Delta deems NRT-BKK passengers unimportant
Oct 9, 2014, 2:52 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Bangkok, Thailand
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Delta deems NRT-BKK passengers unimportant
Our flight 2014-10-07 from PDX (Portland) to Tokyo NRT was delayed by 2.5 hours by a mysterious mechanical issue (after the fact described as a fuel line issue when on the plane) with no announcements as to why.
So we fly out 2.5 hours late from Portland to Narita and somehow manage to arrive at 18:17 for an 18:45 connection to Bangkok but there is zero effort (and I do mean no effort whatsoever) to get the 12 passengers who were connecting onto that flight. All the boarding passes printed to go to ANA flight (including customs, a 1h15 bus ride, and 5 hour wait to take the flight) and absolutely ZERO effort to get us on a flight that could have been delayed by only 10 minutes and everybody would have made it. How do I know? I was rushed through Japanese customs onto a bus to Haneda and was with bags waiting for the bus by 19:02.
Delta Japan made the call that we could not make the flight and made zero effort to help us connect (oh they had already printed ANA boarding passes and lied to us that the plane had already left - unfortunately visible through the windows that it was still there) YET the other connecting flights all made it - they held the planes for Taipei as I understand there were about 40 people connecting to that flight.
The pilots passed by and said "have a good flight" and when I said "your 2 and a half hour delay cost us a 6 hour flight delay, they yelled back "it wasn't us" and LAUGHED as they went up the escalator!
I complained a lot but to no avail, but from being Delta Diamond with about 200k mqm this year it seemed nobody else dared speak up.
Even the Japanese manager (red coat) finally agreed they made a mistake by the time I was put on the bus at 19h10.
Delta doesn't care about passengers connecting, well, at least if you are less than 40.
So other than moving all my flights back to United/Thai/ANA what can I ask for compensation to stay on with Delta beyond burning my 900k miles banked and 30 year loyalty? I mean this seems to me a 75k, 100k mile compensation as they really misfired.
So we fly out 2.5 hours late from Portland to Narita and somehow manage to arrive at 18:17 for an 18:45 connection to Bangkok but there is zero effort (and I do mean no effort whatsoever) to get the 12 passengers who were connecting onto that flight. All the boarding passes printed to go to ANA flight (including customs, a 1h15 bus ride, and 5 hour wait to take the flight) and absolutely ZERO effort to get us on a flight that could have been delayed by only 10 minutes and everybody would have made it. How do I know? I was rushed through Japanese customs onto a bus to Haneda and was with bags waiting for the bus by 19:02.
Delta Japan made the call that we could not make the flight and made zero effort to help us connect (oh they had already printed ANA boarding passes and lied to us that the plane had already left - unfortunately visible through the windows that it was still there) YET the other connecting flights all made it - they held the planes for Taipei as I understand there were about 40 people connecting to that flight.
The pilots passed by and said "have a good flight" and when I said "your 2 and a half hour delay cost us a 6 hour flight delay, they yelled back "it wasn't us" and LAUGHED as they went up the escalator!
I complained a lot but to no avail, but from being Delta Diamond with about 200k mqm this year it seemed nobody else dared speak up.
Even the Japanese manager (red coat) finally agreed they made a mistake by the time I was put on the bus at 19h10.
Delta doesn't care about passengers connecting, well, at least if you are less than 40.
So other than moving all my flights back to United/Thai/ANA what can I ask for compensation to stay on with Delta beyond burning my 900k miles banked and 30 year loyalty? I mean this seems to me a 75k, 100k mile compensation as they really misfired.
Oct 9, 2014, 3:00 pm
#2
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Singapore
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Our flight 2014-10-07 from PDX (Portland) to Tokyo NRT was delayed by 2.5 hours by a mysterious mechanical issue (after the fact described as a fuel line issue when on the plane) with no announcements as to why.
So we fly out 2.5 hours late from Portland to Narita and somehow manage to arrive at 18:17 for an 18:45 connection to Bangkok but there is zero effort (and I do mean no effort whatsoever) to get the 12 passengers who were connecting onto that flight. All the boarding passes printed to go to ANA flight (including customs, a 1h15 bus ride, and 5 hour wait to take the flight) and absolutely ZERO effort to get us on a flight that could have been delayed by only 10 minutes and everybody would have made it. How do I know? I was rushed through Japanese customs onto a bus to Haneda and was with bags waiting for the bus by 19:02.
Delta Japan made the call that we could not make the flight and made zero effort to help us connect (oh they had already printed ANA boarding passes and lied to us that the plane had already left - unfortunately visible through the windows that it was still there) YET the other connecting flights all made it - they held the planes for Taipei as I understand there were about 40 people connecting to that flight.
The pilots passed by and said "have a good flight" and when I said "your 2 and a half hour delay cost us a 6 hour flight delay, they yelled back "it wasn't us" and LAUGHED as they went up the escalator!
I complained a lot but to no avail, but from being Delta Diamond with about 200k mqm this year it seemed nobody else dared speak up.
Even the Japanese manager (red coat) finally agreed they made a mistake by the time I was put on the bus at 19h10.
Delta doesn't care about passengers connecting, well, at least if you are less than 40.
So other than moving all my flights back to United/Thai/ANA what can I ask for compensation to stay on with Delta beyond burning my 900k miles banked and 30 year loyalty? I mean this seems to me a 75k, 100k mile compensation as they really misfired.
So we fly out 2.5 hours late from Portland to Narita and somehow manage to arrive at 18:17 for an 18:45 connection to Bangkok but there is zero effort (and I do mean no effort whatsoever) to get the 12 passengers who were connecting onto that flight. All the boarding passes printed to go to ANA flight (including customs, a 1h15 bus ride, and 5 hour wait to take the flight) and absolutely ZERO effort to get us on a flight that could have been delayed by only 10 minutes and everybody would have made it. How do I know? I was rushed through Japanese customs onto a bus to Haneda and was with bags waiting for the bus by 19:02.
Delta Japan made the call that we could not make the flight and made zero effort to help us connect (oh they had already printed ANA boarding passes and lied to us that the plane had already left - unfortunately visible through the windows that it was still there) YET the other connecting flights all made it - they held the planes for Taipei as I understand there were about 40 people connecting to that flight.
The pilots passed by and said "have a good flight" and when I said "your 2 and a half hour delay cost us a 6 hour flight delay, they yelled back "it wasn't us" and LAUGHED as they went up the escalator!
I complained a lot but to no avail, but from being Delta Diamond with about 200k mqm this year it seemed nobody else dared speak up.
Even the Japanese manager (red coat) finally agreed they made a mistake by the time I was put on the bus at 19h10.
Delta doesn't care about passengers connecting, well, at least if you are less than 40.
So other than moving all my flights back to United/Thai/ANA what can I ask for compensation to stay on with Delta beyond burning my 900k miles banked and 30 year loyalty? I mean this seems to me a 75k, 100k mile compensation as they really misfired.
That stinks. And way to be a jerk to the pilots who I'm sure delayed the flight themselves.
Oct 9, 2014, 3:02 pm
#3
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First wait to see what DL offers and then contact them (briefly and professionally--what happened wasn't personal even though it was a bad experience for you) with a *reasonable* suggestion of what they should give you for the inconvenience and delay. Most people wouldn't consider 75,000-100,000 redeemable miles to be reasonable as that's about half of a TPAC BE award ticket.
I assume you were a PM in coach on a DL ticket paid with money and were rebooked onto ANA from HND also in coach. I'm also guessing that your ticket originated in Thailand (travel agent or purchased through DL?) and was paid with a Thai credit card, with Thailand not having good applicable consumer protection regulations to help you.
I assume you were a PM in coach on a DL ticket paid with money and were rebooked onto ANA from HND also in coach. I'm also guessing that your ticket originated in Thailand (travel agent or purchased through DL?) and was paid with a Thai credit card, with Thailand not having good applicable consumer protection regulations to help you.
Oct 9, 2014, 3:05 pm
#4
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75k, 100k? Keep dreaming. You'll get 20k if your e-mail is respectable but hits the potential consequences of your frustration.
Oct 9, 2014, 3:07 pm
#5
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UA shows you the love by discontinuing all service to BKK.
Oct 9, 2014, 3:13 pm
#6
formerly Mdanner423
Join Date: Dec 2006
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Inconvenient, yes, but, I feel like it seemed like a big issue at the time, but in time you will find it wasn't too horrible. They could of just put you up in a hotel and told you to wait for tomorrow's DL flight. I have a love/hate relationship with how often they hold flights at Narita for connecting passengers, it seems to happen very often.
Oct 9, 2014, 3:21 pm
#7
Join Date: Sep 2006
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There seems to be a lot of DL MX going on these days. My Last two TATL trips I had delays of 4.5h (outbound) & 4.5h (return) on one and 5.5h (outbound) and 2h (return) on the other. Two international 767, one domestic 767 and one RJ (the 2h delay).
On the first two we were 2+ hours into our MX when a storm came thru and delayed us more. So Delta says "sorry, weather, not our problem."
On the 5.5h delay when I finally landed I they had given me 10K SkyPennies.
I am really glad my trip starting next week is A333 over the water. The return is on a 767 LHR-LAX and the plane is almost literally empty by the seat map (5 BE taken and 15 Y) Yes, it is a new route but its more than a week after it starts. I don't know what worries me more, a real MX or a fake one to cancel the flight and re-route us
Just so it's clear -- I am glad they are not flying unsafe planes. I just wonder if the utilization is so high that routine (non critical) things aren't being fixed until the break.
On the first two we were 2+ hours into our MX when a storm came thru and delayed us more. So Delta says "sorry, weather, not our problem."
On the 5.5h delay when I finally landed I they had given me 10K SkyPennies.
I am really glad my trip starting next week is A333 over the water. The return is on a 767 LHR-LAX and the plane is almost literally empty by the seat map (5 BE taken and 15 Y) Yes, it is a new route but its more than a week after it starts. I don't know what worries me more, a real MX or a fake one to cancel the flight and re-route us
Just so it's clear -- I am glad they are not flying unsafe planes. I just wonder if the utilization is so high that routine (non critical) things aren't being fixed until the break.
Oct 9, 2014, 3:27 pm
#8
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DM on full fare biz ticket, personally paid, not paid by a company. The pilots were jerks, sorry, but admittedly flew as fast as possible, but snarky attitude and laughed it off.
Sorry to rant a bit, just in Japan they made zero effort for us while they accommodated a different flight with more passengers, while we could have made it given 10 minutes (after a 2 1/2 hour flight delay in Portland).
The number of flight delays I have had out of Narita (including my outbound to USA on this ticket 1 hour) makes me believe they have a calculation deeming us expendable, not important enough. If a non-rev FA or captain among us, maybe they'd have made an effort?
Sorry to rant a bit, just in Japan they made zero effort for us while they accommodated a different flight with more passengers, while we could have made it given 10 minutes (after a 2 1/2 hour flight delay in Portland).
The number of flight delays I have had out of Narita (including my outbound to USA on this ticket 1 hour) makes me believe they have a calculation deeming us expendable, not important enough. If a non-rev FA or captain among us, maybe they'd have made an effort?
Oct 9, 2014, 3:30 pm
#9
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Actually flew 787 biz, very nice on ANA, but not lie-flat seats. Still, very new and nice, makes it a thinker for those of us that pay biz personally. Admittedly, nothing can compete with 747 upstairs until it goes away...
Oct 9, 2014, 3:33 pm
#10
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Once you were a jerk, were they supposed to be ashamed of themselves for a situation over which they likely had no control and bend over backward to be apologetic? I wouldn't do that considering the attempt to be pleasant they had made immediately prior was met with anger. I think they just tried to defuse the situation with a little humor and move on with life, a much better outcome than returning your hostility with more hostility.
Oct 9, 2014, 3:35 pm
#11
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Yes, and probably why some routes don't have wifi yet, probably a 3-hour job to install it but no time to schedule it. Could be a 2-hour job likely.
Oct 9, 2014, 3:40 pm
#13
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Should they be devastated every time there is a delay beyond their control? The way you tell it, they wished you a nice flight and YOU were a jerk to them.
Once you were a jerk, were they supposed to be ashamed of themselves for a situation over which they likely had no control and bend over backward to be apologetic? I wouldn't do that considering the attempt to be pleasant they had made immediately prior was met with anger. I think they just tried to defuse the situation with a little humor and move on with life, a much better outcome than returning your hostility with more hostility.
Once you were a jerk, were they supposed to be ashamed of themselves for a situation over which they likely had no control and bend over backward to be apologetic? I wouldn't do that considering the attempt to be pleasant they had made immediately prior was met with anger. I think they just tried to defuse the situation with a little humor and move on with life, a much better outcome than returning your hostility with more hostility.
Oct 9, 2014, 3:43 pm
#14
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If you know anything about aviation, you'd know that installing any equipment on a plane takes plenty of time. Planning, doing the install step by step ensuring everything is done the same on each aircraft, and then verifying, followed by paperwork. This isn't a 2 hour job. This more like a week or more job.