People often say that
"It's not about what shit happened to you; but it's your reaction towards that shit that matters"
Wise words indeed. But when something bad happened to you, it's mighty hard to just keep your chin high and move on. Okay maybe some people has super high EQ but I am definitely not one of those people who can take stress or sudden bad news in the face like a champion.
Recently I just went for a short getaway in Bali BUT what I didn't share (except on my Dayre) is that I actually.. missed my flight. I actually deliberately picked the earliest flight possible there and the latest possible flight back so I can max the time I spend in Bali. I mean what fun is there if you have to reach your travel destination after sunset and leave to the airport the moment you check out of the hotel. Of course that would mean I'll have to wake up before dawn breaks and arrive home at night.
BUT WHAT IS FUN WITHOUT SACRIFICING A LITTLE SLEEP RIGHT?
So there I was setting my alarm at 4am to catch a 930am flight. I know.. too early right? AND I STILL MANAGED TO MISS MY FLIGHT! *face palm*
The thing is, when I arrive in KLIA2, I learned that my flight was delayed so that would mean I have more time to linger around the airport. I was actually so sucked into walking around and specifically looking for a cheap bottle of mineral water (by the way, get it from Jaya Grocer! Only RM 1.50 leh!! The rest of the places selling at like RM 3 pfft), we lose track of our time. I know that if you have check in luggage, you HAVE TO check in at least an hour before. But I don't know what've gotten into me and I kept thinking the counter will only open an hour before flight *double face palm*
So of course when Ms. Genius went to the check in counter, they told me I couldn't board and immediately I broke down to tears at my own stupidity. But we did manage to pay compensation, blah.. blah.. blah...
First of, THE GROUND STAFF AT THE CHECK IN COUNTER
When I reached the counter and handed her my boarding pass, she frowned and with a VERY annoyed tone, she said
I asked her what else can I do, she said well I can compensate and pay for the penalty. I asked her how much and she said she's not sure and asked me to proceed to the customer service. Any kind words before we left, nope. Not even a 'thank you' or 'goodbye' which is very common to expect from an airline staff that's supposed to make us "feel at home".
GROUND STAFF AT THE CUSTOMER SERVICE COUNTER
This one is even more awesome wtf! We went there and we told her
She said well there's nothing else we can do and left us.
What I am disappointed is that throughout the entire conversation with her, she did not treat us like valuable customers. As a person not in the service industry I too understand that even when the customers screwed up, they are STILL our customers. Respect them and use some basic "magic words" like 'please', 'sorry' and 'thank you'. Not throw them an annoyed look as if we DELIBERATELY missed our flight to give you more work.
GROUND STAFF AT ANOTHER CUSTOMER SERVICE COUNTER
Missed the flight. So I choose to cry first and deal with it later, I was really really miserable cause I made everyone woke up at 4am and for what? If I am gonna board a later flight anyway, might as well I sleep in right? I was facing a huge pang of guilt so I just weep as if my bf is gonna leave Malaysia and I am bidding farewell wtf!
I know there's a 10:30am flight but because I can only pay penalty after my existing flight took off, I can't possibly pay now and rush for the 10:30am flight. WHAT ODD RULE IS THAT BY THE WAY? SOME PEOPLE WANNA FLY OFF ASAP HERE! Compensate then pay only la! What if my plane is still here? As if you guys are selling last minute tickets to anyone right? 100% can't make it dy right?! Wasting my time!
So we had to just wait until our flight took off to know how much we have to pay for penalty and the air flight tickets difference.
Longest wait in my life
Every minute felt like a death sentence as I am still in disbelief and I am super worried that the penalty will cost me an arm and a leg.
Finally at 10am, we went to the counter again and told the staff another grandmother story. I clearly went to another counter cause the first lady was so mean and rude, I felt like I don't have to take it from her so I just went to another one. Co-incidentally, it was the time when they change their shift. The dude left and the counter was EMPTY! A lady came in but she's not wearing her uniform but she had an AirAsia lanyard on. So I asked her and she yelled across the check in counters where a bunch of ground staff was chatting away. So they are clearly not very bothered with the yelling. Afterwards, the staff told us to wait and not bothered to find the person in charge... In another words,
Finally, the payment is done! The damage was about RM 283/pax. An ouchie but it's honestly our fault. We did a mistake, we face whatever consequences there are on our own.
And then I remembered that I pre-ordered Nasi Lemak for my initial flight. It is now NOT TRANSFERABLE. Another ridiculous rule. I'VE PAID FOR IT ALREADY! What do you mean by cause I missed my flight so now I can't have it on another flight? The dumbest excuse is that they have to prepare the meal 24 hours before flight? YOU CAN'T JUST GIVE ME ONE OF THE NASI LEMAK YOU WANT TO SELL THE CUSTOMERS ON THE SPOT?! Is there a difference? I already paid... right? I don't see the logic behind it. So they just keep my Nasi Lemak for the next guests but the person who actually paid for it can't even get a box from the tray/trolley? Can someone help make sense of this rule to me?
Then, fine, I made my bf ask whether can I buy a pack later on flight? They rudely brushed us off and said NO! Have to book early. I was so confused cause I always remembered the stewardess selling food during the flight. I just want to double confirm am I allowed to purchase it from there. The staff said no cause they need 24 hours to prepare it. I was really really dazed after hearing her replies.. Then.. why they go through all the trouble to make the in flight menu and all?!
Turns out, the staff was just following AirAsia's new motto by treating us as nuisance. My bf has a very good command of English so I believe he did articulate his thought about PURCHASING WHILE WE'RE IN THE MID-AIR PERFECTLY! The ground staff just kept treating us like nuisance who wants to pre-book a meal which is RM 2 cheaper instead of buying it on the spot. So they misunderstood us and continued treating us like nuisance and just wish to shoo us away. What politeness.
Since I was a child, I always find stewardess, regardless those on flight or the ground staff to be kind and polite. Especially since half the time, our understanding of the aviation industry is very limited, they are the people we are resorted to rely and depend on. When something so distressing happened to a customer, I am amazed that I did not feel one bit of comforting or hospitality from them. NOT EVEN A SMILE! The number of eyes rolling and annoyed tone I got from missing my flight was TOO DAMN HIGH!
Yes I acknowledge that it's my fault for missing my flight. Does that give your ground staff a right to punish us? Or make us feel worse? I didn't expect Cathay Pacific service level from a low cost budget flight but I DIDN'T EXPECT TO GET TREATED AS IF WE'RE STUPID.
You cannot say that it's because I was so emotional and I exaggerated the negativity felt. Becuase:
And the rest is history.Now that I'm back and I am all calmed and got over the incident, I can't help but keep looking back and feel aggravated by the treatment I've received when I found out that I can't check in my luggage anymore.
First of, THE GROUND STAFF AT THE CHECK IN COUNTER
When I reached the counter and handed her my boarding pass, she frowned and with a VERY annoyed tone, she said
"I don't know can you still check in your luggage for this flight, I have to check first."She proceed to make a phone call and asked whether QZ 551 still allows baggage. I assume the person over the phone said no. She turned to me and said..
"Sorry, I can't check in your luggage right now. Why you didn't come earlier? Check-in should be done an hour before the flight take off"Of course I started to feel worried and restless. I begin to ask her if there's anything else I can do. She looked at her watch and repeated the same sentence above WHILE ROLLING HER EYES and suggested that it was my fault for not reading my boarding pass properly. Well OF COURSE IT'S MY FAULT, clearly it was. But is there any sense of hospitality for the woman who is very emotional cause she missed her flight? NO!
I asked her what else can I do, she said well I can compensate and pay for the penalty. I asked her how much and she said she's not sure and asked me to proceed to the customer service. Any kind words before we left, nope. Not even a 'thank you' or 'goodbye' which is very common to expect from an airline staff that's supposed to make us "feel at home".
GROUND STAFF AT THE CUSTOMER SERVICE COUNTER
This one is even more awesome wtf! We went there and we told her
"Hi Miss we missed our flight, now we want to know what is our next course of action"She looked at her watch and our boarding pass, made a phone call again to double confirm that we are really too late. She's someone in her 40s so I think she's one of the higher ranked staff. But she was constantly making a bitchy face as if she's far superior than any of her customers. She said the same thing as the first ground staff and she looked at my luggage and said it was way too big. Definitely cannot hand carry. By then, I know that my fate is sealed and I am NOT getting on my flight. Devastated, we asked is there anything we can do and she suggested us to buy a smaller bag and try to squeeze my essential items in and leave the rest here and get a friend to collect for me later. Hello.. It's was already 9am..The flight is taking off at 930am.. Knowing the sheer size of KLIA 2 I know it was impossible dy. So I said I don't think that's possible.
She said well there's nothing else we can do and left us.
What I am disappointed is that throughout the entire conversation with her, she did not treat us like valuable customers. As a person not in the service industry I too understand that even when the customers screwed up, they are STILL our customers. Respect them and use some basic "magic words" like 'please', 'sorry' and 'thank you'. Not throw them an annoyed look as if we DELIBERATELY missed our flight to give you more work.
GROUND STAFF AT ANOTHER CUSTOMER SERVICE COUNTER
Missed the flight. So I choose to cry first and deal with it later, I was really really miserable cause I made everyone woke up at 4am and for what? If I am gonna board a later flight anyway, might as well I sleep in right? I was facing a huge pang of guilt so I just weep as if my bf is gonna leave Malaysia and I am bidding farewell wtf!
I know there's a 10:30am flight but because I can only pay penalty after my existing flight took off, I can't possibly pay now and rush for the 10:30am flight. WHAT ODD RULE IS THAT BY THE WAY? SOME PEOPLE WANNA FLY OFF ASAP HERE! Compensate then pay only la! What if my plane is still here? As if you guys are selling last minute tickets to anyone right? 100% can't make it dy right?! Wasting my time!
So we had to just wait until our flight took off to know how much we have to pay for penalty and the air flight tickets difference.
Longest wait in my life
Every minute felt like a death sentence as I am still in disbelief and I am super worried that the penalty will cost me an arm and a leg.
Finally at 10am, we went to the counter again and told the staff another grandmother story. I clearly went to another counter cause the first lady was so mean and rude, I felt like I don't have to take it from her so I just went to another one. Co-incidentally, it was the time when they change their shift. The dude left and the counter was EMPTY! A lady came in but she's not wearing her uniform but she had an AirAsia lanyard on. So I asked her and she yelled across the check in counters where a bunch of ground staff was chatting away. So they are clearly not very bothered with the yelling. Afterwards, the staff told us to wait and not bothered to find the person in charge... In another words,
SHE DON'T GIVE A SHIT THAT WE'RE WAITING THERE WANTING TO HANDLE THE PENALTY ASAP!Cause AirAsia's new motto must be...
When you screw up, you're no longer important but more like nuisance to us.10 minutes later, the ground staff in charge of the counter came. This time, another lady. She tapped in our details and checked the amount. But halfway, she kept pressing stuff on her phone which is at the table top. Hello, you're serving the customer and she can see you're tapping away on Whatsapp! SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO PROFESSIONAL of you! Halfway she even went on GOSSIPING with that lady not in her uniform. It's clearly gossip cause it was a this guy didn't tell this guy this this this so now they're that. I WAS IN A TOTAL WTF MOOD! I am sure I rolled my eyes at least 50 times!
Finally, the payment is done! The damage was about RM 283/pax. An ouchie but it's honestly our fault. We did a mistake, we face whatever consequences there are on our own.
And then I remembered that I pre-ordered Nasi Lemak for my initial flight. It is now NOT TRANSFERABLE. Another ridiculous rule. I'VE PAID FOR IT ALREADY! What do you mean by cause I missed my flight so now I can't have it on another flight? The dumbest excuse is that they have to prepare the meal 24 hours before flight? YOU CAN'T JUST GIVE ME ONE OF THE NASI LEMAK YOU WANT TO SELL THE CUSTOMERS ON THE SPOT?! Is there a difference? I already paid... right? I don't see the logic behind it. So they just keep my Nasi Lemak for the next guests but the person who actually paid for it can't even get a box from the tray/trolley? Can someone help make sense of this rule to me?
Then, fine, I made my bf ask whether can I buy a pack later on flight? They rudely brushed us off and said NO! Have to book early. I was so confused cause I always remembered the stewardess selling food during the flight. I just want to double confirm am I allowed to purchase it from there. The staff said no cause they need 24 hours to prepare it. I was really really dazed after hearing her replies.. Then.. why they go through all the trouble to make the in flight menu and all?!
Turns out, the staff was just following AirAsia's new motto by treating us as nuisance. My bf has a very good command of English so I believe he did articulate his thought about PURCHASING WHILE WE'RE IN THE MID-AIR PERFECTLY! The ground staff just kept treating us like nuisance who wants to pre-book a meal which is RM 2 cheaper instead of buying it on the spot. So they misunderstood us and continued treating us like nuisance and just wish to shoo us away. What politeness.
Since I was a child, I always find stewardess, regardless those on flight or the ground staff to be kind and polite. Especially since half the time, our understanding of the aviation industry is very limited, they are the people we are resorted to rely and depend on. When something so distressing happened to a customer, I am amazed that I did not feel one bit of comforting or hospitality from them. NOT EVEN A SMILE! The number of eyes rolling and annoyed tone I got from missing my flight was TOO DAMN HIGH!
Yes I acknowledge that it's my fault for missing my flight. Does that give your ground staff a right to punish us? Or make us feel worse? I didn't expect Cathay Pacific service level from a low cost budget flight but I DIDN'T EXPECT TO GET TREATED AS IF WE'RE STUPID.
You cannot say that it's because I was so emotional and I exaggerated the negativity felt. Becuase:
- I felt it the moment I talked to the lady from the check-in counter BEFORE I found out I missed my flight
- Because I was so emotional, I let my bf who is very calm because he knows what can be solved with dollars and cents are not a real crisis to handle the situation
I didn't intend to blame AirAsia for my own mistakes but at the very least, I should still feel like a valued customer. I think Aeon, Giant or even Pos Malaysia's service is better than what I experienced from AirAsia..
But it wasn't all that bad, another staff was talking to us nicely when he told us it's impossible to get on the 10:30am flight and I appreciate his "my apologies", "sorry", "is there anything else I can do for you" and his smile so much! How I wish his shift didn't end and he was serving us instead!
In the end, I managed to catch my flight and had the best time of my life in Bali
Funny though, my flight was delayed cause they wish to remove a luggage cause some passenger decided to not board at the very last minute.. REALLY?! And putting my one suit case in was so difficult *roll eyes*.
And guess what?! There is Nasi Lemak
I really wanted the Nasi Lemak cause it's yummy! Really.. what was that ground staff thinking of us? They ride cheap flight so they must be cheapos?
Not that I am pissed or trying to blame anyone that I missed my flights but really.. In the service industry, I really expected better.
Maybe next time, I'll just get a Premium Flex straight or fly some other airline to save my liver cells wtf!
Alright! That's all I want to rant for today~
Write again next time Bye!
