INB O X YOUR LE T T E R S Star letter 16
HOME TE AM DI S AD V ANT A GE I recently booked a return flight from Rome (FCO) to Johannesburg (JNB) that, while operated by Alitalia, was booked via Delta who I have my Skyteam account with. Upon checking in at FCO, I was told by the agent that, while my booking did appear on the system, the record was blank. This heralded three calls to a mysterious voice on the other end of the phone. After using the Delta ticket number, the agent advised that this was now sufficient to issue a boarding pass, but that the Alitalia ticket number was still blank. T is was a relief, but before I departed the agent informed me it was likely their agent in JNB would have a similar problem with my return fl ight. I was told that the Delta ticket number “should” be suff icient to get me onto the plane, but if I wanted to be certain I should visit Alitalia ticketing at the other end of the terminal. As it turns out, the lady at ticketing was well aware of my issue as she’d been on the other end of the previous calls. Sadly, she explained there was nothing she could do and said she didn’t understand why I’d booked through Delta, and that it was common for their system not to be compatible with Skyteam’s network. I ventured it was my understanding that the whole point of alliances was to provide customers with a cohesive network of partner airlines. I received a shrug in return. I asked to speak to the manager, who also gave me a shrug. Full of trepidation for my return flight, I changed my inbound flight from Cape Town to give me three hours in JNB in case of problems. About 48 hours before the flight I checked in on Alitalia’s website, printed my boarding pass and the JNB transit went as planned. Alitalia’s systems do not appear to be compatible with the rest of Skyteam. Does the alliance not have the ability
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to ensure these problems do not occur and place pressure on non-compliant partner airlines? I wouldn’t hesitate to use Alitalia again for long haul, but I would be reticent to do so again without booking direct. To readers booking through other Skyteam
members: caveat emptor (buyer beware). Will Seccombe, Hong Kong
P AYING FOR L E S S I recently flew from Hong Kong to Chicago with United. Excess baggage was prepaid online but in the event I needed one less piece than expected. At the airport, I asked whether the airline could simply credit the payment for that one piece back to the credit card on which it had been paid. However, after several phone calls United said that they could not and that I would have to file a claim online for it to be refunded. The internet could be a tool to help passengers have better journeys but many American airlines use it simply as a cost- cutting tool, reducing customer service. United is like this, as my recent experience demonstrated. They could learn a lot from more customer-friendly Asian airlines. Christopher Ruane, UK
UNIT ED AIRL INE S RE S P ONDS : We take our customers’ opinions seriously. We have been in touch with the customer and are in the process of refunding the excess baggage fee as quickly as possible. We are committed to continuing to listen to our customers and consistently and thoughtfully review our policies to ensure they enjoy a comfortable and convenient experience while travelling with us.
T E LL US ABOU T YOUR T R A VE L S AT EDIT ORIAL@B U S INE S S T R A VE L L E R A S IA . C OM
AP RIL 20 19
bus ine s s tr a v el ler .c om
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