Sorry, we are clean out of Jet A1

[holedriller]

My son set off last night from Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, destination Birmingham, on Thomson 259, after which the flight disappeared completely. Eventually we found by the wonders of mobile phones that it had been diverted to Jamaica as there was no fuel in the Dominican Republic, presumably due to Christmas someone had forgotten to order it. Is it a normal occurrence for what I assume to be a significant airport in a major tourist area to run out of fuel?
Incidentally, the information 24 hours later from Thomson is non existent. Their 'latest news' on their website states 'there are no updates to report'. The website also asks the rhetorical question 'why book your flights with Thomson' and answers it with 'the flight is just as important as the rest of the holiday, exactly what you would expect from UK's biggest holiday airline'. You can imagine what our response is!
Needless to say, calls to their premium rate helplines only yield a string of adverts for their services. Talk to a person? You must be joking.
Holedriller#

Edit: Please ensure you check the font type (verdana) and the size (2).

[jester42]

Excellent eye sight for your age. :E

[WhatsaLizad?]

Is it a normal occurrence for what I assume to be a significant airport in a major tourist area to run out of fuel?


No, but it usually makes a nice fabricated excuse to blame if a low budget accounting office didn't keep up with their contracts overseas.

Fact checking difficulties make the excuse tough to check out.

My airline didn't appear to have difficulties, but the route to the colonies is substantially shorter and nobody needed 100,000 lbs+ for a -300 :E

[PAXboy]

Might the Dom Rep find some of it's fuel being diverted to it's neighbour to help their crisis? No carrier intentionally makes a divert like that for fuel as it costs them a bundle in knock-on charges.

Whatever happened, the people who update the web-site might have zero information from those that know. Those that know - might be tight lipped about giving the real reason? Perhaps someone is threatening court action and they can't publish what they think the truth is?

Yes it is frustrating but the FANTASTIC news is that your son is alive and well, the aircraft is in one piece and has only been delayed.

Sorry, just trying to half fill the glass. ;)

[WHBM]

If they really had run out of fuel (which is unlikely) then this likelihood would have been advised in advance to the ops department. There are 101 scenarios more likely than actually "running out"; not paying your previous bills and being put on Cash Only is a well known one - not that I am for a moment suggesting this here .......

In a similar vein are the surprising number of departure delays announced as because "a passenger has decided not to travel with us and we have to find and remove their baggage". I have got the detail of a couple of these; every one was a world removed from any "passenger deciding .....".

Usefulness of website information is a variable depending on who at the carrier has become dominant in it's design; all too often the Marketing Department see any customer-facing item as "their toy", take charge, and will only allow anything to get through that is a positive in sales & marketing terms, on the basis that if the website user doesn't lead to another booking, what's the point ?

[LCA Bound]

Yes it is frustrating but the FANTASTIC news is that your son is alive and well, the aircraft is in one piece and has only been delayed. ???????


To be honest I hope this isnt the airlines angle as that would be a little concerning !!!!!!!

[TightSlot]

they really had run out of fuel (which is unlikely)........every one was a world removed from any "passenger deciding .....".
Aah yes - the great 'Global Airline Conspiracy Theory' rears its' head again - Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[WHBM]

Aah yes - the great 'Global Airline Conspiracy Theory'
No conspiracy at all - just plain fibs.

Of the "Passenger not deciding to travel with us so ..... a delay" :

1 - Transfer bags were loaded, but pax stuck in huge queue for security for transfer pax inside terminal.

2 - Mislabelled container holding multiple bags for wrong destination detected after doors closed but before departure.

I'm sure not your carrier, TS :) . Happy New Year.

[Out Of Trim]

Of the "Passenger not deciding to travel with us so ..... a delay" :

1 - Transfer bags were loaded, but pax stuck in huge queue for security for transfer pax inside terminal.




Not really the carrier fibbing is it! If a passenger "no shows" at the departure gate on time, for any reason. The baggage for those missing passengers must be removed by law, before the aircraft may depart.

This can indeed involve a delay to departure for that reason.. There are many reasons why passengers do not arrive to their flights on time or have lost their passports etc etc and cause delays of this nature daily.