Ooops - wrong destination
Thread Starter
Joined: Feb 2005
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From: flyover country USA
Ooops - wrong destination
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 2,290
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From: BHX LXR ASW
What amazes me about this is why didn't these pax realise they were boarding a longhaul 777 instead of a smaller 320/737. If they are seasoned travellers they should have also noted the flight number and destination at the gate. On the other hand how come there were two extra unaccounted pax on the Grenada flight? Also what happened to the Granada baggage when there were two 'no shows' for the flight?
This seems to have happened before but lessons haven't been learnt.
BBC News - Avios mix-up sees woman fly to Grenada, not Granada
This seems to have happened before but lessons haven't been learnt.
BBC News - Avios mix-up sees woman fly to Grenada, not Granada
Joined: Feb 2014
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From: Simply Towers.
Had to be a Yank.
I dont suppose he thought it a bit odd that the flight from Gatwick to 'Granada' had cost him $4500!
No doubt he must have been watching the departures screens, and also must have seen the destination at the gate, but being a bit geographically challenged, didnt notice it was the wrong destination.
Best just blame the agent who sold him the tickets when he mispronounced his required destination then.
Smacks of Tomaytoes tomatoes to me.
I dont suppose he thought it a bit odd that the flight from Gatwick to 'Granada' had cost him $4500!
No doubt he must have been watching the departures screens, and also must have seen the destination at the gate, but being a bit geographically challenged, didnt notice it was the wrong destination.
Best just blame the agent who sold him the tickets when he mispronounced his required destination then.
Smacks of Tomaytoes tomatoes to me.
Joined: Feb 2001
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From: The Winchester
On the other hand how come there were two extra unaccounted pax on the Grenada flight? Also what happened to the Granada baggage when there were two 'no shows' for the flight?
If the story is to be believed they got on the flight they were booked on. Their baggage (if any) would have travelled with them on that booked flight.
So...passengers, and bags were all where they should have been as far as the booking was concerned....... Problem was the booking was to Grenada......
Last edited by wiggy; 24th June 2014 at 06:20.
Joined: May 2009
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From: Confoederatio Helvetica
"An airline agent in Florida" means what?
There is not enough information here to judge who could have made the mistake, but until we learn more I wouldn't let this guy loose in my mouth with sharp implements.
There is not enough information here to judge who could have made the mistake, but until we learn more I wouldn't let this guy loose in my mouth with sharp implements.
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 7,056
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From: London
a few years back at LHR T4 in January they were boarding a Nairobi flight and a Copenhagen flight down the same jetway with a split right at the end
Amazing how many people in large anoraks, big boots and scarves went the wrong way and how many in colourful E African shirts were also trying to fight their way onto the wrong plane
Brain dead.................
Amazing how many people in large anoraks, big boots and scarves went the wrong way and how many in colourful E African shirts were also trying to fight their way onto the wrong plane
Brain dead.................
Joined: Jul 2011
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From: Edinburgh
I fail to see how BA are in any way to blame for this and I sincerely hope this man loses this case. BA have no obligation at all to get him back to LHR or to Granada at thier expense, no matter how much he insists. He paid to fly to Grenada and they got him there.
He booked, paid for and flew to Grenada. He may have wanted to go to Granada, but then he should have booked, paid for and indeed flown to Granada. The fact that these two destinations have similar names is irrelevant, passengers are responsible for making their bookings, or trusting a travel agent to do it for them. The airline will fly you to wherever you have a ticket for!
I refuse to believe that a travel agent booking wouldn't have shown a flight duration, I have never seen such a thing personally and I used to work on an airline ticket desk and saw all kinds of travel agent confirmations from the World Over. Every single one mentioned a flight duration, or at the very least a departure and arrival time, from that it's not hard to work out the flight duration.
This whole thing stinks of someone wanting to be rewarded for their own sheer stupidity. If I wanted a flight to BHX then I would make damn sure I didn't buy a ticket to BHM.
He booked, paid for and flew to Grenada. He may have wanted to go to Granada, but then he should have booked, paid for and indeed flown to Granada. The fact that these two destinations have similar names is irrelevant, passengers are responsible for making their bookings, or trusting a travel agent to do it for them. The airline will fly you to wherever you have a ticket for!
I refuse to believe that a travel agent booking wouldn't have shown a flight duration, I have never seen such a thing personally and I used to work on an airline ticket desk and saw all kinds of travel agent confirmations from the World Over. Every single one mentioned a flight duration, or at the very least a departure and arrival time, from that it's not hard to work out the flight duration.
This whole thing stinks of someone wanting to be rewarded for their own sheer stupidity. If I wanted a flight to BHX then I would make damn sure I didn't buy a ticket to BHM.
Joined: Jul 2004
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From: Cloud 9
What amazes me about this is why didn't these pax realise they were boarding a longhaul 777 instead of a smaller 320/737.
AF BHX/CDG ... I'd sat in the cabin a while believing that I was on the scheduled BAe146, looked out of the window to see a wing below me with no engine(s) attached, upon checking the safety card I came to realise I was on a subchartered in MD80 series.
LX BHX/ZRH ... Believing it to be a BAe146 again it turned out to be a Helvetic F100.
CX HKG/CEB ... Scheduled to be an A340, looked out of the window to find only one engine attached to the wing, I was on an A330.
CX CEB/HKG ... Scheduled to be an A330 but this time the wing had two engines attached to it!
Joined: Apr 2010
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From: London
Apparently way back Garuda used a hub & spoke system in Indonesian domestic- you'd take a DC-10 (no less) at some god awful hour after midnight from Jakarta to somewhere like Macassar/Unjumg Pandang
You'd get into the "terminal" and be issued with a new boarding pass and there, lined up neatly on the tarmac was a line of F-27's and F-28's for onwards flights to the ends of the earth
Of course there was zero signage or information as to which was which and it was reasonably common to find people on completley the wrong flight - normally only discovered when you arrived at Ambon when you thought you were in Jayapura...........
They were pretty good at getting you back (a day late) and recovering the luggage (which always seemed to go to the right place - but only when you didn't...)
You'd get into the "terminal" and be issued with a new boarding pass and there, lined up neatly on the tarmac was a line of F-27's and F-28's for onwards flights to the ends of the earth
Of course there was zero signage or information as to which was which and it was reasonably common to find people on completley the wrong flight - normally only discovered when you arrived at Ambon when you thought you were in Jayapura...........
They were pretty good at getting you back (a day late) and recovering the luggage (which always seemed to go to the right place - but only when you didn't...)
Joined: Dec 2009
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From: Southwater
When I was still working I did a one week exchange with the Platform Manager at Gare du Nord. It was staggering how many people came off a train having boarded it in London for Brussels.
It was also amazing how many times a train would depart followed by - anything up to fifteen minutes later - a person or persons from the adjacent empty train asking why the train hadn't left yet. Polite questioning along the lines of, "didn't you notice that you were the only person in the coach"? or "didn't you notice everyone else boarding the other train"? usually elicited a blank look.
It was also amazing how many times a train would depart followed by - anything up to fifteen minutes later - a person or persons from the adjacent empty train asking why the train hadn't left yet. Polite questioning along the lines of, "didn't you notice that you were the only person in the coach"? or "didn't you notice everyone else boarding the other train"? usually elicited a blank look.
Joined: Jul 2004
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From: Cloud 9
Also have to love the Yanks who get off their train from London at Leeds and ask which way to Leeds Castle. Bless them.
Joined: Dec 2009
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From: Southwater
And of course there were the U.S. servicemen who turned up at Ely station from Lakenheath or Shippea Hill asking for the train to Liverpool, forgetting to add "Street". Fortunately the staff could understand but it was sometimes oh so tempting...........
Joined: Apr 2006
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From: uk
Many years ago an elderly couple drove from Wolverhampton to Plymouth to catch the ro-ro ferry to Santander; their first excursion abroad.
They carefully followed the signs to the ferries, and joined a queue of cars.
Shortly afterwards they were waved on to the ferry; and a few minutes later it set off.
When someone knocked on the car window and asked for the fare, they were quite indignant when it was explained that they would be in Cornwall in about 3 minutes and not Santander in 24 hours.
They carefully followed the signs to the ferries, and joined a queue of cars.
Shortly afterwards they were waved on to the ferry; and a few minutes later it set off.
When someone knocked on the car window and asked for the fare, they were quite indignant when it was explained that they would be in Cornwall in about 3 minutes and not Santander in 24 hours.
Joined: Jun 2014
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From: Yorkshire
When in Newark a few years ago waiting for a connection to the West Coast of USA we didnt so much as get on the wrong plane as were getting concerned that a plane to our destination didnt exist despite there being a plane with the same flight no, & time on the departures board with a completely different destination to where we wanted to go and our tickets - we then found out Santa Ana airport is also referred to as John Wayne Airport.