AUSTRIA - MEGLIO A PIEDI CHE IN AEREO

VIAGGIARE CON AUSTRIAN AIRLINES? MEGLIO DI NO.

QUESTA L'E-MAIL E LA LETTERA INVIATA LORO CIRCA TRE MESI FA.

NON HO MAI RICEVUTO UNA RISPOSTA.

Bologna (Italy), 5^th July 2011

To the attention of Austrian Airways:

My name is Pietro Scòzzari, Italian citizen. I am a journalist and I work with the travel magazines of my country.

I contact you to complain about what happened yesterday to my girlfriend, Mrs. Satoko Ishizaki, Japanese citizen.

She flew from Tokyo to Vienna with your flight OS 052 (perfect flight). Once landed in Vienna, she proceeded immediately to the gate C31, as reported originally on the boarding card that she got in Tokyo, in order to reach me in Bologna.

Satoko speaks almost no English and has never traveled alone outside Japan before, so she has several language limits, as well as very little or no experience in traveling by herself abroad.

Once at the gate 31, she asked twice – not just once – to the desk personnel of Austrian Airways if that was the right gate, showing them the boarding card. Your personnel replied twice ‘Yes, wait’.

So she waited for almost two hours, while the scheduled flight to Bologna OS 549 was moved to another gate and she missed it.

I suppose that, as usually happens in all major airports, her name was called to the new gate. But even so, as she doesn’t almost understand English, she didn’t get to know about the gate change. And nobody came personally to look for her.

Later on, checking the time, she noticed that it was late, so asked for the third time about her flight. Only then somebody told her that the flight was already gone, from another gate…

In panic, she called me (in Italy), telling me about the problem. She gave her mobile phone to one of your employees, so I could understand what happened.

Your company put her on the next flight available (OS 535), charging her the amount of 185 euros, on her credit card account.

Talking to your employee, she told me that what happened was Satoko’s fault. I agree that it is not Austrian Airways fault if my girlfriends speaks too little English nor if she hasn’t traveled much before. However, a big, good company as Austrian Airways should have more sensibility about their customers.

When young and with no experience about traveling, I also missed a couple of flights – and so happened to several people that I know -, but always, even in recent times, the companies put me (or put other people) on the next flight with no extra charge. Evidently they had some ‘pity’ for me/them, and also evidently they had an empty seat available on the next flight. Choosing between giving me a ‘little gift’ or treating me in a rude way – losing a client in the future -, they gently opted for the first solution, certainly more ‘marketing oriented’ than the second, greedy and not-so-smart one.

What happened yesterday shocked us. It has not been fair at all.

We will certainly remember this sad episode in the future at the moment of choosing an airline to fly with. And I will do all my best to make other people know about Austrian Airways ungenerous policy.

Regards,

Pietro Scòzzari

AGGIORNAMENTO al 5 luglio 2012

Happy birthday!

È passato un anno, e la Austrian Airlines ancora non mi ha risposto. 

Aufidersen, forever.