Wednesday December 13, 2006
Flight delays leave passengers fuming
By GEETHA KRISHNAN
SEPANG: Flight delays of up to five hours left passengers fuming at the Low-Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT) of the KL International Airport yesterday.
The delays allegedly occurred when 28 flights of budget carrier AirAsia were rescheduled.
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LONG WAIT: The Johnson sisters from Canada waiting to get on their flight to Sandakan at the LCCT in Sepang. |
Also hit were Siem Reap in Cambodia and airports in Bangkok and Phuket.
Among the local routes affected were flights to Sabah (Kota Kinabalu, Sandakan and Tawau) and Sarawak (Kuching, Bintulu, Miri and Sibu).
Other affected destinations were Kota Baru, Labuan, Langkawi and Penang. One flight to Langkawi was cancelled.
Flight information handwritten on notice boards only caused confusion.
The electronic display screen was out of order, pending dismantling and shifting work by airport authorities.
Frequent traveller Don Darrell said he paid RM220 for a ticket to Langkawi because he wanted the 11am flight. His flight was delayed to 3.45pm.
“AirAsia should provide meal vouchers for the long wait. When I went to the information counter to make a complaint, forms were also scarce,” he said.
A passenger known only as Yee, who was travelling with his wife and eight-year-old son, said they had to sit on trolleys because there was no seat available for them.
“This is the third time we have experienced delays. Our 4.20pm flight to Miri has been rescheduled to 7.40pm.”
The Johnson sisters from Canada, who were on their first trip to Malaysia, experienced a four-hour delay for their flight to Sandakan.
AirAsia admitted that there had been flight delays over the last two days, allegedly due to technical faults in three of its Boeing aircraft.
“Immediate measures were taken to thoroughly check and rectify the faults. With safety as our priority, aircraft are being double-checked before being released for service. Hence, extended delays these couple of days,” it said in a statement.
The airline added that it was currently recording an “extremely high” passenger load of over 90% on an average flight.
“Every possible means is taken to ensure guests are placed on the next available flight to their destinations,'' the statement said, extending its apologies to its customers over the inconvenience.
“To minimise further delays, guests are allocated seats on the same day wherever possible. Our technical crew and operations are working hard to achieve this.
“December is one of AirAsia’s busiest periods.”
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