British Airways - not impressed
Discussion
WD39 said:
GT03ROB said:
lemmingjames said:
What i found funny though was that i asked for a free upgrade, the check-in staff said no sorry theres none available
Flying back, again asked for a free upgrade, told none available flights full (at check-in), go through, ask at the Gate about upgrade, told sorry sir, flights full so no upgrades available,
Ever had any success with that tactic before?Flying back, again asked for a free upgrade, told none available flights full (at check-in), go through, ask at the Gate about upgrade, told sorry sir, flights full so no upgrades available,
Some have the correct approach, some do not.
Demeanour, dress and good old fashioned manners play an important part. Staff are switched off by the 'sense of entitlement' attached to a request and are receptive to the request of an honest and genuine passenger who has a problem.
I'm still embarrassed after a cock up on our last flight. Two flights, we were given the boarding cards with the second flight on top in row 5. Naturally I did not rearrange them and gave them to the flight attendant who whisked us to the front, until we discovered the cock-up.
I'm convinced she thought we had done it on purpose, but we really had not!
I'm convinced she thought we had done it on purpose, but we really had not!
I've been upgraded once on BA. And even then they didn't tell us that in as many words. Super unusual.
We'd been at check-in and 'er-indoors was teary anyway at the thought of our return home after a year away in much-loved Canada when we were told there were no 2 adjoining seats available in Economy. That opened the flood gates, and the BA check-in lady (being Canadian and therefore lovely n nice) said they'd see what they could do. No mention from us of any freebies. So we go through Calgary immigration and go wait at the gate. Announcement for our surname "party of two", blank look exchanged between each of us (she had cheered up by this point), and we wandered over. Guy asks for our boarding cards, hands them to him, they get ripped up and he hands us two new ones. And we walk off a little bemused, then I notice 2A and 2B. Fecking awesome! Club! (No first on that 767)
(My SIL is CC, and mentioned they generally won't say "you've been upgraded", in an attempt to reduce hassle from others looking for an upgrade too).
We'd been at check-in and 'er-indoors was teary anyway at the thought of our return home after a year away in much-loved Canada when we were told there were no 2 adjoining seats available in Economy. That opened the flood gates, and the BA check-in lady (being Canadian and therefore lovely n nice) said they'd see what they could do. No mention from us of any freebies. So we go through Calgary immigration and go wait at the gate. Announcement for our surname "party of two", blank look exchanged between each of us (she had cheered up by this point), and we wandered over. Guy asks for our boarding cards, hands them to him, they get ripped up and he hands us two new ones. And we walk off a little bemused, then I notice 2A and 2B. Fecking awesome! Club! (No first on that 767)
(My SIL is CC, and mentioned they generally won't say "you've been upgraded", in an attempt to reduce hassle from others looking for an upgrade too).
djc206 said:
To be fair if someone said to me can I have something I haven't paid for for free I'd be less polite than that. If £700 got me into first from economy I'd be £700 closer to my companion voucher target.
At the same time, when i flew back from Bali i inquired then. Cant remember who the carrier was but they said if i had arrived 3 hours before (i turned up at 2), theyd have bumped me up from peasant to Business class for free but the free upgrades had already gone. GT03ROB said:
Ever had any success with that tactic before?
Regarding how you are dressed, is that still a thing when you see what some people wear in first anyway? Or doesnt it matter as theyve paid etc.
Unfortunately i only fly long haul maybe twice a year so dont have a companion voucher (dont know what that is anyway)
djc206 said:
£1200 to get into club from economy is a tad steep though. You'd think if it's got capacity they'd sell the seats at a sensible price, seems like a lost opportunity to make a few quid off the sleep deprived.
As to the stomach thing a few of my friends and my sister struggled going from Vietnamese food back to a fatty, red meat and dairy product laden diet. My sister was very ill after she'd been in Nam for 3 months and it was just her body's way of saying what the f
k is this you're trying to feed me!
I just found it funny how the flight changes from being full to being upgrade able if you paid. Regarding the food, i could hardly call airplane food fatty red meat diary plus i mixed up Viet and Western food (when i needed a proper feed).As to the stomach thing a few of my friends and my sister struggled going from Vietnamese food back to a fatty, red meat and dairy product laden diet. My sister was very ill after she'd been in Nam for 3 months and it was just her body's way of saying what the f
k is this you're trying to feed me!As a side note, a 'friend' was flying back with Qantas from Bali, they oversubscribed his flight so he (+ missus) said they'd fly back next day, got hotel + bar bill + rtn flights to Bali for their troubles. Not sure if thats the normal but i thought it was quite generous of them
lemmingjames said:
I just found it funny how the flight changes from being full to being upgrade able if you paid. Regarding the food, i could hardly call airplane food fatty red meat diary plus i mixed up Viet and Western food (when i needed a proper feed).
As a side note, a 'friend' was flying back with Qantas from Bali, they oversubscribed his flight so he (+ missus) said they'd fly back next day, got hotel + bar bill + rtn flights to Bali for their troubles. Not sure if thats the normal but i thought it was quite generous of them
When I was younger my family got offloaded a virgin flight from Orlando to London and we all (5 of us) got free return tickets anywhere in the world with virgin, twice! We went to South Africa twice thanks to that. The key was to arrive nice and early at the airport and ask about being offloaded. These days they tend to offer cash I believe.As a side note, a 'friend' was flying back with Qantas from Bali, they oversubscribed his flight so he (+ missus) said they'd fly back next day, got hotel + bar bill + rtn flights to Bali for their troubles. Not sure if thats the normal but i thought it was quite generous of them
lemmingjames said:
So how do you explain being offered a free upgrade from Business to First then?
You are assuming 1st is more expensive that Business, that is not always the case.lemmingjames said:
you explain why a flight suddenly changes from full to being unfull at the sniff of money?
It wasn't full. They were being polite. They could have just said "fk off you cheapskate chancer looking for a freebie"GT03ROB said:
WD39 said:
GT03ROB said:
lemmingjames said:
What i found funny though was that i asked for a free upgrade, the check-in staff said no sorry theres none available
Flying back, again asked for a free upgrade, told none available flights full (at check-in), go through, ask at the Gate about upgrade, told sorry sir, flights full so no upgrades available,
Ever had any success with that tactic before?Flying back, again asked for a free upgrade, told none available flights full (at check-in), go through, ask at the Gate about upgrade, told sorry sir, flights full so no upgrades available,
Some have the correct approach, some do not.
Demeanour, dress and good old fashioned manners play an important part. Staff are switched off by the 'sense of entitlement' attached to a request and are receptive to the request oef an honest and genuine passenger who has a problem.
Never produce any frequent flyer cards. I was sympathetic to honeymooners, couples whose seats are separated, wife is pregnant, feeling unwell,(genuine), and blondes with enormous....baggage.
GT03ROB said:
lemmingjames said:
you explain why a flight suddenly changes from full to being unfull at the sniff of money?
It wasn't full. They were being polite. They could have just said "fk off you cheapskate chancer looking for a freebie"If flights aren't fully booked there's always an option to pay for an upgrade. Doing so at check in can be quite cost effective, but works best if you're happy to travel in the class you booked if it doesn't pan out!
lemmingjames said:
So how do you explain being offered a free upgrade from Business to First then?
Can you explain why a flight suddenly changes from full to being unfull at the sniff of money?
Overbooking. People on flexible business tickets turning up wanting a seat. First is often roughly the same price or even cheaper on occasion due to lack of demand. Always worth a look.Can you explain why a flight suddenly changes from full to being unfull at the sniff of money?
swerni said:
It's preordained, the big computer in the sky decides not the check in crew.
Aaah.... the great BA god of DUT that appears from nowhere & for no fathomable reason magically changes your ticket to one in the next higher class! I've heard of his/her existence & been blessed with a visitation on several times recently also.GT03ROB said:
swerni said:
It's preordained, the big computer in the sky decides not the check in crew.
Aaah.... the great BA god of DUT that appears from nowhere & for no fathomable reason magically changes your ticket to one in the next higher class! I've heard of his/her existence & been blessed with a visitation on several times recently also.Ground staff usually check with them prior to offering an upgrade.
Doesn't always happen, but it's almost standard procedure.
swerni said:
They were being exceptionally polite.
" if only you'd been here earlier sir, our last one just went" oldest line in the book.
I've been upgraded several times recently cattle to PE and on another flight PE to Club world.
I've been wearing jeans and a teeshirt. It's preordained, the big computer in the sky decides not the check in crew.
Edited by swerni on Wednesday 31st August 20:19
WD39 said:
The on board crew has the final say.
Ground staff usually check with them prior to offering an upgrade.
Doesn't always happen, but it's almost standard procedure.
I got upgraded once by the The handling agent and the crew were pissed off as one of them had promised the seats to her partner that was travelling with her on a trip. She was quite rude about it really. she even came up and asked me how I had managed to get the seats. Ground staff usually check with them prior to offering an upgrade.
Doesn't always happen, but it's almost standard procedure.
swerni said:
Recently ?
You must be very special
Why do you think you have to be special to get upgraded? You don't need to be special to get upgraded at all I've managed it a few times recently through the check in or through the handling agent. I've got no BA status whatsoever. It was nothing to do with it being preordained by a computer. It depends entirely on where you are and who the handling agent is. You must be very special
el stovey said:
I got upgraded once by the The handling agent and the crew were pissed off as one of them had promised the seats to her partner that was travelling with her on a trip. She was quite rude about it really. she even came up and asked me how I had managed to get the seats.
Therein lies one of the problems. Crew thinking the airline is run for their benefit. Completely unprofessional for her to have said anything. Gassing Station | Holidays & Travel | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff