From this week’s TravelMole postbag

TravelMole readers have responded to the big issues of the week: The shutdown of the Qantas fleet and the Bangkok floods. Below are two letters from the postbag.

Balance on this issue

From Franco Sessini

I have just returned from Bangkok after a short business trip. The central business district remains OK but it is the knock on from the situation in the north of the city which is causing the problems as well as the fear of subsequent flooding in the centre.

Many people live in the outskirts; indeed most of my partners do and some were indeed forced to move from their homes and relocate their offices.

I relied on the BBC for my information and whilst the media generally painted a dark picture it always stated that the business & tourist district was still fine.

The reality is, is that bottled water was a problem outside hotels; vegetables were becoming increasingly rare; taxis were fewer and further between than normal and many businesses and most schools have closed.

Is it advisable to change plans? Prudence says ‘probably’ unfortunately, until the accumulated waters have diminished. Not so much for fear of being cut off, but because many services are on half measures.

People intending to travel should of course take the advice of the FCO and their operators who should always be guided by official sources as well as their trusted partners on the ground so to speak.

It is certainly a crisis happening in slow motion for the Thais but the industry can help in ensuring that information is accurate and balanced for their customers.

Those operators and bed banks without ground handling services should take note & strongly consider doing so in the future.

It’s at times like these that the small cost saving per passengers seems rather insignificant compared to the benefit of having a trusted partner on the ground to communicate with the operator and its customers.

Some just never learn!

Qantas problems

From Ken Coulter

James Hogan (CEO, Etihad Airways) is so correct. It is the customer who has choice …of four things: network, product, service and dedicated staff.

Yes, QF has the network. The product badly needs an overhaul especially mechanical, service – all QF cabin staff should be made to travel on another long haul carrier then they could see what service is all about.

QF probably has a dedicated staff but that is not enough if they are not providing an excellent service to their customers.

Once again I mention toilets. On any S E Asian carrier the toilets are always spotless and operational no matter how long the sector…can QF say the same?

This is all about a company hell bent on more and more profit and forgetting where the profit comes from.

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