Beware Air Asia Flights

[roamer]

Somebody mentioned Air Asia Insurance.I would not recommend this to ANYONE.My wife got DVT whilst travelling on an Air Asia flight.No arguments proved by the hospital that this was the case.We tried to contact them.No reply for an emergency.Sent an Email , they replied in 3 days after we had flown back to Thailand.We were stuck in the hotel for 3 days.Our 3 day holiday ruined we had to pay for the hotel ,doctor etc.No help from Air Asia.They argued about paying anything but did pay the minimum possible B20,000. I am still paying the hospital bills B100s of B1000 out of pocket. No offer to pay for the hotel or give us another flight so we could take the break again.AND THIS WAS CAUSED ON THEIR FLIGHT.I hope AIR ASIA,s MD reads this.So please don,t rely on this insurance its worthless.

May I direct you guys to google 'Fascinating Aida Cheap flights'

You don't have to, they might have already read back about 10 posts where it was posted.

As for the rest of the (very confusing) post....well, DVT is a flight risk but from what I understand from your post you flew back after 3 days, not recommended for DVT, to put it mildly.

It's crap insurance and I'm surprised you got anything. Guess they just found it cheaper to settle.

[MrWorldwide]

The AA website is awful. The airline is there to hold you to the minute on closures. It is the way they

make money. But sometimes it is the only reasonable choice. Allow plenty of time for connections.

Also there insurance for missing connecting flights is bogus. Covers only some airlines. Always

a roll of the dice, yet I find myself using them with great angst.

Er, try the Thai Airways site ....

Seriously, if you dont want to fly with Air Asia, or Firefly / Nok / Tiger / Southern China / Garuda / whoever, dont bloody well fly with them, So much competition out there now - and many of them with problems of their own - that I just dont get why we have to bitch about Air Asia. Some of us have had a good run with them - the odd KL-BKK flight notwithstanding - and others havent : I just dont see what we have to get our knickers in a twist.

[marstons]

AA 77% on time departures, 11% late average delay 20 minutes. for 700 baht returns to Udon from BKK I can live with that.

Thai airways 76% on time

http://www.flightstats.com/go/FlightRating/flightRatingByCarrier.do?airline=ak

http://www.flightstats.com/go/FlightRating/flightRatingByCarrier.do;jsessionid=1FB00057EE054C5ADE40B2D822635103.web2:8009?airlineCode=TG

[blackthorn2005]

I have nothing but excellent experience with AA. But I do triple check my online booking ( click or just not click check boxes) , allow enough time for connecting flights etc.

But you can always opt for Thai Airways first class, see if they are anything better.

He screwed up, never left himself enough time, just is not man enough to admit it.

[Briggsy]

I remember I booked 2 Air Asia flights BKK - KUL then KUL back to BKK. I left 2 hrs and 25 min to turn around and go back. I spent about 30 min having something to eat at LCCT and then I just made it through customs and check-in in time. You need at least 1 hr 40 mins between flights to give yourself a 90%+ chance of making the second flight.

[NanLaew]

The AA website is awful. The airline is there to hold you to the minute on closures. It is the way they

make money. But sometimes it is the only reasonable choice. Allow plenty of time for connections.

Also there insurance for missing connecting flights is bogus. Covers only some airlines. Always

a roll of the dice, yet I find myself using them with great angst.

AirAsia makes money on no frills service; using secondary or LCC airports, avoiding using jetways, charging for food, seats and bags.

AirAsia saves money by having CLEARLY STATED minimum check-in, recommended transit times, rigid gate-closing times, draconian carry-on baggage allowances and enforcing them.

There was an old Aussie joke when there used to be only two fairly crappy domestic carriers, one was Ansett and the other was TAA... which we all knew stood for 'Try Another Airline'.

You do have choices.

Edited February 18, 2013 by NanLaew

[MobileContent]

I stopped totally booking any flights with Air Asia, specially Bangkok - Kuala Lumpur.

I missed a flight three months ago to KL by coming 10 minutes late. OK, it was my fault but a last minute meeting with my CEO was a priority.

AA offered me to buy a new ticket at 5000 Baht but I noticed I could fly on Lufthansa for 3980 Baht and I took that flight.

I'm sorry, but I completely fail to see how any of that was Air Asia's fault. I guarantee you that Lufthansa have their own rules re anyone rocking up 10 minutes late for checkin, and it wouldn't matter if you had a meeting with Angela Merkel herself ....

I didn't actually said it was Air Asia fault so not sure what are you trying to tell me. BKK - KL has a lot of other airlines that serve this route.

[MrWorldwide]

I stopped totally booking any flights with Air Asia, specially Bangkok - Kuala Lumpur.

I missed a flight three months ago to KL by coming 10 minutes late. OK, it was my fault but a last minute meeting with my CEO was a priority.

AA offered me to buy a new ticket at 5000 Baht but I noticed I could fly on Lufthansa for 3980 Baht and I took that flight.

I'm sorry, but I completely fail to see how any of that was Air Asia's fault. I guarantee you that Lufthansa have their own rules re anyone rocking up 10 minutes late for checkin, and it wouldn't matter if you had a meeting with Angela Merkel herself ....

I didn't actually said it was Air Asia fault so not sure what are you trying to tell me. BKK - KL has a lot of other airlines that serve this route.

I'm trying to tell you that your earlier post made zero sense to me in terms of the topic. You missed a flight with Air Asia by failing to make their deadline, booked with Lufthansa and havent been back to AA since - hardly the stuff of criminal negligence on the part of AA .....

[Nigel1500]

I suffered a barotrauma (bleeding inside the ear drum) about 3 years ago flying Air Asia from Phuket to Bangkok. Grounded me for weeks.

Thank goodness for the doctors at BNH.

[oldsailor35]

 

Sorry to say this oldsailor35 but it is unfortunately your fault, as the URT-SIN is not bookable directly via the Air Asia website, you have to make 2 seperate bookings for this to work out, hence no "warning" would flash up...

I hate Air Asia as much as the next farang (my reasons are completely different in respect to missing flights - but service orientated nonetheless)

And as NanLaew said... You tick the box to accept the T&C - good luck in fighting it....

And as for scotinsiam's comment regarding Air Asia's maintenance - can't say I've seen any of their aircraft fall out of the sky recently...

 

No fight here mate, yes i accept its my own fault. BUT i do ask the question why do Air Asia not do something to avoid all these mistakes made by erstwhile honest but maybe naive persons such as myself, many of us elderly . I think that the answer is, why help these people when we can make thousands of dollars by letting them stuff up. Not nice people running this airline, that's for sure.

[oldsailor35]

 

Off topic I know but will relay the airline story.

Couple of years ago a friend of mine was flying from Brisbane to London via Tokyo. This was a the time that bloody big volcanic ash hit Europe and he was informed his flight from Tokyo to UK had been cancelled.

So he contacts the Airline and insurance company, both the same answer.

He can still fly to Tokyo so no refund. If he cancells he loses x amount. So his options were to lose the lot or fly to Tokyo for a holiday instead of his brother's birthday in the UK.

How strange, same airline all the way but wouldn't refund his booking as he could make it to Tokyo and they hadn't cancelled that part of the trip.

 

I hope that all those "smart ass" people in here who think that Travel insurance cures everything, get caught themselves, then they won't be so "i told you so" smug !

[oldsailor35]

 

I have nothing but excellent experience with AA. But I do triple check my online booking ( click or just not click check boxes) , allow enough time for connecting flights etc.

But you can always opt for Thai Airways first class, see if they are anything better.

He screwed up, never left himself enough time, just is not man enough to admit it.

 

Who is "HE"

[roamer]

OP. At the end of the day your argument was:

"They could have a warning built into their booking website that says "Sorry, not enough time try another connecting flight""

So this whole thread has revolved around those who think that's how it should be.

And those who don't.

Just have to face it old chap, you screwed up and you're just not man enough to face the AA battleground.

Edited February 22, 2013 by roamer

[GrantSmith]

oldsailor35,

At least Air Asia don't discriminate - they screw everyone equally

However, in Air Asia's defence - in your situation - your booking was in their system as 2 separate bookings..

They legally haven't done anything wrong. They advised you to be there 3hrs early - you weren't - they denied you boarding.

They can't have an inbuilt warning system that says 'not enough time' for a flight route that you can't book on their website.

Learn your lessons - something about old dogs being taught new tricks or some such riddle..

[LongTimeLurker]

Just booked flights with Air Asia for Songkran which are 10,000 Baht cheaper than the alternative.

I'll continue to use them as long as they make me savings like that no matter how much they screw around with people that don't know how to use their website or allow sufficient time for connections.

[Briggsy]

I took 2 Air Asia flights last week.

The plane departed and arrived on time. I was charged no extra at the airport. Everything went smoothly.

[naboo]

My last booking with Air Asia back in 2009 or 2010:

CNX-KUL-DPS-KUL-CNX

Booked well in advance, then 2 weeks before flight I received an email to say the time for the final leg, KUL-CNX had been moved from 10am to 6am (or so).

I called, explained my flight from Bali didn't arrive until 7am so this was not going to be possible, I needed an alternative flight/refund/solution. Cannot. I suggested re-routing DPS-BKK-CNX for the return. Cannot.

They made a change to my flight which made it impossible for me to catch. not my making, I had allowed 3hrs to connect in KUL. They would not do a thing. I ended up having to pay for another flight for the final leg.

I will never fly with them again. Previously had broken luggage (not their fault necessarily, but I still had the receipt for the bags purchased a few days before the flight and they wouldn't do anything until I was screaming at them at the customer service desk at BKK. You need a qualification in AirAsia to avoid paying for something you didn't want. And their fee for paying took the biscuit.

Nok Air, BKK Air, Orient Thai, all much better service at often cheaper prices.

[Buchholz]

My last booking with Air Asia back in 2009 or 2010:

CNX-KUL-DPS-KUL-CNX

Booked well in advance, then 2 weeks before flight I received an email to say the time for the final leg, KUL-CNX had been moved from 10am to 6am (or so).

I called, explained my flight from Bali didn't arrive until 7am so this was not going to be possible, I needed an alternative flight/refund/solution. Cannot. I suggested re-routing DPS-BKK-CNX for the return. Cannot.

They made a change to my flight which made it impossible for me to catch. not my making, I had allowed 3hrs to connect in KUL. They would not do a thing. I ended up having to pay for another flight for the final leg.

I will never fly with them again. Previously had broken luggage (not their fault necessarily, but I still had the receipt for the bags purchased a few days before the flight and they wouldn't do anything until I was screaming at them at the customer service desk at BKK. You need a qualification in AirAsia to avoid paying for something you didn't want. And their fee for paying took the biscuit.

Nok Air, BKK Air, Orient Thai, all much better service at often cheaper prices.

.

Guess that just goes to show how people in similar situations can have entirely different results.

Dozens of flights with AirAsia and have never had a ticketing issue that couldn't be solved amicably, never had issues with damaged luggage, never paid for anything I didn't want, and have obtained tickets that 100% of time have beaten the prices of Nok Air, BKK Air, and Orient Thai.

But by all means, avoid AirAsia... it makes it easier for the rest of us, with diametrically opposed experiences, to book our tickets and take advantage of their low fares.

.

our flight to yangon , Apr.10/Apr.24, has just been cancelled by AA ; no flights to yangon from Apr.1 untill June 30, all cancelled!!!!

.

.

Mea Culpa, Mea Culpa, Mea Maxima Culpa....this was to Colombo, not Yangon....sorry guys for the confusion.....but kindly understand that we ARE HIGHLY FRUSTRATED by this hanging to dry caused by AA:sick: They give us a refund but what about all the hotel reservations.....loss of face, loss of (some) funds....

.

.

Was in the exact same situation last month.

Got SMS cancelling our Bangkok-Colombo round-trip. So gave them a call and, at zero additional cost, they gave us tickets to fly Bangkok-KL-Colombo round trip. They also included our pre-paid luggage on the additional flights for free.

Had a great time. Thanks a bunch, Tony Fernades.

Look forward to your next grand sale.

The free fare tickets we picked up at the last one will give us round-trips to BKK-Phuket and BKK-Udon Thani later this year at, uhmmm... really hard to beat prices.

.

[Fookhaht]

Anyone see the recent addition to their website, so you can see a month of airfares at a glance? Makes it easy to see what days the bargains are (as well as high-cost days). Worth it's weight in Bahts and Dollars!

[Konini]

We've flown with Air Asia close to 50 times. I'd say 3/4 of the flights were on time or within 10 minutes, the rest delayed. You get what you pay for, a few times we've said 'Never again' but they're so cheap we always do. I've always found them helpful enough, on 2 occasions when we were delayed with a connecting flight they really went out of their way and pulled out all of the stops to get our bags on last/out first delivered to the airbridge to save time waiting for them to go though the baggage system. Longest delay we had was 4 hours in Medan and they gave everyone a meal and drink pack, which was totally unexpected.

Once I'd left a Swiss Army Knife in hand luggage by mistake, picked up as we went through scanner in CNX and the AA staff that were standing there took it from me actually put it into a zip pocket in our checked luggage (we were amongst the last to check in so our bags would have been on top of the pile). Can't say any other airline has done anything as drastic as that, I was expecting it to be confiscated.

Just been to Australia, booked CNX-KUL-MEL and same in return (much more legroom on the long haul planes), bags checked all the way through which is a blessing in 2 ways; we avoided BKK and didn't have to rush around at KUL retrieving bags and checking in. And I agree with Fookhat that the month at a glance (which Jetstar and Qantas have had for years) is fantastic for seeing when the cheapest fares are.

Norwegian Air are starting to fly from BKK to all over Europe from July, seem to be the same as Air Asia (pay for all the extra's), very cheap and great for us as we never know how long we're staying so we don't like booking return flights - one way flights are often more than discounted returns with full service airlines.

All in all, although sometimes I hate them, they serve a purpose - cheap flights providing something that you get what you pay for and nothing else.

[Fookhaht]

Concurring with the previous poster, I have been flying budget airlines for over 15 years in N. America, Europe and Asia. I fly budget, because I'd rather spend my dollars/baht/pounds on a gourmet meal or luxury room at my destination. Air Asia does a pretty good bang-up job considering the peanuts we pay them. My hats off to a generally very customer-friendly airline.

Most of the horror stories you read here could be repeated on just about any full-fare airline, and I'm sure they have.

[asiaexpat]

.Flying AA one must plan well ahead and check every detail. Even then, there are surprises, like pre-booking check luggage only to find that the line to hand in the bag is so long you miss your flight (too few works at check in.) The price is never as advertised, but still beats most other airlines. If one opts for the cheap flight, one must take al the risks involved. If I fly AA (which I still do frequently), I get to the airport at least 3 hours ahead of my boarding time and rarely check in bags. I allow 4 hours if flying BKK to KL and on to other destination. Just the price on pay in time for the cheap ticket. I do hate their web site. It is almost as bad as EVA's web site.

[Plods]

Excess Baggage - What a "RIP OFF" by Air Asia:

On my return trip from Hobart to Bangkok I booked to bring my bicycle back.

I have never transported a bike before so I was unsure of the weight. I initially booked 15kg Sports Equipment with Air Asia at a cost of $45 AUS.

I was surprised when I booked the bike in at Hobart with Virgin Airlines that it weighed 20kg. This did not impact the cost from Virgin as I had booked for 1 piece of baggage which provided for weight up to 23kg. I flew from Hobart to Melbourne on 30th July and was flying with Air Asia the next day.

I logged onto the Air Asia internet site that night with the intention of increasing the weight for my bike from 15 to 20kg. The site would not allow me to access my booking. This was a surprise as Australian airlines do not allow you to finalise your booking until the last 48 hours prior to flying.

Air Asia promote pre-booked baggage saves you 66%, so when I was unable to increase the weight I expected to pay an additional $20 - $30.

I was HORRIFIED when I was asked to pay an ADDITIONAL $200 AUS!!!!

AN ADDITIONAL 400%!!!

I was extremely frustrated and spoke with a manager who advised there was absolutely nothing that she could do. All Natasha could say was "I understand your frustration, I would be extremely frustrated too". As I was in transit I had no option but to pay the whopping $200 fee, or leave the bike at the airport.

Upon my return I emailed Air Asia requesting a refund of the excess baggage charge. Their response was the charge was in line with their excess baggage fees.

I then phoned Air Asia who responded with:

1. Why did you pay the fee in the first place?

As I said earlier I was in transit, I had two options pay the fee or surrender the bike.

2. I was told if I was an Air Asia member I could have accessed the booking.

Once I booked the flight with Air Asia they invited me to become a member and I did join. But because the booking was prior to the membership the booking was not referenced.

3. Why didn't you phone Air Asia?

Did not cross my mind, all airlines promote do it yourself via the internet.

I wish to share my HORRIFYING experience of Air Asia with as many people as I can. DO NOT fly Air Asia, I certainly will never fly with them again.

This is how they closed their emailed response to my inquiry:

"We apologise for the inconvenience caused. We truly appreciate your valued patronage and we look forward to serve you better in the future."

WHAT A JOKE!!

[stevenl]

So it comes down to: you booked a limit, went over that limit and are angry at being charged for that over limit.

[zoza]

flew with air Asia many times and can only recall one extra baggage /weight problem

flew with British airways once and they changed the flight I had booked and paid for

to a flight with just a twenty minutes transfer at heathrow,their own website says minimum transfer at

Heathrow of one hour,. phoned customer services just a joke, difficult to spot the budget airline. imo

[ricardofel]

THE BIG SALE IS HAPPENING AGAIN........first they raise all their prices and then they have their Big Sale by lowering them by 10%. Sure there are some great deals, but for the most part it's a big scam.

[ricardofel]

So it comes down to: you booked a limit, went over that limit and are angry at being charged for that over limit.

What a stupid response......typical incompetent responder who doesn't read the initial story and the pertinent facts.