There been abundant postings on the GSM threads, including mine, laying the blame for the poor service quality on management, not the staff. A fish rots from the head.

It is a fact of life that people are always more vocal about bad experiences than good ones, which is why a bad airline will appear to be significantly worse than its mediocre competitors. GSM was a bad airline by many criteria.

Re: Allbury Travel

And do a search for who owns Allbury Ltd...... all begins to make sense, I wish all at GSM and Allbury the very best of luck in the future, am sure everyone will bounce back quickly.

Well Capetonian does that "serious" allegation have any truth in it?
Quote:
Have you ever tried giving GSM a good write-up on it? Somehow your input never seems to make the website, strange that, given that so many negative stories seem to get on with no problem what so ever.

Did you know for isntance that they e-mail airlines asking for money in return for allowing good feedback? No? Didn't think so.

That's a very serious allegation, GLAGAZ, probably libellous and certainly one you should not be making unless you are able to substantiate it.

Has it occurred to you that maybe there was very little positive that anyone had to say about GSM? Everything I've ever heard about the way the operation was run was negative, and the attitude of the company (I'm not talking about employees) to its customers was one of contempt. This is based on feedback from passengers, and from within the industry.

I have contributed a lot to airlinequality.com and whilst there is some rubbish on there, I think it fairly reflects public opinion, not that that is necessarily of much value. My comments about many airlines have nearly always been posted, whether positive or negative, without amendment.

You answer it by making a veiled threat rather than giving it a stright NO answer, Why?

Ok, Capetonian. Just for the record, over the last five years say, how often did you fly with GSM? What sectors? Summer and winter schedules? Come on 'fess up.

Please tell us you actually flew more than once. Please tell us you have more to substantiate your erroneous claims.

GSM was a great airline. Period.

I'm waiting......or are you just one of those sad people that kick people when they are down? Can you name any of the CC or pilots?

Its a shame there was no scottish or british company who were less dodgy willing to invest in GSM well the airline anyway the rest of the group was more a drain except Alba which could have been amking large profits with better management.
Would have been good to see them grow into an airline of about 30/ac serving many areas :(

This rumour of Viking to me looks as if they just want the license GSM had and run which is just such a shame. Would have been great for a last minute buyer, possibly not one dictating man who was to proud of being a sole owner to fessing up for more investment.

Unfortunately as Dalrymple seemed unwilling to put his hand into his own pocket, then investors simply aren't interested. If you won't risk your own money, then why should they?

GSM is of no interest to investors as you aren't actually buying anything you can't set up yourself in a few months.

First of all, I really do sympathise with all the staff that worked for that awful travel agent TD, the chairman and his hareem and family members who sat on the board. Everybody really did try their best to try and keep the outfit going. I myslef worked from 07:00 in the morning through to 22:00 every night for nearly a year, (that is no exageration,) only to be humiliated by TD and board every day or when the aircraft when AOG as if it was my personal fault. I sat with Matkat regularly to be castrated and bullied by TD while pruning himself in front of his sister and hostess on his first coach, (the now Deputy Manageing Director HA HA HA!) The airline was never going to be a success with this shower of s**t at the top. He had total disregard for the CAA and regulations thinking he could buy anyone. They did not know how to treat people as people. As for the Finaince Director, the ex-paper mill finance director. Well he wanted to see the CV of any applicant to join any department. What did he know what makes a good pilot, engineer or operations controller? When a work scope is set for an engine overhaul with various SB's and AD's to comply with, he contacts Rolls Royce, (under the instruction of TD,) to see what cannot be done to make it cheaper. TD flies aircraft but does not intend to spend money to ensure compliance & safety. The ETOPS fiasco !!!! I could go on for hours. It was all for the CAA to get TD to step back and let the airline experienced people do their job. I would not tell a coach driver or travel agent, (Mr Dalrymple,) how to drive a coach or be a travel agent.

As said before, all the staff, I really do feel for you, it is an unfair game, but to be honest, you will be glad to be out of it if you knew what a group of ********* were on the board of this airline. Join one that do support their staff and want to fly planes legally and in compliance.

Roger, don't worry. I intend to !
The sight of TD and KB walking out the door last wednesday evening, full of smiles, and TD giving her a kiss before driving out the gates, will stay with me a long time.
I thought I'd seen it all in this business. My old boss, when talking about KB, just used to sit there, shaking his head. She had no idea about anything. Should have stayed on the buses, dearie.:ugh::ugh:

Hombre and Blackball

I have never flown on GSM. If you had taken the trouble to read my posting properly instead of throwing your toys out of the pram because I made a 'negative' remark, you might have realised I was not criticising the GSM cabin or cockpit crews.

The airline/company was owned by people who cared nothing for the staff or passengers who made their continued livelihood possible. That they had so many good staff is a sign of the economic times or perhaps loyalty to Scotland, also a reason for the support of so many from north of the border.

I am close enough to several areas of the industry to know that GSM was a disorganised, and not, as you call it, a 'great' airline. The fact that you do not agree with my views does not entitle you to label my claims as 'erroneous', but perhaps the concept that I am criticising the management rather than the crews is a little beyond you.

For years they have been cancelling and rescheduling flights at short notice, ruining peoples' holiday travel plans, their refunds procedure has been atrocious, although perhaps now it is becoming clearer why this may have been the case, but their administration was diabolical.

Blackball perhaps you can explain what you mean by this : You answer it by making a veiled threat rather than giving it a stright NO answer, Why? If I understood maybe I could what you might consider a straight answer, although if you disagree you might also call it 'erroneous'.

Looks like the :mad: know as Elias Elia was trying to buy into GSM with GSM own money that HIS credit company owed GSM. not that am deffending TD he couldn't run a bath let alone an airline.

Just want to thank Elias Elia, JS, TD for the lies and making us unemployed(Stil not been told yet tho) the week before christmas with no december wage and a slim chance of getting getting back at EDI soon to make a wage :{

TEAM EDI ALBA still and allways will be the best :ok:

Having read all the articles regarding E.clear and their relationship with GSM - I'm overly annoyed! As an employee at CWL we really needed this SFB route which would/could have brought other carriers into the airport [long haul or not] which are now vitally needed - and this was a vital link at CWL some years ago along with Toronto!

I hope that E.clear's demise follows.

Roger welcome to the forum, did wonder when you would turn up? Glad to have you here and also to share your perspective, also I could not agree more we now only need our other little friend from the Indian ocean to turn up and we have all of us that witnessed the debacle which was the running of this airline by amateurs as TD and the paper mill boy, one other piece of futility that Roger was not in on was when we had a 50 cycle repeat borescope of an engine because of internal cracking eventually the cracking in question went beyond accepted limits which of course grounded the aircraft well to try to appease the al mighty TD said paper mill boy sent out an e-mail saying that we could not justify grounding the A/C during the summer busy period and that we should contact SNECMA lie to them so that we could keep it flying, oh also this was backed up by rent boy DS of course he had vast engineering knowledge gained as a commercial manager!! I am glad to say this all came to nothing(but not after various threats were aimed at yours truly) and a lease engine was procured again with many obstacles from paper mill boy.
One last thing, Roger I wonder if you remember this? sitting in the boardroom we were discussing a U/S APU which was about to reach it's 10 day MEL limit, well God(TD at that time but shmuck now) asked well Matkat why is it we can fly an A/C for 10 dyas and it's considered airworthy but on the 11th it is not well without even thinking(common for me!!) I said well Tom the 10 day limit is to allow for spares manpower etc to be arranged but anytime after that is not permitted(Yes I know RIE) which prevents unscrupulous operators from not rectifying faults!!!(says it all really) I think in the 15 months I was there it was the first time I had seen Dalrymple lost for words.
By the way in reference to the managing director(HA HA demeans such a title, should have been old clippie) who was the DADDY??????????
Also I really,really hope all you manchester mafia are watching and reading this you lot sold your sole you were warned but you were all so smug, to clarify I only mean the MAN mafia that came to Colinton when we were still there and slagged off the people that had been fighting against the tide so long and hard only to be bad mouthed by you lot, MW not you because you saw after a few weeks just how hard it was, but the rest of you well what I think of you cannot be put down here but it can not be to hard for even you lot to work it out.
CH you upset a lot of people by refusing to pay contracted notice periods(me included) was it worth it? somehow I think not! well you will have now lost exactly the same as I did so now you know how it feels:}

Captonian,

Thought so. All heresay. You've never flown with GSM.

<<<SCIOLIST WARNING>>>

Hombre : It is not necessary to have first hand experience of something to be able to express an opinion. Flying with a particular airline is not the only criterion which allows one to make a judgement on its performance. There is no 'hearsay' (note spelling by the way) in what I have stated. If I'd made comments on the flight crew, that would have been hearsay. I didn't.

Would you call me a sciolist if I said that the torturing of bulls in front of crowds of blood thirsty spectators, which takes place in Spain (I'm not implying that you support it by the way) is an abominable cruelty? Would I have had to have been to a bull fight to express such an opinion, or would I have had to have been a tortured bull at some point to really know what I was talking about?

Hombre
 

One only need read the reports now posted post event to see that much of the critical comments posted over the last 24 months was close to the mark!!

Whilst i have every respect for loyal employee's fighting the companies corner on this and other fourms, the scorn that was posted by GSM Scot and 4567 against anyone who made a critical comment about Globespan was IMHO way over the threshold of being loyal and firmly into the realm of the deluded.

Taking Globespan from a travel company into an airline was always a risk, however i think that had the airline stuck with the bucket and spade Med market from Scotland it might well still be around.

Running a long haul program, mixed fleet and getting the ex Gill JF involved showed poor judgement at senior management level.

I have no doubt that many more tales of woe will visit these pages in the coming days and weeks showing just how close to the wind they were at times sailing, i am amazed, but not somehow surprised that the MOD ever went near them, but then again this Scottish run Labour goverment have never paid more than lip service when it comes to looking after our troops.

RIP

MATKAT

You and others often refer to the Manchecter mafia, are you refering to Monarch Engineering from Manchester as I believe they were your contracted Maintenance organisation or someone else ? Just Curious.

Hatter's in no way am I refering to Monarch I am only refering to those that apeared at Collinton prior to the engineering department move to Manchester I am not even refering to those who took jobs with the very same department after the move south, for me it was not even an issue personally as I was leaving anyway and a certain engineering director(oop's sorry the COO) knows/knew that perfectly well, if there was ever a toothless leader it was him his initials? well I am sure you know who I mean, oh and by the way I hope some day he is looking for a job and he comes my way(it's happened before:ok:) well just let's just say I would have the perfect position for him COO of the W/C certainly has a ring to it.
I just hope he/they get their due worth after what happened at his/their hands at the behest of the departed leader of the now defunct company.
Rant over (well for this time anyway)
Storm were still the contracted provider when I left.

Capetonian
The question that was asked was:-

Quote:
Have you ever tried giving GSM a good write-up on it? Somehow your input never seems to make the website, strange that, given that so many negative stories seem to get on with no problem what so ever.

Did you know for isntance that they e-mail airlines asking for money in return for allowing good feedback? No? Didn't think so.

You then replied by saying:-

That's a very serious allegation, GLAGAZ, probably libellous and certainly one you should not be making unless you are able to substantiate it.

That does not answer the question that was asked by GLAGAZ.
Yo of course are quite at liberty to have your own opinion on ay subject let alone any airline and I for one would be the first to defend that right. However GLAGAZ did ask of you a pertinent question which also deserves a reply.

GSM
 

Hi

I don't understand where this credit card payment handling firm is involved. My naive understanding, based on my friend who runs her own business, was that the card payment was taken from the card holder and then credited to the beneficiary's bank account a few days later. Why do these third parties hold the cash?

Also, given that when, for example, MFI went bust, customers were advised to claim on their credit or VISA debit card. Do these third party firms hold cash for all companies? IE, I spend £200 in Debenhams today, so when do Debenhams get the cash?

I don't know why GLAGAZ can't defend himself, or maybe I do know!

There is a distinct lack of clarity about what he is trying to ask, but let me try to reply again as simply as I can, although I felt that I was quite clear.
I don't think the questions were pertinent, they were presumptuous, rhetorical, and loaded.

Have you ever tried giving GSM a good write-up on it?
No I haven't, because I've never had anything good to say about GSM.


Did you know for isntance that they e-mail airlines asking for money in return for allowing good feedback? No? Didn't think so.
This is a statement phrased as a question. No I didn't know that they indulged in this highly questionable practice and I am sure they don't. Does GLAGAZ know this for a fact and if so can he prove it, otherwise his statement is libellous.

Of course not! I would have been surprised if you could.

Skytrax legal representatives may well have a different point of view on that. Would you care to forward a copy of the thread to them with your name and contact details or would you prefer to shelter behind the anonymity of this forum?

I think you boys are wandering a little off topic!:ugh:

But on a more serious note....... A big Thank You To Virgin Atlantic for their generosity in rescuing us from Delhi.
And Thanks to Dave & Bo for arranging the rescue and for staying right til the end to make sure everyone got home OK:ok:

LJ

HERE HERE,,,,,,,,,,...Top crew.
Proud of you.
Ex-GSM OPS..Richard.

some ALBA staff safe..nice one.
 

Looks like GLA -Alba staff going to Loganair handling or Menzies..still to be confirmed..
at least staff will get a bit of security..nice one and good luck to all.
DD

While Alba- Edi remains f****ed.

I never understood the idea of an airline like flyGlobespan having it's own handling agent.
I thought the idea was to contract out these kind of services. Was Aviance so bad that neither Menzies or Servisair was considered?

GLAGAZ
The onus, if legal action were brought against you, would be for you to prove what you say. There is no need for me to disprove it.

Maybe the thinking of Dalrymple was because he owned Alba, he could also chase other contracts on behalf of Alba. Making him even more money in the process. (There was allegedly interest from Loganair & Flybe wanting Alba to do the ground handling.) Alba was 'allegedly' to get the Flybe contract in March. Which is why we were always told FlyGlobespan & Alba Groundhandling were different companies and were always kept separate. So much for that.:*

I dont think either Menzies or Flybe/Loganair will take over Alba, I dont think Menzies have the cash and Flybe/Loganair wont go self handling. Its more likely to be Swissport or Flight Support Services.

Loganair just gone self handling in ABZ, why not GLA?

E-Clear in administration order
 

No great suprise here


courtesy of Travelmole

An order for the administration of payment processing firm E-Clear was made by the High Court yesterday (Tuesday).

The move by Mr Justice Vos followed the failure of EClear to submit evidence of funds of £35 million on Friday related to the collapse of Scottish operator Globespan.

BDO has been appointed administrator.

PricewaterhouseCoopers administrator for Globespan Bruce Cartwright said: “Over the last month we have sought financial reassurance from EClear and are disappointed that the funds are no longer there.

“We will now work closely with BDO to maximise the situation for Globespan creditors under exceptional circumstances.

“Those who bought services on credit card or visa debit, that have not been supplied, will continue to be protected by consumer card legislation and should contact their credit card issuer.”

Interesting to see that the squeaky clean Sir Edward Du Cann is Chairman of the
E-Clear advisory board.

That should have rung bells from the day he was appointed.

No comment from E-Clear as £35m deadline passes

Bless, this mob even diss their own Du Cann "exclusive" in SoS. Interesting stuff today tho'..
Missing £100m at heart of Globespan's collapse - The Scotsman

I bet! - try harder Googleists, and you might even get a quote from a lawyer on a Saturday morning..

(ex-journo lecturer)

and shamelessly Googooing m'self, could I add for your delight and delectation...
Fall of a tarnished grandee: Steve Boggan and Michael Prestage trace the career of Sir Edward Du Cann, the Tory haunted by debt - UK, News - The Independent

last quote (couldn't resist)

You don't need to do it shamelessly!

I'd already read your article before I posted the above - glad I'm not the only one with some grey cells still functioning.

Missing £100m at heart of Globespan's collapse - The Scotsman

Reply #18 (after the article) is a very interesting allegation......

Isn't hindsight a wonderful thing:

We didn?t need cash lifeline, says airline - Herald Scotland | News | Transport & Environment

Oh what irony :rolleyes:

Anyone know where Uncle Tom has gone to ?

Anyone know who else, not yet disclosed, were using the E-Clear services? :hmm:

Dontdoit
 

Maybe he's donned a deerstalker, pipe and magnifying glass and is on the hunt for Elia, with his sister playing Watson. Elementary my good man.
Sherlock Dalrymple & the Missing Millions.

Pinocchio isn't allowed to comment publicly while the administration process is ongoing.