C-Nimbus wrote:Whenever I ask for a window seat...?
When my wife arrived in New Zealand, AirNZ told us she could rebook her return flight up to three times. So earlier this year we decided to visit Japan. Off to the AirNZ ticketing office we go.
"Oh no," a different ticketing lady said, "this ticket is for a one year period only, and that expires in a few days."
"But," sayeth we, "the lady at the AirNZ ticketing place held it in her hot little hand, examined it for five minutes, made two phone calls, then assured us we could renew it up to three times, ANY time!"
"Well I don't know why she would tell you that." the new ticketing lady said. "She's completely wrong. You're either going to have to use it before it expires or purchase a whole new ticket."
And so we flush $987 down the sewer that is Air New Zealand's customer service department and buy a new ticket...
...then yesterday I drove two friends back to Dunedin airport so's they could return to the City of Gales (copyright Michael).
We leave really, really early (too early...yawn...), but STILL hit every obstruction known to mankind (most annoying: retired Kiwis touring in clapped-out Jap-import minibuses hogging the middle of the highways at 65 kph).
Check-in time is looming ever nearer, so we gun it (one of the friend's has taken over the driving by this point).
It's looking like we won't make it unless we do warp-factor 12, so I'm frantically trying to call the airport/AirNZ to let them know what's happening, but all I get are disinterested functionairies routing me to wrong extensions, or cutting me off, or putting me onto lines which are never answered. This goes on for AGES.
And guess what. After about 20 minutes of phone tag, were shooting down a hill and get potted by a cop.
"You were doing 117 kph, that'll be $120, thanks very much". Despite the fact that both the speedo and the GPS say we were doing 109 kph, and the mechanic checked out that speedo only last week and said it was accurate. But, hey, cops never ever lie, even with a ticket quota, right?
Still no reply from AirNZ, and the cop decides to take a little nap in his vehicle while supposedly doing a QVR. Time ticks by. The cop returns. He slooooowwwwllllly scuttles over to the RUC ticket with a gleeful look on his face, but sadly (for him) I chucked 10,000 kms on it in Oamaru about 45 minutes before. The look on his face. Priceless.
At last he lets us leave the scene of his lie...oops, I mean "crime"...and off we go, but not before he cheerily ventured that we'll make it, no probs. The flight leaves at 12:05, it's currently 11:47, and we're still north of Dunedin, after a 19 minute traffic infringement stop. Thank you sooooo much, New Zealand Police.
Of course, we never made it. When we arrive at Dunedin Airport, Air New Zealand archly advised us that we missed the check-in time, tough sh*t to you, and we don't care that we never bothered to answer any of our phones. "You could have avoided a traffic fine, and possibly made your flight, if only we had picked up these phones which are ringing away next to us, ignored, even now? Why do you think we'd care? We're Air New Zealand! HAHA!"
Oh, and one last thing: When the wife and I visited Japan, we flew Qantas. Better service, better airplanes, nicer staff (by MILES), and the tickets were
$800 cheaper EACH than quoted by AirNZ (cortesy of the Flight Center).
Rant mode off.
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