with respect. It's clearly not the individual team members' fault, but I find it fair to expect better communication and IRROPS handling in any case, but even more so when you paid for what is meant to be a premium product.

I will ignore all the jealous posts, doesn't change my opinion.

P.S.: This is also far from my only negative experience with BA in the last 12 months, there were many which I didn't post about, including zoo-like boarding procedures, malfunctioning and dirty seats, utterly incompetent agents on the GGL line, etc. etc.. But hey, when you unexpectedly had to cancel a bunch of meetings and have to hang out for many hours in an overly hot airport lounge, there is some time to vent about it on FT lol.

Football Fan

Yes, I agree with what you say, of course it would be annoying, and it's fair if the policy is that this is not done. That's not really my main gripe, but the handling by BA.

But how do you think the airlines and hotels execute their booking guarantees for the highest tier members in their loyalty programs? The only way to do that is to bump other guests.