Stranded at Suvarnabhumi Airport

The mayhem in Thailand had started again and luckily I was not in Bangkok around this time. But I will remember my last trip there. It was the first time in my life I have to sleep in an airport.

Well, I was on transit at the Suvarnabhumi International Airport on April 3, 2009, waiting for my 8.20pm Air Asia flight back to Kuala Lumpur. I arrived from Katmandu at about 6.25pm the same evening.

When I was leaving Katmandu earlier in the day, a Thai friend of my teases me on my attire. I was wearing a red T-shirt. Knowing well ahead the turbulance that is simmering in Bangkok that time, it will be rather " sensitive" for me to be in red attire when I reach Bangkok later. But then if I take a cab, maybe the driver will waive the fare since I was informed taxi drivers are the red shirts supporters.

Anyway my red T-shirt did not give caused me any anxiety or free taxi ride but it was the other red of the day that gives me the headache. My Air Asia flight was delayed for 4 hours and 5 minutes! The flight took off only at 12.25 am on April 4, 2009. That means I was stranded at the airport for 6 hours! Luckily I had my sleeping bag ready in my backpack.

Until now I did not receive not any official apology from the Air Asia management and neither the RM200 e-voucher guarantee that Air Asia promises to be delivered via email within three days of the delayed flight to those who are make to wait more than two hours from the actual flight schedule. Due to the delayed, I only arrived at the KLIA LCCT at 3.30am in the morning. Adding salt to injury, I was made to pay extra 50% midnight surcharge for my LCCT taxi. ( After waiting for two weeks, Air Asia emailed me the e-voucher worth RM200 on April 17, 2009 but I must redeem it within three months. There was no response on my query regarding the taxi surcharge paid by me due to the delay.)

I had already emailed my complaint to them via their website one week ago. No response at all. Tried calling them, no one picks up the phone!

Air Asia- promises are easy to make but find difficulty in honouring it. - Loka

Economy or Business, ETA the same!

The blogsphere was abuzzed with the story of Penang CM Lim Guan Eng flying on economy class. Maybe it was not Guan Eng's publicity stunt, but maybe there are other elected officials who flies economy class but were not photographed by anyone?

On a flight related matter, sometime ago I happened to travel in a same flight with a deputy Minister. It is nothing unusual on bumping onto a deputy Minister in a flight but the flight was on AirAsia. Out of curiousity I asked him why he travels on a low cost carrier when the government can pay for his full fare flight on MAS?

It was his party election campaigning season and he explained that it was due to timing as he had to campaign in different places on the same day. Furthermore, the fare is from his own pocket. At least he knows party campaigning is not government official duties! Later, during queueing for boarding I was surprised when his personal assistant make a request to the air stewardess for his boss to jump queue and boarded first!

There was no express boarding that time and I think maybe similiar incidences gave Tony Fernandes the idea for the AirAsia Xpress Boarding for those prepared to pay extra RM20 two-way to board the aircraft first!