As the time approached for some long awaited home leave, I took care to follow all the rules of air travel – including flight confirmations on the airlines 3 days in advance (who does that anyway was the basic airline reply – of course your tickets are OK – now don’t bother us…). Arrived at the airport to check in for my 2:50 a.m. flight and it did not take long for trouble to set in. Although Emirates Airline had confirmed my flight 3 days in advance, had allowed me to check in on-line and was able to find my booking at the airport, they were unable to find my e-ticket number on the system and seemed relatively disinterested in doing so. Apparently “anyone can call in and have their flight confirmed and go onto the airline web site, check in and print out a boarding pass even if they don’t have a ticket.”
Excuse Me?????? We have now entered Bizarro World. After calling Expedia, Continental and Northwest Airlines on the phone I finally connected the Emirates check-in agent in Dubai with a Northwest employee in the US (on my cell phone) where the e-ticket number was located BUT apparently control of the ticket could not be released by Northwest so the Emirates check-in agent could use the ticket. I was told that I could board the plane only if I would cough up $8,000.00 which happened to be more than I had paid for the complete round trip ticket some 6 months previously. I declined their generous offer.
After exhausting all rational arguments that might lead to another flight out within the next few hours, I rebooked for the following morning at 1:30 am. They had kept me off the flight, but in the meantime had tagged my baggage and put it ON the flight!!?? Eventually it was “off-loaded” and I was told I would have to go to arrivals to claim the bags. When I asked how I could retrieve my luggage at arrivals since arrivals was on the opposite side of customs from where I was currently located, I was advised to just go out the door and down the elevator. What they neglected to tell me is that once your luggage has gone to the tarmac, it is not so easy to retrieve as that. I was further advised that I had to wait until 8 hours after the flight leaves and so just took a taxi home at 6 a.m.
The next evening, I arrived at the airport to reclaim my luggage armed with confirmation that my bags were available and an “expediting number.” I had also called the airlines, confirmed my flights, and printed out my on-line check-in information. “Just take a seat and your luggage will be here shortly,” said the young Emirate woman behind the desk. After about 15 minutes, I noticed the cobwebs growing on some fellow victims that were there when I arrived. I asked the woman on the stained and ratty couch next to mine, “Have you been waiting long?” “About an hour” she replied and I realized I had to start working the girl behind the desk if I was to avoid missing my flight. After 15 minutes of cajoling and lying about my flight status my luggage was finally delivered.
Home free I thought as I approached the KLM check-in. Not so fast said the agent. We see you are booked for the flight but we can’t find your e-ticket number. Was this a bad remake of the movie Groundhog Day, I wondered? In the movie, progress was made on each attempt by trying something new each day so I started asking for a supervisor, calling the airlines, and finally got the check-in person connected to someone in Amsterdam (again on my cel phone). This time they successfully found the e-ticket number and attached it for use on the flight. The relief of boarding passes in hand overshadowed the realization that my aisle Business Class seat had now been transformed into an Economy Class center seat that I would be sitting in for 7.5 hours.
Next time maybe I can get myself deported…even criminals get to fly home in first class.
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