Thai Airways accused of favouring foreign passengers over Thais

[Smokey and the Bandit]

3 hours ago, Freddy42OZ said:

The problem is that they both hold Gold Status and the attendant went to serve the foreign (I wonder what nationality) passenger first. Maybe she saw his request first? 

The Thai guy is obviously well educated, has money and status and therefore should be given the same level of service as others flying in the class he was in.  

The airline owes him an apology and a better explanation. 
 

"The airline owes him an apology and a better explanation."

 

Just love the sarcasm, great stuff!

[klauskunkel]

Quote

I have both a French and a Belgian passport. I can speak three foreign languages, English, Greek, and Russian. I got overlooked

You are Thai and you tick all the boxes..., except you need to become a General.

Once you do that, they'll smooch all over you and nothing else required.

 

[mikeymike100]

13 hours ago, hotchilli said:

Quote from the link:

According to Watcharaphol, the attendant said that the foreign passenger behind him was a Gold Status passenger. He was confused and showed his boarding pass to her, explaining that he was also holding gold status. Watcharaphol then said…

“What does that foreign passenger have that I don’t? I have both a French and a Belgian passport. I can speak three foreign languages, English, Greek, and Russian. I got overlooked because I am speaking Thai, right? 

 

No so much "what does he have" as much as what do you have.

A huge chip on your shoulder.

 

 

 

Absolutely, a huge chip, more like a giant anvil?????

[scorecard]

3 hours ago, RefinedGentleman said:

Amusing that a person would create an incident over the mere possibility that someone on their flight MIGHT be receiving better service than they are. ???? My God, talk about a fragile ego. Imagine the experiences this guy has in restaurants...does he take notes on how the other tables are treated relative to this own? Must be hard to go through life like this.

Not that Simple, this subject has been raised many times before, and not only in regard to buiness class.

 

For several years I did day trips Bkk to S'pore and return. I was entitled to travel business but I chose to save a few Baht on such a short fligh and fly economy.

 

Many times I saw Thai passengers needing help on boarding who were very obviously being ignored by the Thai cabin crew.

 

Even worse; a couple of times Thai ladies with a couple of small toddlers being ignored. On one occasion an older Thai lady nearby got up quickly, took one of the toddlers and told the cabin crew woman to take care or this family. Her respons was loudly 'NOT MY JOB'.

 

The older Thai woman ensured they got seated and she went to the galley to ask for some coloured pencils etc. She came back and shared 'coloured pencils finished'. another olderThai lady went to a different galley and came back with coloured pencils and other toys.

 

Mealtime; the cabin crew just stacked 3 trays on the fold down tray for the young mother and walked away. The older Thai women quickly helped to feed the toddlers and give the mother a break.

 

This was in an era when cabin crew were very arrogant and totally lazy.

 

My own Thai staff came back from business trips regularly and complained about the lack of service and the rudeness of the cabin crew. My company policy was that each office had to use the national airline of the country where the office was situated.

 

I was at the TG HQ and found a snr. manager and shared the comments / complaints. His response was 'I'm so sorry you were disappointed with the service, I'm sure it will be better next time. And he walked away.

Edited March 29, 2023 by scorecard

[Nong Khai Man]

5 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

Childish jealous behavior.... typical..... we are better than the rest

He's Probably after a FREE Flight in FIRST Class next time.....

[Neeranam]

7 hours ago, Enoon said:

 

"The senior flight attendant then came to Watcharaphol’s seat to pacify the situation and apologise, offering him the required service."

 

But still he needed to whine on FB.

 

Sounds like they "didn't know who he was".

 

Petulant, entitled little ****.

 

 

 

Thailand has a strict hierarchical social structure and obeisance is extremely important, which foreigners don't understand, or in this case, criticise. 

 

Air hostesses are often half-way up the social ladder and don't like servicing other Thais, especially the ones many foreigners are with -  the ones that look like they are former bar cashiers. 

 

 

Edited March 29, 2023 by Neeranam

[Burma Bill]

10 hours ago, webfact said:

and arrived safely at Suvarnabhumi Airport

Amazing - are there unsafe arrivals with THAI???

[KiChakayan]

"One woman who claimed to be a former attendant added that the flight attendant always took the best care of Thai passengers. She added that some Thai passengers were very demanding compared to others."

 

In other words the "you don't know who I am" syndrome. Entitled anuses if you ask me...

[John Drake]

I don't care about the service. All I ask for is a little quiet, nobody's feet pushed up on my arm rest, and a little leg room.

[spidermike007]

What do you want to bet a Thai who can afford business class on Thai air, is a difficult passenger to please? Many wealthy or affluent Thais I have met have bad attitudes and think they are very special, and of course they are not on any level. They just have some cash. That is all. 

 

On the other hand, many Westerners who are affluent, can be quite humble about it. And certainly not believers in a class structure due to their money. That attitude is very Thai and incredibly bogus and offensive. 

 

So, in this case, my guess is that this guy is an over entitled clown. 

[Sig]

He made a proper fool out of himself. With only what was explained in the article - one single example, how on earth does the reason for the treatment suddenly become a point of foreign/Thai!? There are likely a thousand other things it could be! It's even possible that IF extra attention was indeed being given to that passenger, maybe there was a VERY good reason and it's possible that such reason couldn't be shared in order to protect the privacy or even dignity of that passenger. There are so many possibilities outside of the idea that it is because the person was a foreigner, it is absurd. It looks like what I seem to come across so often... a racist, socially projecting on others. If one is racist and terribly insecure, projecting that onto others will make one's conscience feel justified. Not sure what it would take to convince me that this guy is not an arrogant, insecure racist. Of course, I wouldn't say that he is such, I don't know him, but boy oh boy, he sure is begging the question!

[Danderman123]

On the flip side ...

 

I flew Economy the other day (it happens), and there was a gentleman from a southern Asian country seated near me who insisted on a free upgrade to Business class. He kept marching up to Business class, only to be marched back by the staff. They had to keep a lookout to.make sure he didn't sneak up and take a seat.

[Neeranam]

Once on Thai airways, I was approached by a hostess and she started telling me the safety instructions in English. I said I had just heard them in Thai and she said by law she had to tell them to me in English. I was the only white guy on board. When I told her I was Thai, she didn't believe me and I had to show my Thai ID card, what a black affront. This was blatant racial discrimination, much worse than this guy had.

[connda]

That's a change of pace.  Coolio. 

[scottiejohn]

23 minutes ago, Neeranam said:

she said by law she had to tell them to me in English

I think you will find is that she was correct as English is the Internationally accepted "language of the Air"!

Why Is English Aviation's Official Language? (simpleflying.com)

[Neeranam]

56 minutes ago, scottiejohn said:

I think you will find is that she was correct as English is the Internationally accepted "language of the Air"!

Why Is English Aviation's Official Language? (simpleflying.com)

If I couldn't understand Thai, she might have been right, she should have known there were no foreigners on board.

[steven100]

12 hours ago, Robbiec666 said:

Everyone is entitled to the service they pay for regardless of gender and race. Let's hope this brings attention to the way Foreign guests are treated by Thailand. Take national thieves (National Parks) for example, that price gouge tourists to such an extent that we can not afford to enjoy the stolen natural spots they occupy. I pay Thai tax incase anyone is attempting to call me entitled and if you don't like it leave comments are ridiculous as the said attitudes. My point is all people should be treated equally tax payers or business class passangers. Have a lovely day all. Love Thailand Hate Dual Pricing for foreigners living here. 

are you still dreaming

[steven100]

and tell that whinging thai to shut her mouth and order a drink ......  she's probably from Nana ..

Edited March 29, 2023 by steven100

[scottiejohn]

1 hour ago, Neeranam said:

If I couldn't understand Thai, she might have been right, she should have known there were no foreigners on board.

How come she is only briefing you directly and not making an aircraft wide announcement as normal? No pre landing videos etc?

Were you the only passenger in the whole aircraft?

You said earlier you were the only "white guy" onboard!  Why the colour mention I do not know, but it implies there were other "non white guys" on board.

 

If we assume you were not the sole passenger onboard, even if, and you have not stated it, she knew you spoke fluent Thai before she gave you your personal safety brief, she still had to make the announcements/personal briefings in the airline's native language and English as a minimum to the other passenger(s)!

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 29, 2023 by scottiejohn

[BangkokReady]

15 hours ago, Enoon said:

Sounds like they "didn't know who he was".

More like "He is a farang and I am a Thai!  I should get the extra service and the farang should be being discriminated against!".

[BangkokReady]

15 hours ago, hotchilli said:

Quote from the link:

According to Watcharaphol, the attendant said that the foreign passenger behind him was a Gold Status passenger. He was confused and showed his boarding pass to her, explaining that he was also holding gold status. Watcharaphol then said…

“What does that foreign passenger have that I don’t? I have both a French and a Belgian passport. I can speak three foreign languages, English, Greek, and Russian. I got overlooked because I am speaking Thai, right? 

 

No so much "what does he have" as much as what do you have.

A huge chip on your shoulder.

 

 

It explains a lot if a wealthy Thai doctor with three passports who speaks multiple languages loses his <deleted> just because a non-Thai might be getting his drink first.

 

Superiority complex.

[BangkokReady]

14 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

Childish jealous behavior.... typical..... we are better than the rest

One of the downsides of nationalism (or Thai Supremacy), people have a meltdown when they're treated just like everyone else.

[BangkokReady]

13 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

I travel cattle class. If some fool pays twice the price - or more - for the same flight, same distance and same time out of their lives , then good luck to them getting a bit more. Most people to Europe will try and sleep most of the flight, not exactly to get extra when catching zzz's

I'd wager his blood was boiling from the moment he saw the non-Thai getting on the flight and entering the same zone as him.  He started to sweat when he saw the farang was much taller than him.  His veins started to pulsate when he noticed his shirt was more expensive than his. 

 

When the stewardess went to the farang before him, it was too much. 

 

He had a Patrick Bateman moment.

[BangkokReady]

3 hours ago, Neeranam said:

When I told her I was Thai, she didn't believe me and I had to show my Thai ID card, what a black affront. This was blatant racial discrimination, much worse than this guy had.

You should have shown print-outs of this forum to help her understand your situation.

[BangkokReady]

Quote

 

“What does that foreign passenger have that I don’t? I have both a French and a Belgian passport. I can speak three foreign languages, English, Greek, and Russian. I got overlooked because I am speaking Thai, right? Can you clarify this for me? Do I have to buy any coupons to receive the same standard of service? Where can I get it?”

 

The senior flight attendant then came to Watcharaphol’s seat to pacify the situation and apologise, offering him the required service. Watcharaphol believes he was discriminated against for being Thai and hoped Thai Airways would be concerned about equality. He added that he would review Thai Airways’ service again when he flies back to Paris this week.

 

"Watcharaphol said that now that he has experienced discrimination based on race, he is going to do all that he can to fight racism against foreigners in Thailand.  He said he's planning to take aim at dual pricing on services and attractions and old women tutting as foreigners walk past them, as soon as he returns to Belgium."

[chilli42]

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[Damrongsak]

5 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

...  On the other hand, many Westerners who are affluent, can be quite humble about it. And certainly not believers in a class structure due to their money. That attitude is very Thai and incredibly bogus and offensive.  ...

My wife worked as a nanny/helper for a well-to-do family for a number of years here in the U.S.  Very nice people.  We still get invited to family dinners on occasion. 

[spidermike007]

33 minutes ago, Damrongsak said:

My wife worked as a nanny/helper for a well-to-do family for a number of years here in the U.S.  Very nice people.  We still get invited to family dinners on occasion. 

I find there is little in the way of any sort of class structure in the US. I have a number of very wealthy friends. They mix it up with me, and all sorts. Wealth is rarely a factor. Very little judgment or arrogance. Not at all the case here. The so called hi-so (I think it is a very bad descriptor, as it indicates some level of sophistication, when it is often not the case at all) here are incredibly arrogant, full of themselves, fairly useless, and can be quite toxic. 

[rose33]

16 hours ago, hotchilli said:

Quote from the link:

According to Watcharaphol, the attendant said that the foreign passenger behind him was a Gold Status passenger. He was confused and showed his boarding pass to her, explaining that he was also holding gold status. Watcharaphol then said…

“What does that foreign passenger have that I don’t? I have both a French and a Belgian passport. I can speak three foreign languages, English, Greek, and Russian. I got overlooked because I am speaking Thai, right? 

 

No so much "what does he have" as much as what do you have.

A huge chip on your shoulder.

 

 

 

13 hours ago, Hanuman2547 said:

It's been my experience that Thai Airways tends to give better service to non-Thais over the years when I flew Thai.  I saw a lot of that back in the 80's and 90's.  Also heard a number of Thais complain about this as well.  Didn't matter if it was business or economy class.    

Now I tend to stay away from Thai Airways as their fares are always more expensive than their competitors and the routing is never that convenient.  

I heard TA is going broke, which gives me pause about the safety of the planes.

 

Full points though for their 2022 safety demonstration video, which was sensuous, flirty, elegant, creative and beautiful. 

[Hanuman2547]

1 minute ago, rose33 said:

 

I heard TA is going broke, which gives me pause about the safety of the planes.

 

Full points though for their 2022 safety demonstration video, which was sensuous, flirty, elegant, creative and beautiful. 

Thai Airways definitely has some financial issues that have been a problem for quite some time.  Safety issues have also been called into question and I believe some countries have not allowed them to land in their country.