No More FLYBE & Air France for Me!

Converted · Site Admin Joined: 02 Nov 2003 Posts: 5602

Hello there,

This may seem like an exaggeration but I assure you it is 100% true.

This past Monday evening I was on your flight Af5723/AF3011 to Rennes France. At check in the check-in agent was not able to find me in the system. Instead of calling the person at your ticket counter that is about 50 feet away, the check-in agent told me I had to walk back over to the ticket agent to find out what the problem was. This took all of about 30 seconds until the check in agent called over to the ticket agent to assure her that I was on the flight. I walked back over to the check in agent who then issued my boarding pass and checked my bag. Perfect right? Wrong! As I was walking away and sorting my papers for the security check, I noticed that I only had one boarding pass, not the two required for the connection through CDG to Rennes. I had made this flight at least 5 times previously so I knew the process.

I walked back to the check-in agent to inquire where my other boarding pass was and she informed me that she couldnÂ¡Â¦t check me through to Rennes because the flight was Â¡Â§not openÂ¡Â¨ (whatever that means). I asked where my bag was going and she said it should be going to Rennes but when I checked my baggage claim stub it said CDG. She told me that I would have to get my Rennes boarding pass at the transfer desk in CDG and claim my bag at CDG , then recheck it at CDG to Rennes. If your at all familiar with this flight you would understand that it arrives at CDG terminal 2F and the connection is in CDG 2E. The chances of doing this and making the connection are slim and none. So I told the check in agent that I wanted my bag brought back to the counter and either given back to me, or checked through to Rennes and I would like my second boarding pass for the CDG to Rennes flight. After some minutes of extreme confusion she finally located a gentlemen who again told me there was nothing he could do and re-explained the above. I demanded that my bag be returned because there was no chance for me to collect the bag and go to the transfer desk and make the connection in CDG. Finally I convinced them to at least retag the bag. Unfortunately I would find out later in CDG that she did not tag the bag to Rennes RNS, She tagged it to Roanne REN. I have the actual tag. This would be the cause of some great delays later in the evening.

So I got through this little nightmare only to find out that the flight was delayed from Birmingham. Since there are no FLYBE people available once you past the security check in (other than at the gate) I had to call your offices to inquire if I would still make my connection. First the lady told me that I should call Air France (really she did) to inquire since the flight was an Air France flight not a FLYBE flight. After I assured her that the side of the plane said FLYBE British European and that you are the local agents for Air France, she agreed to try and call air France but she warned me that they usually donÂ¡Â¦t answer the phone. (funny). She came back on the line after about 10 minutes to tell me that Air France could not guarantee me that the connection could be made. During my waiting the flight boarding announcement was made and I was proceeding to the gate.

We finally boarded the plane at about 6:40 PM. Before I got on the plane I asked the gate agent (A FLYBE employee not the local gate agents) if I would still make my connection. He assured me that we were still within the window to make it ( had to be a lie). I told him that I would rather spend the night in my own bed in the UK than spend a night in Paris since I knew the next flight to Rennes left CDG in the afternoon Tuesdays and I could make the same connection from Birmingham on Tuesday morning. I asked him if he was aware that the flight on the CDG end did not arrive at a gate but rather in the middle of the tarmac and you had to board a bus to the Terminal which could add at least another 20 minutes to the flight time. Of course he did not know this. This is your information person and I know more about the operation of your airlines than he does. I bet he did realize that if I decided not to fly and you had to unload the luggage to find my bag, nobody was going to make a connection that evening.

Guess what happened next!!

We arrived at CDG and when I went to the transfer desk to get my next boarding pass I was told I had missed my connection. This was at 8:55PM. The plane hadnÂ¡Â¦t actually left yet but the gate was closed and I was a hell of a long way away from Terminal 2E. So then the next part of my fun Journey begins.

The transfer desk agent in CDG informs me that the fist flight to Rennes on Tuesday Afternoon is full and that my only option is to take a bus to Paris Orly and spend the night there and catch the morning flight from Orly to Rennes. Of course at this point I am thinking this is a little inconvenient and I could be sleeping in my own bed in Leicester but at least I will get a good nights sleep and still get into Rennes by 10:00am the following day. The agent gave me a voucher for my dinner/breakfast/hotel and a bus transfer ticket. I then asked the Transfer agent where I would collect my bag before I got on the bus to Orly. She seemed a little puzzled that I would want my bag but I assured her that if I was spending the night in Paris Orly I wanted my bag to be with me. Clean clothes and showers are not optional especially when the temperature in France was nearly 35 degrees. She called to locate my bag and told me that I could pick it up downstairs at the baggage carousel.

When I proceeded past immigration and through to the baggage claim I quickly realized that my bag was not coming so I went directly to the lost baggage area to inquire on its whereabouts. The lady there informed me that it could take several hours to locate my bag and that they would give me a shower kit and my bag would join me in Rennes the following day. I thought she was joking and that she was just trying to discourage me from waiting and causing someone to locate the bag. I was wrong. After about an hour one of the Baggage agent told me that my claim ticket showed my bag was going to Roanne not Rennes and that was my problem. I assured her that I didnÂ¡Â¦t have a label printer in my possession and that it was FLYBE/Air Frances screwup for the mislabel. She asked how they were supposed to locate my bag if it was labeled wrong. Good Question. Two hours later at 11:00pm I was still waiting. During the wait I was encouraged several times to give up since Â¡Â§my bag would be forwarded to RennesÂ¡Â¨ the following day and Â¡Â§there contract was to get my bag to Rennes not to CDGÂ¡Â¨ (they actually said this). I told the agent that the contract was to get me and my bag to Rennes but since I didnÂ¡Â¦t make it I think they had failed!! At 11:20pm I asked the baggage claim agent where the nearest hospital was. She asked if I need some medication from my bag and I said yes. (I did need some aspirin). 10 minutes later I had my bag but unfortunately I missed the last bus to Orly. The bag was relabeled transfer to Rennes This is when I got the original label which showed To RNE AF 5723 (right flight wrong place). I am keeping it as a souvenir.

While one of the Baggage claim people arranged for me to get a taxi to Orly I called the Ibis Hotel to inquire if it was Air Conditioned. It was nearly 30 degrees outside at 11:30pm and I thought that the least FLYBE and Air France could do after ruining my evening was provide a comfortable environment for me to sleep in. I can assure you that my home in Leicester is Air Conditioned. The gentlemen told me there was nothing he could do and He was leaving for the evening and if I didnÂ¡Â¦t get in the taxi I was out of luck. I asked him where I could find a Customer service agent but he told me the Terminal was closing and I had to get to the taxi. So he walked one way and I went another. I knew that since Terminal 2E had international flights that the Customer Service desk should still be open.

When I got to Terminal 2E I stated my case to the Customer Service Agent and asked if I could get an air-conditioned room. After assuring me that my room would be Air- conditioned I told her that I had already called the hotel and been informed otherwise. She said that there was nothing they could do since I had only paid for a normal coach price ticket. I asked what kind of room I would get if I had a Business class ticket and she told me than I would get a 4 Star hotel with air-conditioning. I showed her the numerous boarding passes that I have in my passport folder form taking the same flights over the past several weeks but she was unimpressed. She told me to take it or leave it. Quite disappointing after the evening that had been provided to me by FLYBE and Air France. I decided to leave it and go it alone to Orly so I could enjoy my five hours of sleep in an air conditioned room. I then had to walk to Terminal 2D to catch a Taxi as it was now 1:00am in the morning. I arrived at Orly at 2:30 am and stayed at the Mercure Hotel (paid for it myself). I finally got to Rennes at 11:00am the following morning (an hour late) after sitting on the Tarmac at Orly for nearly 40 minutes as we waited for transfer baggage to arrive from CDG (how funny).

I can assure you that I will make every effort to avoid FLYBE and Air France in the future. I will tell all my friends and colleagues abut your wonderful airlines also, and I will forward this story to them for their enjoyment. I will make some suggestions for you before I go.

"h Give your Check-in Agents some additional training. Post some laminated cards at the check in desks that show the correct airport code for all FLYBE destinations. "h Make it possible for FLYBE passengers to contact someone for flight information after they get though the Security check in area. Make sure this person is informed with valuable information and knows how to say more than Â¡Â§yes you will make your connectionÂ¡Â¨. "h Tell the baggage claim people that their job is more than handing out overnight kits and saying Â¡Â§your bag will be at your final destination tomorrowÂ¡Â¨. "h Treat people nicely and go the extra mile when you have failed in your job. DonÂ¡Â¦t say Â¡Â§IÂ¡Â¦m sorry there is nothing I can doÂ¡Â¨. There is always something you can do if you really want to.

Finally, a note of safety. On my return flight yesterday evening from CDG to Birmingham (which was 2 hours delayed, good job), the flight crew made a serious safety error when we landed. The plane had taxied to near the gate and stopped but the Seat Belt sign was still illuminated. From having flown so many times I could tell that the pilot was waiting for some guidance from the ground crew before pulling forward. About half of the passengers released their seat belts. The clicking of the releasing belts was clearly heard by the flight crew. I knew what was happening and I am sure they did also. On past flights on your airline and others the flight crew will generally remind people on the overhead speaker that we have not reached the gate yet and to remain seated with their seat belts fastened. Unfortunately your crew failed to make an announcement and at least 15 to 20 persons actually got up out of their seats and began removing items form the overhead storage bins. The pilot then began moving the plane forward and several people nearly fell over and one gentlemen almost dropped his case from the overhead bin onto a seated passengers head. Only then did the cabin crew come over the speaker to ask people to remain seated with their belts fastened. Too late!!!! If I was in the US I would report this to the NTSB. Who do I report this to in the UK?

Submitted By: Terry Collins
Posted: Thursday, August 07, 2003

Converted · Site Admin Joined: 02 Nov 2003 Posts: 5602

What is this "your" airlines business? This is not an Air France website! Contact Air France directly to complain!

Submitted By: Anonymous
Posted: Wednesday, August 13, 2003

IqzYoung · Guest

Sweet , and still you guys better pay attention ...