Kudos to Thai Airways

[Sparkles]

2 weeks ago my wife and I returned from an overseas trip with Thai Airways, Sydney /Bangkok /Chiang Mai with luggage booked through from Sydney.

 

Tired and wanting to get home, we waited for our bags to do the loop and retrieved the smaller ones first and then came the 20 kg one and on heaving it off we noticed that both wheels were broken.

 

There didn't appear to be any supervisor around and I was at first prepared to put it down to an unfortunate incident.

A quote from Mr Bag Fix it on Hang Dong Rd quoted us 800 baht which we decided to pay.

 

At this stage I thought why not try to retrieve the amount from Thai Aiways which resulted in a letter sent registered mail to the CEO here in CM (emails tend to get lost) My wife said it won't happen.

 

The very next day we got a call and were told to bring in passports and boarding passes, which my wife always keeps, and we would get a full refund, ............didnt really expect that.

 

As a matter of interest all cargo handling is apparently outsourced and the airlines dont have much control.CCTV cameras are the responsibilty of Thai Airports  in this country, and getting videos in cases of stealing/damage is a long process.

 

Thanks Thai Aiways for a very pleasant and unexpected outcome.

Edited April 13, 2017 by Sparkles

[Dipterocarp]

That is awesome. Most airlines will not cover broken wheels or zippers.

I hear moaning about TG a lot but in all the years flying them, last 12 almost monthly on TG I have never had a cancelled flight or lost bag on TG. Two long delays I can think of 2 hours and 8 hours respectively still got to where I needed to without overnight stay.

 

A wonderful airline!

[realenglish1]

Thai airways Better than United Airways but that is not saying much

[dunque]

Definitely have a lot of time for Thai Airways. Last October my wife went back to visit her mum for a couple of weeks and was due to arrive back at London Heathrow on the Sunday morning. As she seemed to be a be late passing through customs after the flight had landed tired her phone - no reply, tried her mum on skype and it turned out they had both misinterpreted the departure time from 1 in the morning to 1 lunchtime!

 

They contacted Thai Airways and - as it was the week of the king's untimely demise - they waived the rebooking fee.

 

 

 

[ftpjtm]

Kudos to Thai Airways for reimbursing you for your luggage repair costs. Based on previous experiences attempting to be reimbursed for defective goods from Thailand based companies, I'm very surprised. 

 

But like many posters above, I've had great experiences with Thai. Latest example? For a recent trip between Thailand and the US I flew Swiss Air with a connection in Zurich. The BKK-ZRH flight on a code-share Thai Airways 777, ZRH-BKK on a Swiss Air 777 both in economy. The Thai plane had 3-3-3 seating, but the damn Swiss plane had 3-4-3 in the same 777! One extra seat jammed into every economy class row of the Swiss Air plane. Needless to say the Thai Airways flight was significantly more comfortable. Emirates and Qatar are also jamming 10 seats across a 777.

 

I hope Thai doesn't reconfigure their 777's to join 10 row jam, because for now they are more comfortable than a lot of their competitors. 

Edited April 14, 2017 by ftpjtm

[jakobvarming]

Good to hear a positive story of that horrible company... Unfortunately I have mostly bad stories to tell about their lack of professionalism.

[SiSePuede419]

Their competition Thai Smiles just made the Top 10 Best Airlines in the world...

 

Good strategy to up their game. ?

[CliffH]

BA are considering 3-4-3 economy seating on some 777s.  They're also looking into charging for food on long-haul flights, having already done it on short haul.

[samsensam]

 

when i had items stolen, not high value, from checked in baggage on a thai airways domestic flight i went to speak to thai airways 'customer services'. the thai airways member of staff told me it was my fault my items were stolen because i left them in the bag. i got the impression it was a common occurrence and they couldn't care less a) that it happens, and that it happened to me.

 

i have been flying regularly for 30 years and this is the ONLY time anything has been stolen.

 

i didnt make a big fuss i simply resolved never to fly thai airways again. and havent.

[CHRISTIANa9]

I have claimed twice. One time thru Singapore airlines the other Rex air Australia. No problem. SIA repair while rex air pays..

[smotherb]

1 hour ago, SiSePuede419 said:

Their competition Thai Smiles just made the Top 10 Best Airlines in the world...

 

Good strategy to up their game. ?

Thai Smile is a wholly owned subsidiary of Thai Airways; thus, not a competitor.

[Dumbastheycome]

To  date  I have  never  had a  luggage issue  with Thai.

Have  a;ways  found that in terms  of  flight  changes they have  been  very responsive  at   no extra  cost   even on  short  notice.

Over all  service  is ok  for me. It is a shame  that it apparently struggles with operational profitability.

[midas]

6 hours ago, realenglish1 said:

Thai airways Better than United Airways but that is not saying much

ha ha !!

did you see the Southwest Airline lastest ad ?

 

 " we beat the competition..........not YOU " !

[EricTh]

By the way, did Mr Bag Fix it replace with good quality long lasting wheels?

 

I have the same problem with my luggage and hoping to replace the wheels too

[alex8912]

6 hours ago, ftpjtm said:

Kudos to Thai Airways for reimbursing you for your luggage repair costs. Based on previous experiences attempting to be reimbursed for defective goods from Thailand based companies, I'm very surprised. 

 

But like many posters above, I've had great experiences with Thai. Latest example? For a recent trip between Thailand and the US I flew Swiss Air with a connection in Zurich. The BKK-ZRH flight on a code-share Thai Airways 777, ZRH-BKK on a Swiss Air 777 both in economy. The Thai plane had 3-3-3 seating, but the damn Swiss plane had 3-4-3 in the same 777! One extra seat jammed into every economy class row of the Swiss Air plane. Needless to say the Thai Airways flight was significantly more comfortable. Emirates and Qatar are also jamming 10 seats across a 777.

 

I hope Thai doesn't reconfigure their 777's to join 10 row jam, because for now they are more comfortable than a lot of their competitors. 

Your Seat is the same size.  Can you prove me wrong?  In economy. 

[ftpjtm]

46 minutes ago, alex8912 said:

Your Seat is the same size.  Can you prove me wrong?  In economy. 

According to Seatguru.com Swiss 777 economy class seats are 17.3 inches width, while Thai Airways 777 economy class seats are 18 inches width. Look it up and while you're at it read the reviews on the (lack of) comfort in the Swiss 777 economy class. 

 

Do you seriously think Swiss can fit an extra seat across a horizontal row inside the same aircraft without reducing the width? 

 

Width of the aisles are also reduced making meal service extra miserable. And to top it off, per seatguru the Swiss 777-300ER has 6 lavatories in economy class while the Thai 777-300ER has 8. So Swiss will likely have longer lav lines in those narrow aisles.   

Edited April 14, 2017 by ftpjtm

[oldhippy]

40 minutes ago, alex8912 said:

Your Seat is the same size.  Can you prove me wrong?  In economy. 

NOT with Emirates!

Excellent food & drinks, but never again - almost impossible to eat with arms tightly against body.

 

[ftpjtm]

7 minutes ago, oldhippy said:

NOT with Emirates!

Excellent food & drinks, but never again - almost impossible to eat with arms tightly against body.

 

Per seatguru Emirates has 17.0 width seats (probably slightly wider aisles) but they have a bit more leg room than either Swiss or Thai. 

[ftpjtm]

6 hours ago, CliffH said:

BA are considering 3-4-3 economy seating on some 777s.  They're also looking into charging for food on long-haul flights, having already done it on short haul.

I don't care about paying for food but 3-4-3 economy class seating in a 777 is ridiculous, especially for long haul flights. Same number of seats across a 777 as a 747 or an A380?!? 

 

But I suppose that's the future of air travel. If Emirates does it, the others pretty much have to follow suit. But until they do I am actively searching out airlines with less dense seating. 

 

Qatar is jamming an extra row into the A350 too, BTW. 3-3-3 in an aircraft designed for 2-4-2.

Edited April 14, 2017 by ftpjtm

[rodney earl]

I used to fly with Thai until I found out that all of their food is halal (their throat cut and let bleed out) .

[EricTh]

Just now, rodney earl said:

I used to fly with Thai until I found out that all of their food is halal (their throat cut and let bleed out) .

 

Halal also means no pork (other than the way it is slaughtered).

 

I wonder why Thailand caters to the Muslims when it is a Buddhist country.

 

Why not cater to vegetarian as well?

 

 

Edited April 15, 2017 by EricTh

[Stargeezr]

I have had great flights with Thai AIr in the past, and recently had two good flights on Smile, Bangkok to

Udonthani and return. I have not had any luggage problems, and the flighs were on time, and the

service on board was excellent.

Geezer

[Ace of Pop]

 
Halal also means no pork (other than the way it is slaughtered).
 
I wonder why Thailand caters to the Muslims when it is a Buddhist country.
 
Why not cater to vegetarian as well?
 
 

I'd sooner sit next to the Village Nuter than Veggi Head.Why do they always think we need a lecture.


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Sparkles]

12 hours ago, EricTh said:

By the way, did Mr Bag Fix it replace with good quality long lasting wheels?

 

I have the same problem with my luggage and hoping to replace the wheels too

We pick up next week.The wheels, same type, are from a supplier in Bangkok ,which is the normal course of events.

I originally bought this bag as the wheels looked the strongest but they are not meant to be thrown around especialy when they are carrying 20 kg of belongings.

[thedemon]

2 hours ago, rodney earl said:

I used to fly with Thai until I found out that all of their food is halal (their throat cut and let bleed out) .

Even the carrots have their throats cut? That's horrible.

[eddysmit]

11 hours ago, ftpjtm said:

According to Seatguru.com Swiss 777 economy class seats are 17.3 inches width, while Thai Airways 777 economy class seats are 18 inches width. Look it up and while you're at it read the reviews on the (lack of) comfort in the Swiss 777 economy class. 

 

Do you seriously think Swiss can fit an extra seat across a horizontal row inside the same aircraft without reducing the width? 

 

Width of the aisles are also reduced making meal service extra miserable. And to top it off, per seatguru the Swiss 777-300ER has 6 lavatories in economy class while the Thai 777-300ER has 8. So Swiss will likely have longer lav lines in those narrow aisles.   

Yes ftpjtm you are correct, most airlines have been using their 'economy spanners' to add more seating.

[ftpjtm]

26 minutes ago, eddysmit said:

Yes ftpjtm you are correct, most airlines have been using their 'economy spanners' to add more seating.

I've got to admit this is a pet peeve of mine. 

 

It used to be that you got jammed into a small plane with dense seating for your short hop to the big hub city, where you boarded the luxurious long haul wide body. 

 

Now they want me to fly in a 777 with 17" seats for 14 hours, followed by a short hop on an Air Asia A320 with 18" seats? How does that make sense. 

 

I hope customers revolt. But they won't because bargain prices always win in the end, and dense seating is the key to bargain prices. 

Edited April 15, 2017 by ftpjtm

[rogeroc]

Interesting discussion about seating and size of seats. The reality however is that the comfort of your journey is much more likely to be determined by who might be sitting beside you or indeed in front of you. We have all suffered the types who fully recline their seat for the whole journey including when they and you are sittting upright and trying to eat.

 

Regrettably, unless you are in an upper class, seat size is just one factor.

[EricTh]

2 hours ago, Ace of Pop said:

I'd sooner sit next to the Village Nuter than Veggi Head.Why do they always think we need a lecture.


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

 

I am not saying everyone should be a veggie.

 

That's the same assumption that Thai airways said everyone should have a Muslim diet.

 

I think Thai airways should cater to all groups and not insist on halal Muslim diet.

[thedemon]

26 minutes ago, EricTh said:

 

I am not saying everyone should be a veggie.

 

That's the same assumption that Thai airways said everyone should have a Muslim diet.

 

I think Thai airways should cater to all groups and not insist on halal Muslim diet.

 

Not sure what you're on about with this Halal stuff. Since THAI commonly serve pork that can't be the case, can it? 

 

Read here: http://www.thaiairways.com/en/exp_thai/Cabin_Class/special_meal_service.page