Lakelad Posted August 23, 2016 Share Posted August 23, 2016 . WestJet pays double compensation to passengers in error Accidental double payment to English father and son to make up for 4-hour flight delay Tue Aug 23, 2016 - CBC News By Kyle Bakx While passengers often gripe about being shortchanged by airlines after a cancelled or delayed flight, one family had the rare experience of being paid too much. Their question was whether or not to keep the money. Stuart Border and his son's two-week vacation got off to a rough start as their WestJet flight from London, England, to Calgary was delayed by about 4½ hours because of issues with refuelling and taxiing to the runway. They were going to complain to the airline while visiting with family in Calgary, but were alerted two days after their arrival that WestJet would provide compensation for the disruption. "In the U.K., most airlines you have to chase them to get any money out of them. So we were pleasantly surprised how quickly they offered compensation," said Border. They had the option of being paid in Canadian dollars, U.S. dollars, or Euros. Within a month, they each received a cheque in the mail for about $670 US. A week later, they unexpectedly received a second payment from WestJet for the same amount. Tony and Stuart Border "We got another cheque. In their haste to get us compensation, someone along the line made a mistake and we had two cheques," said Border. He and his son faced the decision of what to do next — return the money or cash the additional cheque. Border didn't hesitate to contact WestJet and report the error. He never contemplated keeping the money. "I'm not that kind of person. My philosophy is if you make money that is not yours, you can guarantee you'll have to spend a fair amount of money if something breaks," he said. "Honesty is the best policy." London problems WestJet admits it did indeed make a mistake and it's aware of two cases of double compensation for flights out of Europe. WestJet's venture into offering transatlantic flights has been a turbulent ride for the Calgary-based airline as delays and cancelled flights have meant a steep passenger compensation bill. CEO Gregg Saretsky has called the route a "hobbled operation" because the used aircraft "have been giving us lots of grief, lots of mechanical problems." "bearing in mind the plane was half empty, so it must have cost them a lot of money to fly the plane and pay people back for the inconvenience," . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j.k. Posted August 23, 2016 Share Posted August 23, 2016 Glad to see people are getting compensated. WS must be getting good at it. Surprised to read "the plane was half empty". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seeker Posted August 23, 2016 Share Posted August 23, 2016 I would have assumed the first cheque was for one of them and the second for the other but maybe they were told how much to expect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blues deville Posted August 24, 2016 Share Posted August 24, 2016 It sounds like WS, who I think is a good airline, is having its share of growing pains. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lakelad Posted September 30, 2016 Share Posted September 30, 2016 . WestJet CEO calls London flights a success, despite problems 'From Day 1 we've been full,' says airline's chief executive about flights to London Gatwick Fri Sep 30, 2016 - CBC News By Kyle Bakx WestJet's CEO proclaimed the airline's expansion to Europe as one of the best decisions made in its 20-year history, despite mechanical problems and passenger complaints. In the past, chief executive officer Gregg Saretsky had called the route to London a "hobbled operation," but he did not acknowledge any problems in a speech on Thursday at the International Pipeline Conference in Calgary. "It's been among the most successful things we've done," he said. "From Day 1 we've been full." WestJet bought four wide-body aircraft to start flying across the Atlantic about a year ago. On average, the planes are 24 years old and had several mechanical issues, leading to flight delays and cancellations. Last week, Saretsky blamed the early problems on the repair company hired by Boeing to fix the planes. Earlier this month, an Edmonton-bound WestJet flight from London was diverted to Iceland because of engine problems. Passengers heard a loud bang a few hours after takeoff. Each cancelled flight, or flight delayed more than four hours, costs the airline approximately $225,000 in compensation to passengers, if the plane is full. "Many industry analysts said it was the stupidest thing they had ever seen, because WestJet's history for 20 years was that we built on the beautiful simplicity of having a single fleet of 737s, why would we make it complicated by adding 767s?" Saretsky said. WestJet broke the mould by charging for meals and for all checked bags on international flights. "Many laughed at WestJet saying, 'They don't really understand long-haul travel, because every other international airline does a free meal.' I'd like to say we understand travellers very well, because no one else sells London for $299," Saretsky said. Fewer than five per cent of the flights to London have been cancelled, WestJet has previously said. "We've had to take some body blows, as we call them, to survive and thrive in the current tough environment." . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super 80 Posted October 1, 2016 Share Posted October 1, 2016 I can see why they feel that way, evaluated as a low-risk proof of concept this was probably very successful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FA@AC Posted October 2, 2016 Share Posted October 2, 2016 Yes Greg, things are going just swimmingly. YYZ-LGW has been cancelled 2 nights in a row now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverick Posted October 2, 2016 Share Posted October 2, 2016 1 hour ago, FA@AC said: Yes Greg, things are going just swimmingly. YYZ-LGW has been cancelled 2 nights in a row now. Might as well shut 'er down then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 2, 2016 Share Posted October 2, 2016 9 hours ago, FA@AC said: Yes Greg, things are going just swimmingly. YYZ-LGW has been cancelled 2 nights in a row now. Mechanical or ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lakelad Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 . WestJet apologizes after cancelling Toronto to London flight twice this weekend Airline has provided hotel and meal vouchers for those stranded in Toronto Sun Oct 02, 2016 - CBC News By Muriel Draaisma WestJet is apologizing to about 260 passengers after a flight from Toronto to London was cancelled twice this weekend due to maintenance problems. The apology comes days after WestJet's CEO Gregg Saretsky said the airline's expansion to Europe is "among the most successful things we've done," despite mechanical problems and passenger complaints. Lauren Stewart, spokesperson for WestJet, said in an email early Sunday that Flight 3 from Pearson International Airport to Gatwick Airport was cancelled on Friday due to a "non-scheduled maintenance issue." It was cancelled again on Saturday due to "completion of the maintenance" but is expected to proceed on Sunday night. Stewart said the airline has provided hotel and meal vouchers to passengers stranded by the cancellations on Friday and Saturday. "WestJet sincerely apologizes to our guests for the inconvenience and thanks them for their patience and understanding," she said. "We understand their frustration and are working diligently behind the scenes to rectify the situation." The airline has created another "flight segment," WS4303, to ensure all passengers are able to reach their destination and said it has booked remaining guests on another carrier, Stewart said. Stewart said the airline has made arrangements to ensure the passengers are as comfortable as possible while they wait for the plane to be fixed. "In terms of numbers, we do not provide our flight loads however you can probably surmise from the fact that the 767s hold around 260 guests and the flights are relatively full that we are caring for quite a number of guests at the moment." Some of the passengers took to Twitter to express their anger and to report that they are stuck at the airport. 'You better get your **bleep** together tonight @westjet. I really want to go home ' . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AIP Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 2 hours ago, Lakelad said: The airline has created another "flight segment," WS4303, to ensure all passengers are able to reach their destination and said it has booked remaining guests on another carrier, Stewart said. Oh the irony, there is only one or maybe two other carriers that fly YYZ-LGW (Can you say Rouge ?? Perhaps AT). At least the rebooked pax on the other carrier, won't have to pay for meals !!!! Saretsky has been awful with the media on this file !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 10 hours ago, AIP said: Oh the irony, there is only one or maybe two other carriers that fly YYZ-LGW (Can you say Rouge ?? Perhaps AT). At least the rebooked pax on the other carrier, won't have to pay for meals !!!! Saretsky has been awful with the media on this file !!! Of course in the interests of "guest service" they could have been rebooked to LHR, lots of open space on those flights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FA@AC Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 LGW-YYZ cancelled again today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverick Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 12 minutes ago, FA@AC said: LGW-YYZ cancelled again today. Where you getting that from? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FA@AC Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 https://www.westjet.com/guest/en/flightStatusRequest.shtml?searchType=flightNumberSearch&locale=en&searchType=numberSearch&date=0&flightNumber=004 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 Checking yyz arrivals they are showing a delayed flight from LGW. Is this the extra rescue flight ? WESTJET WS4304 LONDON-GATWICK Oct 3, 12:45 Oct 3, 17:50 Delayed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverick Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 http://flightaware.com/live/flight/WJA4304 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FA@AC Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 WS4304 (itself delayed over 5 hours) is a rescue fight for one of the previous cancellations. The regularly scheduled LGW-YYZ flight is WS4. It is cancelled today, and has been cancelled 3 days out of the past 4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 18 minutes ago, FA@AC said: WS4304 (itself delayed over 5 hours) is a rescue fight for one of the previous cancellations. The regularly scheduled LGW-YYZ flight is WS4. It is cancelled today, and has been cancelled 3 days out of the past 4. Another rescue flight in the works or have they this time transferred their guests to other carriers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DEFCON Posted October 4, 2016 Share Posted October 4, 2016 Sheesh; these aircraft are proving to be as difficult as the British subs we bought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thor Posted October 4, 2016 Share Posted October 4, 2016 Watch out Boeing, here comes Airbus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super 80 Posted October 4, 2016 Share Posted October 4, 2016 From this week's Flight International. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.O. Posted October 4, 2016 Share Posted October 4, 2016 ... and where was the QA department while this third party was doing the work? I know where mine would have been. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conehead Posted October 4, 2016 Share Posted October 4, 2016 Air Canada uses AAR as well, and I've seen a lot of shoddy work come out of their facilities. But hey, it's cheap... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deicer Posted October 4, 2016 Share Posted October 4, 2016 Well, it bit AC in the butt when they got rid of in-house maintenance, now it's WestJet's turn! Welcome to the big leagues! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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