An Open Letter To Bangkok Airways

[ChiangMaiThai]

Yes, this is a bit of a rant, but I'm home sick and have the time. Feel free to agree or disagree with me, but my experience is that Bangkok Airways is extremely poorly managed.

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Dear Sir or Madam,

I am a Premier Member number XXXXX and fly with Bangkok Airways all the time.

I am currently in Chiang Mai where I am very sick. I called today to change my ticket (XXXXX).

I was told that for the same flight a day later I would need to pay 2,300 Baht. This is more than the cost of the original ticket and more than other airlines charge for a new ticket. Before you lecture me about your ticket rules, (which I fully understand) you need to understand this:

1. Over the past 3 years, despite flying with Bangkok Airways on at least 100 flights and despite being awarded Premier status, you have completely and utterly failed to provide me with service that is different in any meaningful way from the service that you give to someone who is a first time flyer.

2. Allowing a Premier member to change a ticket without a fee when they are sick is one way that you can demonstrate your appreciation for my always choosing Bangkok Airways. But you fail to see this. Instead you look at the fare rules and tell me that there is nothing you can do and that I need to give you 2,300 Baht. There is no other way to describe this way of thinking than absolute stupidity and ignorance.

3. You go after 2,300 Baht now and in doing so you fail to see the big picture. This big picture is that a response like this from you leaves me feeling absolutely no loyalty to Bangkok Airways whatsoever. Indeed I feel a bit of resentment. How you conclude that this is irrelevant and will not cost you money in the long run is beyond me.

4. You have (again) missed an opportunity to take care of those who fly with you most frequently. The reason you should care is because this results in lessened brand loyalty. If you look after me properly, you could have me flying with you regularly for the next 20 years. But instead of working to keep me as a loyal customer, you try to make an extra 2,300 Baht now and in doing so you risk potentially hundreds of thousands of Baht in future revenue. It's really amazing and almost humorous that you fail to see this or simply disregard it altogether.

5. Whoever is in charge of looking after your Premier Members should be fired. Although, it would not surprise me if no one is designated to this position because over the years I have seen very little benefit as a Premier Member.

I have little hope that this email will make any difference. It will probably be deleted and ignored. So I will go ahead and post it to some very popular public internet forums, send it to the major Thai newspapers, and post on Skytrax now so that other people can think twice before choosing Bangkok Airways.

And in the end, if you are smart, you will stop and ask yourself, was it all really worth an extra 2,300 Baht? Why don't we have a policy to make exceptions for those who fly with us most? In a competitive environment with multiple airlines, why don't we strive to do everything in our power to encourage customers to fly with us again? I have a feeling that the answer lies in your monopoly on the Bangkok - Samui route. It's easy to be complacent when you don't have competitors. The only problem with this logic of course is that you have competitors on all your other routes. And without a monopoly to fall back on, these other airlines do a better job than Bangkok Airways in many cases because they have to if they want to survive. How many of your once loyal customers need to start flying with these other airlines before you realize that your current policy and management is dysfunctional and detrimental to your efforts to build a successful airline?

Best Regards,

CMT

[canopus1969]

Unfortunately I have to agree with you. I am also a Premier holder and just last week needed help with a seating position only to be ignored and told to go to the airport (bit late then !)

BKK Air will soon lose me as a loyal customer unless they start to offer the service they once did.

[smokie36]

Its all about the money with this company now. It never used to be with great service and fairly reasonable pricing even BKK-USM.

[ChiangMaiThai]

Its all about the money with this company now. It never used to be with great service and fairly reasonable pricing even BKK-USM.

Right, but what is almost humorous is that it's all about the money TODAY. Somehow they are ignorant of the fact that when you take care of your most loyal customers, they will keep coming back and giving you money, and when you don't, they will give your competitors money instead! Is it really such a difficult concept to grasp? They could think long term and make it all about the money in a positive sense by taking care of their customers, but they simply don't. I think this culture stems from their monopoly on Samui. Without competition, it's easy to take customers for granted.

[ralphlsasser]

Thai's have no critical thinking skills. Bangkok Airways is no difference. TIT

[Semper]

Fortunately there are several other companies who provides air transportation.

[PoorSucker]

Fortunately there are several other companies who provides air transportation.

Not to Samui.

[ChiangMaiThai]

Thai's have no critical thinking skills. Bangkok Airways is no difference. TIT

I've lived here nearly 10 years and obviously enjoy the country, but on this point I have to admit that you are right.

A normal business person - actually a normal person in general, given the choice between a very small amount of money once and a larger amount of money many times, will of course choose the latter. But BKK Airways is so greedy/incompetent that they focus immediately in the small amount of money that is in front of them now and in doing so, sacrifice the larger sums of money waiting for them in the future.

Just for fun, as I start flying other airlines, I think I will save each ticket stub and in a few years I will mail them 100 plus stubs from other airlines on routes they fly and ask them again if 2,300 Baht was worth it. Probably they won't care because by then it will cost 10,000 Baht to fly the 1 hour to Samui. (I would love to see Air Asia on that route. I venture to say that BKK Airways wouldn't last a year).

Yeah, I know I could just let it go, but they have pissed me off one too many times and I can't stand the indifference that comes from companies who hold monopolies.

[TravelerEastWest]

The real question is not why do they do this as the answer is simply poor management... instead what is the better alternative?

Thai Air is typically more expensive, Nok was more recently when I priced a trip for a family of 4 and AirAsia was about the same but has a bad reputation for service and no kids play area as Bangkok Airways does.

I remember American airlines causing me a whole series of problems on a flight and when I called them they couldn't care less of course they are currently going bankrupt..

[ExpatOilWorker]

I flew Bangkok Airways for the second and last time in 1997. Two flights was enough for me to decide never to use them again. I have been back to Samui since then, but drove my car and took the ferry.

What took you so long time to figure this out and why on Earth did you want to be a premium member of a blood sucking outfit like Bangkok Airways?

Edited December 1, 2011 by ExpatOilWorker

[andyh]

Fortunately there are several other companies who provides air transportation.

Not to Samui.

Check out Nok Air.

Although not a direct flight to Samui (BKK to Surathani, then bus to ferry to Nathon), it is HUGELY cheaper than Bangkok Airway.

[itishothere]

I sympathise with the OP.

On Samui, we were getting to the stage where every thread eventually included some reference to the ridiculous pricing of Bangkok Airways on the BKK-USM route! We finally had to have our very own Bangkok Airways Rant thread!

[Wavefloater]

Thai's have no critical thinking skills. Bangkok Airways is no difference. TIT

I've lived here nearly 10 years and obviously enjoy the country, but on this point I have to admit that you are right.

A normal business person - actually a normal person in general, given the choice between a very small amount of money once and a larger amount of money many times, will of course choose the latter. But BKK Airways is so greedy/incompetent that they focus immediately in the small amount of money that is in front of them now and in doing so, sacrifice the larger sums of money waiting for them in the future.

Just for fun, as I start flying other airlines, I think I will save each ticket stub and in a few years I will mail them 100 plus stubs from other airlines on routes they fly and ask them again if 2,300 Baht was worth it. Probably they won't care because by then it will cost 10,000 Baht to fly the 1 hour to Samui. (I would love to see Air Asia on that route. I venture to say that BKK Airways wouldn't last a year).

Yeah, I know I could just let it go, but they have pissed me off one too many times and I can't stand the indifference that comes from companies who hold monopolies.

Ya, you do that and the person who receives your 100 stubs with your question won't have the foggiest idea of what you're getting at. Thais don't think that way and don't understand sarcasm.

BTW, if you're going fly into Samui 100 times in the next FEW years (3 being a few) perhaps you should just purchase your own plane.

Edited December 1, 2011 by Wavefloater

[ChiangMaiThai]

I flew Bangkok Airways for the second and last time in 1997. Two flights was enough for me to decide never to use them again. I have been back to Samui since then, but drove my car and took the ferry.

What took you so long time to figure this out and why on Earth did you want to be a premium member of a blood sucking outfit like Bangkok Airways?

I lived on Samui for over a year and so was forced to use their service. The premier lounge in Bangkok is a joke compared to TG, but it is nice to have a quiet place to sit and wait for a flight and that's the main reason I have kept flying with them. Also I nearly have enough points for a ticket to the US so that's been a small motivation. But really apart from extra baggage, that's the only benefit I have seen as a "Premier" member. When I call, I am put on hold for 20 minutes just like everyone else, I get served the same horrible meal as everyone else, and when I need assistance with a ticket change, they aren't interested unless I pay up.

Horrible airline. Horrible service. Greed and incompetence will eventually get them.

As to the other question about alternatives, I don't know. I'm willing to start flying other airlines to find out. At the end of the day, any service business that doesn't understand that they need to take care of their most frequent customers simply doesn't deserve to be in business. Most would simply fail with this level of incompetence and I am sure BKK Airways would have gone that route a long time ago, if they weren't sucking the Samui - BKK, HK - Samui, Singapore - Samui routes for all their worth.

So well done in seeing the potential of an airport on Samui. Unfortunately in every facet of operations, you fail miserably.

[theoldgit]

Because Bangkok Airways own the airport they keep the fares high for all carriers using the airport by charging high fees.

Bangkok Airways only think for the present and don't look at the bigger picture, sadly they are not alone.

[lonewolf99]

Bangkok Airways is extremely poorly managed.

It is hard to think of anything that is well managed in Thailand,,,,Flood management springs to mind instantly....

I know it is easy to Thai bash...but I have seen other cultures even more short sighted especially West Africa......

[rangers]

Unfortunately I have to agree with you. I am also a Premier holder and just last week needed help with a seating position only to be ignored and told to go to the airport (bit late then !)

BKK Air will soon lose me as a loyal customer unless they start to offer the service they once did.

[rangers]

Unfortunately I have to agree with you. I am also a Premier holder and just last week needed help with a seating position only to be ignored and told to go to the airport (bit late then !)

BKK Air will soon lose me as a loyal customer unless they start to offer the service they once did.

[rangers]

Next time you guys talk to Bangkok Airways ask them what a Boutique Airline is

[ChiangMaiThai]

Next time you guys talk to Bangkok Airways ask them what a Boutique Airline is

I think the answer is "Marketing Gimmick"

[LuckyLew]

Bangkok Airways follow the Thai tradition of no customer service

They fly to tourist places, so they must believe that if they lose one

customer, there will always be another one standing in line

Me,I when ever I fly inside Thailand, I check to see who has best

rates and that is who I show my loyalty to, and I have not flown on

Bangkok Airways in 5 years.

Easy enough with Samui ... I do not go there. There are enough

beaches around Thailand, I feel no need to pay sky high prices

when I can pay lower to go elsewhere.

Personally, I do not think Samui is all that

[ChiangMaiThai]

Bangkok Airways follow the Thai tradition of no customer service

They fly to tourist places, so they must believe that if they lose one

customer, there will always be another one standing in line

Me,I when ever I fly inside Thailand, I check to see who has best

rates and that is who I show my loyalty to, and I have not flown on

Bangkok Airways in 5 years.

Easy enough with Samui ... I do not go there. There are enough

beaches around Thailand, I feel no need to pay sky high prices

when I can pay lower to go elsewhere.

Personally, I do not think Samui is all that

Excellent post sir! They are certainly accustomed to the easy money that Samui brings in. You can fly to London from Singapore on another airline for what it costs to fly Singapore to Samui. Within Thailand, you can fly from Bangkok to Phuket, back to Bangkok, back to Phuket, and back to Bangkok again for what a ONE WAY ticket from Bangkok to Samui often goes for with Bangkok Airways. No doubt they would not exist without their monopolies.

And in case you are wondering, of course no one has replied to my email.

[robsamui]

Its all about the money with this company now. It never used to be with great service and fairly reasonable pricing even BKK-USM.

Right, but what is almost humorous is that it's all about the money TODAY. Somehow they are ignorant of the fact that when you take care of your most loyal customers, they will keep coming back and giving you money, and when you don't, they will give your competitors money instead! Is it really such a difficult concept to grasp? They could think long term and make it all about the money in a positive sense by taking care of their customers, but they simply don't. I think this culture stems from their monopoly on Samui. Without competition, it's easy to take customers for granted.

You are utterly and completely missing the point and approaching the situation from a First World point of view.

This is Thailand. Bangkok airways is a Thai airline. Thai people have no ability to envisage anything beyond today - yes, even a big company like this.

The second element is all about status. BA and its owners consider themselves to be an elite. Therefore it is beneath them to be seen to be concerned about such unimportant aspects as service or customer loyalty. Their attitude is a big shrug and that customers can take it or leave it. To emphasise this point, the "group" who own BA have a 90-room luxury beachside resort on Samui with three restaurants, spa and olympic-standard pool. The last time I had occasion to do business with them there were just 10 guests - all of them employees of BA.

It's all about posturing in Thailand. BA are declaring that they are so "high-class" (a Thai social concept, not my own) they are are completely unconcerned about the lower classes (you and I) and that they are so untouchably wealthy that there is no need to lower themselves to actually have annoying tourists in their big hotel.

Plus, of course, there is the Tax Exempt status that they enjoy ad perpetuity as a reward for building the airport and making Samui accessible to all those grubby tourists . . . one rarely hears mention of this . . .

R

Edited December 1, 2011 by robsamui

[itishothere]

Have to disagree somewhat with robsamui when he says the company is not forward thnking.

BA is planning on floating on the stock market in the near future. In order do that successfully (ie to make the most money for the shareholders) the balance sheet needs to be squeaky clean, and the profit and loss account must look exceptional when compared to other airlines/companies. A THB 2,300 profit now from the OP could equal 10 - 20 times that amount to the share value of the company.

Now this can be called greed or arrogance, but it could also be called forward thinking.

[tw25rw]

Fortunately there are several other companies who provides air transportation.

Not to Samui.

Check out Nok Air.

Although not a direct flight to Samui (BKK to Surathani, then bus to ferry to Nathon), it is HUGELY cheaper than Bangkok Airway.

It's a major pain in the arse.. I vowed to stump up the cash and fly direct if I ever go back there.

[farang62]

We have been Flyer bonus members since the program started in December 2005 and premier members 6 months later.

As Premier members for the last 6 years we also see no great benefits in being a Premier member, Residence card member or and other type of member.

Baggage allowance is an issue, meals are the same ib business every day, we some times fly to Bangkok 2-3 times a month. Same meals, same lounge and same problems with

Bangkok Call Center. Who by the way don't have a clue or know where Bangkok Airways fly's or whet the promotions are.

I have to agree that being a Premier member is not and has not been an advantage.

We are now flying Thai more often and getting Thai Miles that can be used on many airlines in Star World group.

Unless Bangkok Airways starts supporting their local members, and Premier members, more and more will not fly Bangkok Air.

They loose a lot from us as we are flying Thai to Bangkok more often.

It should be interesting with the tourist crunch to see what they come up with next, usually nothing useful to us Samui residents.

Compared to being Platinum and Gold members on other airlines there is virtually no recognition as a Premier member on Bangkok Airways.

At least when I call Thai Airways they know where their airline fly's and when.

[targaman]

CMT,

I copied and sent your post to Captain Puttipong Bangkok Airways President.

He forwarded it immediately to Prote Setsuwan, VP Marketing, and FFP who has asked me to provide name or ID number of such member as I intend to conduct thorough investigation on his or her complaint.

If you would like to give me details off forum to process this complaint I am happy to pass on the info to Khun Prote Setsuwan.

Kind regards,

Targaman

Bangkok Airways Quality Advisor

[smokie36]

CMT,

I copied and sent your post to Captain Puttipong Bangkok Airways President.

He forwarded it immediately to Prote Setsuwan, VP Marketing, and FFP who has asked me to provide name or ID number of such member as I intend to conduct thorough investigation on his or her complaint.

If you would like to give me details off forum to process this complaint I am happy to pass on the info to Khun Prote Setsuwan.

Kind regards,

Targaman

Bangkok Airways Quality Advisor

While you are here perhaps you would care to take a look at this thread.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/395198-the-bangkok-airways-rant-thread/

[meatboy]

Thai's have no critical thinking skills. Bangkok Airways is no difference. TIT

agree 100% me&mrs meat used a top hotel in bkk for 18years only to be treated like sh-t the last time we stayed,wrote a letter to head manager never got a reply so they never saw us again,even had stays of more than 3weeks at a time.have always used thai airways who have treated us well.

[ChiangMaiThai]

CMT,

I copied and sent your post to Captain Puttipong Bangkok Airways President.

He forwarded it immediately to Prote Setsuwan, VP Marketing, and FFP who has asked me to provide name or ID number of such member as I intend to conduct thorough investigation on his or her complaint.

If you would like to give me details off forum to process this complaint I am happy to pass on the info to Khun Prote Setsuwan.

Kind regards,

Targaman

Bangkok Airways Quality Advisor

Wow. I must admit that I am very surprised to see someone from Bangkok Airways here. Maybe it's easier to ignore me when it's just one annoying customer contacting you by phone and email. (Still no reply to my email sent yesterday morning to reservations@ by the way). My real name and ticket number in question are in that email.

At any rate, I am not looking for you, now that the issue has been made public, to contact me and let me change my ticket this one time free of charge. That's not a solution. A promise of a complete overhaul of your policies regarding "Premier" members along with specific details would be more interesting. Without that forthcoming, I am currently more interested in sharing my experiences of the failed customer service policies of Bangkok Airways.

But now you see that over 700 people have viewed this and there has not been a single positive comment about Bangkok Airways. On the contrary, disappointment and flat our refusal to fly with you are the norm. Further, multiple threads on this forum already exist where you can read the complaints that many others have with you. If this doesn't concern you yet, I can only assume that your monopoly routes bring in enough money that deep down you simply don't care. (You even have complaints on your Facebook wall, to which no one bothers to reply, which is hard to believe. What's the point of having an open wall when you simply ignore everyone who posts there?)

While I have your attention, let me reiterate my point. You have every right to tell me that the ticket rules mean that I will have to pay a fee should I wish to change the departure date. I get that. You don't need to reply back to me with information on ticket classifications and the terms and conditions that I agreed to when I purchased my ticket.

However, the fact that you stick to this rule and demonstrate no flexibility whatsoever no matter the circumstances, especially when dealing with someone who is a loyal "Premier" member and travels with you all the time, shows just how much you are lacking in the customer care department and forward thinking ability. You attempt to make a very small amount of money now (because those are the rules after all), at the expense of keeping a loyal customer who has the potential to give you a hundred times more money over the coming years. It's a horrible business practice.

I used to work at a hotel. When a regular guest checked in, do you know what we did? We gave him a more expensive room free of charge even if it meant that we wouldn't be able to sell the room for a higher price to another guest. Do you know why we did this? Because by taking care of our most loyal gusts - even when it meant short term losses, we assured ourselves of their repeat business year after year after year. That Bangkok Airways fails to grasp this concept is laughable. Again, the only logical conclusion that I can come to is that since you are assured of certain revenue from tourists on your monopoly routes, a culture of complacency has developed there. Certainly no real effort has been made as far as looking at ways to provide real and meaningful benefits to your "Premier" members. (The survey you sent out awhile back was technically flawed and most everyone I know was unable to submit it - although I have my doubts as to whether or not you would take the feedback provided seriously even if you had received it).

There are many other problems that people have with your airline, especially in relation to how you treat your "Premier" members, as you can read about on this forum. I could give you a lengthy list now, but this post is long enough as it is. I was willing to put up with all your faults up until you again refused to demonstrate any flexibility on a ticket change for an ill "Premier" member who travels with you many times a month. I have a few more fights already booked with you this year and after that I am done. I will continue to spend money flying domestically in Thailand, but I will give the money to another airline in the hopes that they may have a better grasp on the meaning of customer service.

Should there ever be any sincere and genuine changes at Bangkok Airways, please do revisit this forum and let us all know.

Edited December 2, 2011 by ChiangMaiThai