You’re standing in line to check your passport and drop off some luggage before an international flight. The whole process should take a few minutes because you’ve already checked in online. You have plenty of time and everything seems normal. Just as you reach the counter, someone cuts in front of you and inserts 3 people and 12 huge suitcases. There is nobody at the check-in area to help get rid of this person and the one person behind the counter doesn’t care. Half an hour later, it’s your turn and you’re told check-in is cut off for your flight.
You then stand in front of an airport agent who is trying for another half hour to reach the airline to cancel your reservation but can’t get through. The airline cancels your complete onward itinerary as a “No Show” using the circular reasoning that you missed your flight even though airport personnel couldn’t get through to the airline’s computer. They don’t want to help you get on your way. They don’t even want to sell you tickets on the later flight or put you on standby; you call your travel agent to sell you tickets so you can make your connecting flight. On the flight are plenty of open seats.
Now you try to get home because the next stop on your trip is in the path of a Category 5 Hurricane. The airline insists you should take the flight at the same time it says that your ticket is worthless because you missed the previous flight, even though you paid for replacement tickets to get you to the connecting flight. They say you lose your money and have to buy new tickets to get home. The head of airport operations tells you everything’s fine for travel to that region and doesn’t seem to notice to see that all flights are cancelled.
Later you try to call Customer Service but they disconnected their phone lines and send you a letter telling you to buzz off. You bring an arbitration proceeding against them with good evidence. Now they pay attention, but it’s a kangaroo court where you cannot win because the airline pays the arbitrator’s fee.
I’m mad as hell. Wouldn’t you be too? Zero willingness to be humane and 100% Gotcha? Wouldn’t you agree that British Airways Sucks?