Thread: Airline News

News
Businessman pays €759 for promoted tweet to criticise British Airways







A British businessman upset with an airline’s customer service has made innovative use of social media to air his grievance.
Hasan Syed, fed up with British Airways over its handling of his father’s lost luggage, tweeted his annoyance. But instead of just putting out a normal message on Twitter, he put his hand in his pocket to reach as many people as possible.
The promoted tweet – which cost €759 ($1,000) and was aimed at the airline’s 300,000 followers on Twitter – read: “Don’t fly @BritishAirways. Their customer service is horrendous.”
He decided to highlight the airline’s customer service after his father’s luggage was lost after a flight from Chicago to Paris.

Four hours after the tweet was posted, the airline’s Twitter account responded: “Sorry for the delay in responding, our twitter feed is open 09:00-17:00 GMT. Please DM [direct message] your baggage ref and we’ll look into this.”
Shashank Nigam, chief executive of aviation consultancy SimpliFlying, commenting on the new trend, said: “The implications are tremendous for the future of airline customer service, especially on social media.
“In the first six hours since the tweet was promoted, it had garnered over 25,000 impressions only on Twitter.”
British Airways later apologised for any “inconvenience caused” and said the bag was due to be delivered today.

Originally Posted by Dillinger

He decided to highlight the airline’s customer service

Originally Posted by Dillinger

“Don’t fly @BritishAirways. Their customer service is horrendous.”

How does a 'nothing' message like that highlight BA's poor customer service?

Originally Posted by Tom Sawyer

I was en route from France to Calais in the 1990s (at night)

Did the dark make you lose your sense of direction?...

Originally Posted by Dillinger

News
Businessman pays €759 for promoted tweet to criticise British Airways







A British businessman upset with an airline’s customer service has made innovative use of social media to air his grievance.
Hasan Syed, fed up with British Airways over its handling of his father’s lost luggage, tweeted his annoyance. But instead of just putting out a normal message on Twitter, he put his hand in his pocket to reach as many people as possible.
The promoted tweet – which cost €759 ($1,000) and was aimed at the airline’s 300,000 followers on Twitter – read: “Don’t fly @BritishAirways. Their customer service is horrendous.”
He decided to highlight the airline’s customer service after his father’s luggage was lost after a flight from Chicago to Paris.

Four hours after the tweet was posted, the airline’s Twitter account responded: “Sorry for the delay in responding, our twitter feed is open 09:00-17:00 GMT. Please DM [direct message] your baggage ref and we’ll look into this.”
Shashank Nigam, chief executive of aviation consultancy SimpliFlying, commenting on the new trend, said: “The implications are tremendous for the future of airline customer service, especially on social media.
“In the first six hours since the tweet was promoted, it had garnered over 25,000 impressions only on Twitter.”
British Airways later apologised for any “inconvenience caused” and said the bag was due to be delivered today.

Sadly if someone did that in Thailand, they would likely be the subject of a civil and maybe even a criminal libel action, whether or not the comment was truthful.

Originally Posted by Troy

Originally Posted by Tom Sawyer

I was en route from France to Calais in the 1990s (at night)

Did the dark make you lose your sense of direction?...

Nope it was the JW.. I meant Dover to Calais. Sorry

Flight TG669 skids off runway

All 298 persons on board Thai Airways International's flight TG669 are safe despite the accident during the landing.



Departing Guangzhou, China, the flight landed safely at Suvarnabhumi Airport at 11.30pm on Sunday.

One of the engines of the Airbus A330 aircraft caught fire. The plane skidded off the runway, causing minor injuries to 12 persons. Some suffered from smoke.

Flight TG669 skids off runway - The Nation

THAI mishap blocks airport runway (Bangkok Post - sorry cant post link)

Mon, September 09, 2013 08:21 AM

The Bangkok-bound flight, TG679, left Guangzhou at 9.25pm (local time) and was scheduled to arrive at Suvarnabhumi airport at 11.20pm, Thailand time.

The airline statement said the nose gear of the Airbus 330-300 collapsed when it touched the runway during the landing.

According to some passenger accounts, a loud noise was heard on landing and there was a fire at the right side of the aircraft.

The plane skidded off the runway, and passengers were evacuated using slides.

According to THAI, there were 287 passengers and 14 crew members aboard the direct flight from Guangzhou.

"A total 13 passengers were slightly injured. Injured passengers were taken care and sent to hospital for medical treatment," the airline said.
A Thai Airways International flight from China veered off the runway as it arrived at Suvarnabhumi airport Sunday, and the airline said at least 13 people were injured in the rough landing.

Authorities at the airport said they could not clear the accident, and flight delays were likely Monday.

The Bangkok-bound flight, TG679, left Guangzhou at 9.25pm (local time) and was scheduled to arrive at Suvarnabhumi airport at 11.20pm, Thailand time.

The airline statement said the nose gear of the Airbus 330-300 collapsed when it touched the runway during the landing.

According to some passenger accounts, a loud noise was heard on landing and there was a fire at the right side of the aircraft.

The plane skidded off the runway, and passengers were evacuated using slides.

According to THAI, there were 287 passengers and 14 crew members aboard the direct flight from Guangzhou.

"A total 13 passengers were slightly injured. Injured passengers were taken care and sent to hospital for medical treatment," the airline said.

A bit more detailed than the Nations reporting there Tom, although it looks to be said twice

I like this bit

Originally Posted by Dillinger

the flight landed safely at Suvarnabhumi Airport at 11.30pm on Sunday.

A bit of a contrast from

Originally Posted by Tom Sawyer

a loud noise was heard on landing and there was a fire at the right side of the aircraft.

The plane skidded off the runway, and passengers were evacuated using slides.

Originally Posted by Tom Sawyer

at least 13 people were injured in the rough landing.

Rail travel anyone?

Originally Posted by Thormaturge

Rail travel anyone?

Not to/from Chiang Mai, no.

Just seen a pic of the plane and they were busy blacking out the logos on the tail fin.

Saving face?

Originally Posted by Smug Farang Bore

Saving face?

Cheaper than maintenance.

It's a mystery tale

Likely a promo stunt for mrs Smegs hooker prize winning novel
Fear of Lyin"

Originally Posted by klong toey

At least now one was badly hurt,the driver didn't run away in Thailand that is a result.

very good.....

Flight delays at Suvarnabhumi airport
Published: 9 Sep 2013 at 13.32

All outbound flights from Suvarnabhumi are being delayed for up to 30 minutes and incoming flights are about 15 minutes late because part of the eastern runway is closed for 48 hours following the crash landing by a Thai Airways International Airbus.



The crashed Thai Airways International A330-300, with all names and logos blacked out, awaits salvage at Suvarnahumi airport after an undercarriage problem on landing left it nose down on the side of the runway on Sunday night. (Photo by Somchai Poomlard)

Airports of Thailand Plc board chairman Sita Divari said on Monday the delays were unavoidable as the eastern runway was only partially usable in the wake of the accident.

The runway is open only to small aircraft. All medium- and wide-bodied planes have been directed to use the western runway until work crews tow the crashed aircraft away and repair the damaged runway, he said.

About 35 flights were delayed this morning.

THAI flight TG679 crashed on landing and skidded off the eastern runway about 11.20pm on Sunday.

The aircraft slide damaged 300 metres of the runway surface and AoT decided to close that section for 48 hours for repair, Sqn Ldr Sita said. AoT has reserved Don Mueang in Bangkok and U-tapao airports in Rayong for emergency if the situation worsens, he added.

The damaged runway could reopen earlier if repair completes, the AoT chairman said.

All airlines using the Thai main airport have been informed about the closed runway and alerted on delays to occur.

The accident injured 14 people, six of them being treated at Samitivej Hospital and the rest released, according to THAI.

THAI president Sorajak Kasemsuvan said all injured will be taken care of by the airline for six months.

The national carrier will pay $200 for luggage delays for business class passengers and $100 for economy class customers travelling on the flight, he added.

The airline has set up a panel to look into the cause of the accident, while an independent panel was formed by the Department of Civil Aviation to investigate the case.

Mr Sorajak said the captain and air crew did their best in helping the passengers, most of them Chinese tourists, after the accident and defended that the airport's decision to obscure its logo and names of the damaged aircraft was the normal procedure.

Former independent candidate for the Bangkok governor Kosit Suvinitjit was one of the 288 passengers on board the flight.

He told FM100.5 station that the aircraft landed smoothly first and then it veered to the right with loud noise. ``I looked out of the window and saw two parts of the plane removed,'' said Mr Kosit, who sat in the business class section. ``I saw smoke and then heard the captain ordering an emergency evacuation.''

http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingn...-up-to-30-mins

decision to obscure its logo and names of the damaged aircraft was the normal procedure.

No cover ups here

^ The way I interpreted the words of the THAI spokesman is that blurring is indeed the procedure 'to avoid image damage'. But I got the feeling that it is a new procedure.
And I was just wondering - cant the use white paint to do the blurring rather than black?

Originally Posted by david44

decision to obscure its logo and names of the damaged aircraft was the normal procedure.

No cover ups here

That's SOP in any air crash. Not only do they do their best to obscure any identifying markings, but airline crisis management also tells them to make sure there are no company logos visible anywhere when talking to the media.

Apparently this is because people are more likely to remember seeing a logo than hearing a name.

Originally Posted by david44

The bottom 10

51. SkyWest Airlines

52. South African Airways

53. Thai Airways

54. Turkish Airlines

..

Source: Jet Airliner Crash Data Evaluation Centre

I think that's a bit unfair. How many incidents do 52, 53 and 54 have? I mean if you look at the longer period, very few. When was the last THAI crash? Or South African Airways? And Turkish Airlines is a 4 or 5 star airline.. Yes they had an accident.. but?

Originally Posted by Tom Sawyer

Originally Posted by david44

The bottom 10

51. SkyWest Airlines

52. South African Airways

53. Thai Airways

54. Turkish Airlines

..

Source: Jet Airliner Crash Data Evaluation Centre

I think that's a bit unfair. How many incidents do 52, 53 and 54 have? I mean if you look at the longer period, very few. When was the last THAI crash? Or South African Airways? And Turkish Airlines is a 4 or 5 star airline.. Yes they had an accident.. but?

The whole concept [or rating system] might be unfair or flawed.
Think of the thousands of flights daily or annually worldwide....without incidents.

The odd or occasional mishap or crash [any airline, anywhere] - tragic or uneventful - receives attention to one degree or another.