Passenger Criticizes Thai Airways for Stranding Over 30 People at Arlanda Airport

[webfact]

File photo courtesy: Wikipedia

 

A woman shares a cautionary tale about being stranded by Thai Airways. She describes how over 30 passengers were left abandoned when their flights were canceled, with no communication from the airline. The woman, along with her entire family including a 3-year-old child, was forced to stay at the airport without any assistance for more than 6 hours before receiving new tickets.

 

On September 9th, the Facebook user "jinnysista" shared her dreadful experience with Thai Airways. Her post reads, "Review of a terrible experience with Thai Airways – cancellation at the gate GATE 65, Stockholm Arlanda Airport Terminal 5. Who would imagine spending 170,000 baht (3823.68 GBP) on a legitimate ticket purchased from Thai Airways’ website, just to have it canceled right before boarding?

 

On September 2, 2024, at 7:20 AM, even as the plane was landing in Stockholm—already delayed by 20 minutes—Jinny and her family rushed to re-scan their bags and run to the gate. But they were informed that Thai Airways canceled tickets for everyone, totaling over 30 passengers, without prior notice. Oddly, other passengers who hadn't booked with Thai Airways could still board their flights without issues.

 

To this day, the true reason for Thai Airways' cancellation remains unknown, but there are a few possibilities:

 

1. The delayed flight might have caused a timing issue with transferring luggage to a connecting flight at the airport.

2. Thai Airways potentially didn’t pay extra fees for staff to wait for delayed passengers.

3. The connecting flight was with SAS, which had exited the Star Alliance.

Regardless of the reason, none of this was the passengers' fault. However, passengers were left stranded at the terminal without immediate help, and no Thai Airways staff were available to assist.

 

Imagine expecting to return home to the UK but instead being stuck at the airport without a Schengen visa. It took 6 hours of phone calls to finally get new tickets, without ever meeting or receiving help from any Thai Airways staff.

 

Jinny and her family had to chase down Thai Airways staff from other flights to enquire about food and expense compensation, which they rightly deserved. After a long wait of 4 more hours, they finally received 300 SEK each (initially, they were only offered 100 SEK per person, until they filed a complaint).

 

Throughout their communication, Thai Airways staff consistently deflected responsibility, despite the fact that they had booked tickets directly with the airline. How can they shirk responsibility like this? It’s a question left unanswered, but one thing is clear—they were deeply disappointed with Thai Airways.”

 

-- 2024-09-09
 

 

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[Chelseafan]

Hope they all put in their claim for 600 euros

 

[Will B Good]

 

 

 

She'll be in court soon....defending herself against defamation charges.

 

 

 

 

[impulse]

14 minutes ago, Chelseafan said:

Hope they all put in their claim for 600 euros

 

 

What's the criteria for the 600 EU?  Does a 4-6 hour delay trigger it?  I'm curious, not dubious.

 

Almost need a scorecard to see what went on.  Best I can figure, their flight was cancelled and the passengers who had booked and paid for their tickets through other airlines were able to find help and get rebooked, while 30 passengers who booked (and paid) through Thai Airlines couldn't find a Thai counter to get help.  It's also not clear whether it was a Thai Airlines flight that was cancelled, or a codeshare flight.  

 

(Edit:  Am I missing something?  I've been wrong before...)

 

Irritating as it is, that's largely the nature of international flying nowadays.  I've had similar happen to me about once every 20 journeys, especially with codeshares.  Sucks, and I hope they do get fairly compensated...  But not tragic.

 

[Chelseafan]

26 minutes ago, impulse said:

 

What's the criteria for the 600 EU?  Does a 4-6 hour delay trigger it?  I'm curious, not dubious.

 

Almost need a scorecard to see what went on.  Best I can figure, their flight was cancelled and the passengers who had booked and paid for their tickets through other airlines were able to find help and get rebooked, while 30 passengers who booked (and paid) through Thai Airlines couldn't find a Thai counter to get help.  It's also not clear whether it was a Thai Airlines flight that was cancelled, or a codeshare flight.  

 

(Edit:  Am I missing something?  I've been wrong before...)

 

Irritating as it is, that's largely the nature of international flying nowadays.  I've had similar happen to me about once every 20 journeys, especially with codeshares.  Sucks, and I hope they do get fairly compensated...  But not tragic.

 

 

Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004

 

EU Regulation 261/2004 entitles you to monetary compensation for flight delays over three hours as long as the delay was not caused by what the EU261 classes as an 'extraordinary circumstance'. Compensation amounts under EU261 for flight delays range from £220 to £520 per passenger

 

Cancellation is not extrodinary circumstances. In this case they are entitled to the maximum of 600 euros as the flight was more than 3500km (assuming they were travelling to Thailand).

 

It only applies for flights that originate or arrive in the EU.

 

As an aside, I've used this many times to claim compensation. My latest involved Swiss air who cancelled my flight in Norway but did reroute me on Emirates. I arrived in Bangkok over 8 hours late so while they did everything to get me to my destination, my interpretation is that I am still able to claim for the delay.

 

 

 

[impulse]

4 minutes ago, Chelseafan said:

Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004

 

Good info.  If they were pleased when the airline gave them 300 SEK (26 EUR) instead of 100 SEK (8 EUR), then 600 EUR should ease the sting somewhat.

 

[Chelseafan]

Just now, impulse said:

 

Good info.  If they were pleased when the airline gave them 300 SEK (26 EUR) instead of 100 SEK (8 EUR), then 600 EUR should ease the sting somewhat.

 

 

I suspect the 300kr was for food/drink. There are many more aspects of this regulation which includes the airline having to cover overnight accomodation/meals where applicable. Thai failed big time and I hope they pay up rather than the passengers going through the courts.

 

[ikke1959]

defamation charges looms... Critics are not allowed on a Thai something.

[richard_smith237]

When issues occur, the response of airlines is 'always' terrible...

... and considering that 'issues occur' the lack of preparation and extent of disorganisation even amongst reputable airlines is terrible.

 

 

Turkish Airlines: had a boarding pass, flight over booked - refused boarding at connection. Was offered €250 compensation (if I signed there and then - was told we'd get nothing if we didn't sign - Airline staff lying) - 6 hrs later got to the layover hotel, staff told me it was going to be a 5* hotel, it was a sh** hole (airline staff openly lied again) - travel delayed 24 hrs. Filed a claim with the airline, they refused the claim for compensation. Went through an ombudsman (ADR) - received €600 after 5 months (law states it should take less than a week).

 

 

Emirates: Major delay (10 hrs), it happens. Missed connection. Taken to hotel after 5hrs messing around at Dubai Airport - Hotel full, messed about for another few hours, taken to another hotel - delayed nearly 48 hrs - Airline tried to pull a fast one and not pay the €600 for my Son.

 

 

Etihad: Got married, they wanted to charge $200 for a name change (Wife's surname).

 

 

Eithad: Extreme damage to baggage (push-chair - snapped in half), Airline rejected compensation claim. Ombudsman, took my claim on as a valid claim, Airline rejected the claim for the cost of the pushchair, next step was legal proceedings, not worth it for a £300 pushchair) - never flew the airline again.

 

 

Thai: Injured overseas (2 days before travel) - needed a wheelchair at airport (couldn't walk - due to leg injury) Airline not responding to e-mails. Unable to get through to right people on call centre (i.e. call was answered, but redirected, no response from people it was redirected to) tried a few times, time being wasted - Wife pulled connections and got it sorted through a friend, worked out in the end, without Wife's connections I would not have got through to Thai and would have struggled through the airport.

 

 

Qatar Airlines (Covid times) thailand announced it would open boarders - I was naive and bought a ticket. Thailand's borders didn't open - I contacted airline, they'd sold a ticket on a route that was not open. Asked for refund, refused, they said they couldn't refund until flight was cancelled, ask them to list 'any flight' into Bangkok which had not been cancelled in the past week - my flight date approached, 2 days before theoretical travel date Airline cancelled the flight - took 5 months to get a refund, I had to threaten legal action as they only wanted to give a partial refund (*70%) - got the full refund. 

 

 

 

 

In short - contrary to their marketing about what a wonderful service is provided - Airlines have some of the worst customer service of any industry when the metric is how things are handled when things go wrong - they lack organisation and even though plans are always in place to account for delays etc (deals with hotels etc) - the messing around takes way too long, the staff are not wholly honest...

 

... the worst part of all of the issues is the terrible communication - People understand that issues exist - its the unclear, poor, delayed or non-existent communication that winds people up - and this often borders on dishonesty as they airline attempts to minimise their exposure instead of owning the issue as they are legally responsible to do.

 

[richard_smith237]

55 minutes ago, Chelseafan said:

 

Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004

 

EU Regulation 261/2004 entitles you to monetary compensation for flight delays over three hours as long as the delay was not caused by what the EU261 classes as an 'extraordinary circumstance'. Compensation amounts under EU261 for flight delays range from £220 to £520 per passenger

 

Cancellation is not extrodinary circumstances. In this case they are entitled to the maximum of 600 euros as the flight was more than 3500km (assuming they were travelling to Thailand).

 

It only applies for flights that originate or arrive in the EU.

 

As an aside, I've used this many times to claim compensation. My latest involved Swiss air who cancelled my flight in Norway but did reroute me on Emirates. I arrived in Bangkok over 8 hours late so while they did everything to get me to my destination, my interpretation is that I am still able to claim for the delay.

 

 

 

Exactly as above... I've used this regulation to claim compensation - though the airlines drag their heels and with Turkish I had to use ADR https://www.aviationadr.org.uk/ 

 

As mentioned 

€600 is the compensation if.

- Ticketed distance is greater than 3500 km

- Delay is greater than 4 hours

- Airline is registered in Europe (and EU Airline)

- Travel is into or out of EU Territory

 

 

Also note: Airlines try to get you to sign a 'cheaper compensation'...  Airlines also lie and tell you the delay is less than 3500 km, using one part of the leg of your journey (of a two or multi-leg journey) - but delay is on the 'ticketed distance'... 

 

Thus: even if someone flys from Bangkok - Munich - Manchester (for example)... and the Bangkok - Munich leg is fine, but they are then delayed by more than 4 hours on the Munich - Manchester leg, they are still eligible for the full compensation as the 'ticketed distance' is Bangkok - Munich - Manchester.

 

 

Also note: there are many 'Airline Dispute Resolution Companies' out there online, who will take on your claim with the no win no fee policy, they take anywhere from 20 to 40% of your compensation... these companies are bottom feeders, all they do is use the same 'online resources' which are free and available to all of us (as per the ADR link posted above).

 

Also note: Airline Dispute Resolution Companies deal with different 'groups' of carriers, for example: ADR listed above deals with Turkish and some other EU based airlines, but not Emirates - so we have to search which Dispute Resolution Companies deal with which airlines.

 

 

 

https://www.caa.co.uk/passengers-and-public/resolving-travel-problems/how-the-caa-can-help/alternative-dispute-resolution/

 

[Dave0206]

As I  read it they bought tickets through thai airways to the UK .flight from Thailand late and missed connecting flight .

7.20 in morning perhaps no schengan visa can not depart airport 🤔 

Why they didn't fly directly to UK perhaps cheaper?

Many airlines do not have there own staff at airports  

Also unless you really are familiar with airports difficult to  navigate from 1terminal to another in short space of time. 

 

[Dave0206]

I would never buy a ticket where a mere 20 minutes delay could cause me to miss a connecting flight and do not understand why airlines offer them .

Before British Airways stopped there flights from London to bkk I was checking prices for flights from Zurich to bkk.

British Airways showed zrh to LCY ( City Airport)

Then 4 hours later lhr to bkk I know this is virtually impossible self transfer one side of London to the other.

Plus if you are not British or European you will need a British visa so at check in you are screwed

[Chelseafan]

19 minutes ago, Dave0206 said:

As I  read it they bought tickets through thai airways to the UK .flight from Thailand late and missed connecting flight .

7.20 in morning perhaps no schengan visa can not depart airport 🤔 

Why they didn't fly directly to UK perhaps cheaper?

Many airlines do not have there own staff at airports  

Also unless you really are familiar with airports difficult to  navigate from 1terminal to another in short space of time. 

 

 

It's still the airlines respnsibility whatever way you look at it.

 

[Dave0206]

12 minutes ago, Chelseafan said:

 

It's still the airlines respnsibility whatever way you look at it.

 

Yes of course you are right but 1) if 20 minutes delay is enough to miss connecting flight why buy it ( today 28 minutes late)

2) why do airlines sell it especially if possible compensation is a real possibility 

[watchcat]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

A woman shares a cautionary tale about being stranded by Thai Airways. She describes how over 30 passengers were left abandoned when their flights were canceled, with no communication from the airline.

 

What did she expect, she was in a country where they didn't speak thai ?

[richard_smith237]

37 minutes ago, Dave0206 said:

As I  read it they bought tickets through thai airways to the UK .flight from Thailand late and missed connecting flight .

7.20 in morning perhaps no schengan visa can not depart airport 🤔 

Why they didn't fly directly to UK perhaps cheaper?

Many airlines do not have there own staff at airports  

Also unless you really are familiar with airports difficult to  navigate from 1terminal to another in short space of time. 

 

Unless I missed it, it was not mentioned in the Op but I suspect this was a codeshare flight whereby the tickets were purchased 'through Thai Airways' but the flight was on a different airline - I'm guessing S.A.S... 

 

... And when there was a delay and missed connection S.A.S. could not deal with the re-routing as it was Thai Airways responsibility (according to the ticketing)...

 

BUT... Thai Airways were not prepared, had no one in a position of authority available to attend to the passengers and resolve re-routing / re-ticketing etc - which is the obvious crux of the complaint... 

 

 

As mentioned, this is a good reason not to go on code-share flights.

 

 

 

 

 

[richard_smith237]

4 minutes ago, watchcat said:

3 hours ago, webfact said:

A woman shares a cautionary tale about being stranded by Thai Airways. She describes how over 30 passengers were left abandoned when their flights were canceled, with no communication from the airline.

 

What did she expect, she was in a country where they didn't speak thai ?

 

I wonder if you misunderstand what the word 'communication' means... 

[Chelseafan]

7 minutes ago, Dave0206 said:

Yes of course you are right but 1) if 20 minutes delay is enough to miss connecting flight why buy it ( today 28 minutes late)

2) why do airlines sell it especially if possible compensation is a real possibility 

 

Done this many times and you'll usually find that the first plane gets in much earlier than scheduled and even if they come in on-time/slightly late they will hold the connecting flight.

 

[FritsSikkink]

14 minutes ago, watchcat said:

 

What did she expect, she was in a country where they didn't speak thai ?

There should be staff from Thai Airlines available (who do speak Thai)

[Dave0206]

Again I will agree @ certain airlines and airports if flying through doha or Abu Dhabi easy for them to hold plane as the 30 passengers are their's but if for example you land terminal 1 Heathrow with non affiliated airline and connection is British Airways @ T5 you think BA will pay fine for missing there take off slot for you?

[watchcat]

40 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

There should be staff from Thai Airlines available (who do speak Thai)

 

But according to the op, there wasn't any

 

 

 

 

 

[richard_smith237]

6 hours ago, Dave0206 said:

Yes of course you are right but 1) if 20 minutes delay is enough to miss connecting flight why buy it ( today 28 minutes late)

2) why do airlines sell it especially if possible compensation is a real possibility 

 

1) Valid question, though airlines can often make up a small delay on departure in flight - depending on the airline and airport - I wouldn't want a delay of less than 1 hr 20 mins.

There is also the additional risk of the baggage not getting through on a tighter connection. 

 

 

2) Because the connection is not specifically for that individual flight, but a number of flights, thus it fits the best algorithm to suit a major routes and offset against the risk and potentail compensation rates of a connection on a minor route.

Also Airlines have to meet take-off and landing slots - at an airlines 'home hub' there may be more variability on landing slots, but at destination airports landing slot and gate timing maybe more specific.

 

Why sell the ticket in the first place ?...  decisions will be based on balance probability of the compensation cost and statistical likelihood of a delayed flight vs loss of profit of not ticketing the route in the first place. 

 

 

For example:

Flights Bangkok - Dubai - London are unlikely to have a 40min layover, because IF there is a missed connection due to delay of the first leg, 90% of passengers will miss their connecting flight.

But: Flights Bangkok - Dubai - Istanbul are more likely to have a shorter layover, because most of the 'customers / passengers' of the initial Bangkok - Dubai will be taking layover to other destinations such as London, and they also calculate 1% of passengers are leg will be transiting to Istanbul - this the risk / probability / cost / profit factor allows for the shorter timing...  Especially if the Dubai - Istanbul routes fits incoming flights from other areas where Transit to Turkey is wanted. 

 

 

[Peabody]

10 hours ago, webfact said:

Throughout their communication, Thai Airways staff consistently deflected responsibility,...

The problem is the travelers did not respect this key aspect of Thai Kulture.

[Cameroni]

I flew to Germany in August and booked direct with Thai Airways. I was annoyed I hadn't noticed that the connection Thai Airways provided for their Chiang Mai Bangkok - Frankfurt connection provided for only 90 minutes to make the connection. As expected Chiang Mai had a delay. However, Thai Airways held the Bangkok - Frankfurt flight and sent a representative to the arrival in Bangkok to navigate us all, there were quite a few of us, at great speed through Bangkok Airport security and immigration to ensure we can make the Bangkok - Frankfurt flight. Exceptionally well done by Thai Airways I thought. Very sad to see this excellent service is not always provided.

 

But in the next booking I will make sure to have a close eye on the connection time, to ensure it's in excess of 3 hours.

[Ben Zioner]

Used to be a great airline with sex flight attendants. Gone the way of Thailand in the last 30 years. 

 

Mostly overweight gogo dancers in the bars..

[NanLaew]

8 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

When issues occur, the response of airlines is 'always' terrible...

... and considering that 'issues occur' the lack of preparation and extent of disorganisation even amongst reputable airlines is terrible.

 

 

Turkish Airlines: had a boarding pass, flight over booked - refused boarding at connection. Was offered €250 compensation (if I signed there and then - was told we'd get nothing if we didn't sign - Airline staff lying) - 6 hrs later got to the layover hotel, staff told me it was going to be a 5* hotel, it was a sh** hole (airline staff openly lied again) - travel delayed 24 hrs. Filed a claim with the airline, they refused the claim for compensation. Went through an ombudsman (ADR) - received €600 after 5 months (law states it should take less than a week).

 

 

Emirates: Major delay (10 hrs), it happens. Missed connection. Taken to hotel after 5hrs messing around at Dubai Airport - Hotel full, messed about for another few hours, taken to another hotel - delayed nearly 48 hrs - Airline tried to pull a fast one and not pay the €600 for my Son.

 

 

Etihad: Got married, they wanted to charge $200 for a name change (Wife's surname).

 

 

Eithad: Extreme damage to baggage (push-chair - snapped in half), Airline rejected compensation claim. Ombudsman, took my claim on as a valid claim, Airline rejected the claim for the cost of the pushchair, next step was legal proceedings, not worth it for a £300 pushchair) - never flew the airline again.

 

 

Thai: Injured overseas (2 days before travel) - needed a wheelchair at airport (couldn't walk - due to leg injury) Airline not responding to e-mails. Unable to get through to right people on call centre (i.e. call was answered, but redirected, no response from people it was redirected to) tried a few times, time being wasted - Wife pulled connections and got it sorted through a friend, worked out in the end, without Wife's connections I would not have got through to Thai and would have struggled through the airport.

 

 

Qatar Airlines (Covid times) thailand announced it would open boarders - I was naive and bought a ticket. Thailand's borders didn't open - I contacted airline, they'd sold a ticket on a route that was not open. Asked for refund, refused, they said they couldn't refund until flight was cancelled, ask them to list 'any flight' into Bangkok which had not been cancelled in the past week - my flight date approached, 2 days before theoretical travel date Airline cancelled the flight - took 5 months to get a refund, I had to threaten legal action as they only wanted to give a partial refund (*70%) - got the full refund. 

 

 

 

 

In short - contrary to their marketing about what a wonderful service is provided - Airlines have some of the worst customer service of any industry when the metric is how things are handled when things go wrong - they lack organisation and even though plans are always in place to account for delays etc (deals with hotels etc) - the messing around takes way too long, the staff are not wholly honest...

 

... the worst part of all of the issues is the terrible communication - People understand that issues exist - its the unclear, poor, delayed or non-existent communication that winds people up - and this often borders on dishonesty as they airline attempts to minimise their exposure instead of owning the issue as they are legally responsible to do.

 

 

Didn't you post on another thread how your frequent flying helps you rack up oodles of airmiles, class upgrades, lounge access, and what have you?

[NanLaew]

17 minutes ago, Ben Zioner said:

Used to be a great airline with sex flight attendants.

 

That was a Japanese adult video airline. It wasn't real.

 

17 minutes ago, Ben Zioner said:

Mostly overweight gogo dancers in the bars..

 

Have you noticed how the seatbelts on an airplane are much shorter than they used to be?

[Chelseafan]

11 hours ago, Dave0206 said:

Again I will agree @ certain airlines and airports if flying through doha or Abu Dhabi easy for them to hold plane as the 30 passengers are their's but if for example you land terminal 1 Heathrow with non affiliated airline and connection is British Airways @ T5 you think BA will pay fine for missing there take off slot for you?

 

Booking two seperate flights with different airline/partners would ensure the onus is on the passenger.

What we're talking about here is a code-sharing flight so essentially one ticket across at least two aircraft under Star Alliance. If the airline offered this ticket with a short connection then it's down to them to sort it out if things go wrong - within reason

 

[Chelseafan]

11 hours ago, Dave0206 said:

Yes of course you are right but 1) if 20 minutes delay is enough to miss connecting flight why buy it ( today 28 minutes late)

2) why do airlines sell it especially if possible compensation is a real possibility 

 

I select the route based on price and if the cheapest ticket means I have a 20 min connection then I'll take it. I assume the airline has already calculated out that this is doable otherwise it would be costly for them especially under EU261. I travel a lot and the shortest connection I've had is 40mins and as I said before, the aircraft arrived 20 mins early so 40 mins become an hour connection.

 

 

[steven100]

18 hours ago, webfact said:

 

Throughout their communication, Thai Airways staff consistently deflected responsibility

 

That's what happens everyday, I'm not wrong here ....