Re: Can TG's restructuring stop the slow decline of the airl
What's interesting is that Preventive Maintenance seems to be something that is almost totally disregarded in Thailand in general. You can see this almost everywhere in the infrastructure, e.g., buildings falling apart, water and electric systems that constantly break down and need repair, automobiles that spew black smoke from lack of maintenance, etc., etc., etc.
Re: Can TG's restructuring stop the slow decline of the airl
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Plus having to pay very high surcharges to choose a specific seat in advance of 24 hours prior to departure is outrageous and the fees are higher than many budget carriers. ┬г65 each way in business class to BKK
I thought I would give them a try (British Airways) as they fly direct to BKK from LHR and found the same. I paid the seat reservation fee (in business class!!! #-o ) because I didn't want to face backwards all the way.
Imagine how outraged I was when I arrived at LHR and the first question I was asked was "Did I want to change my seat?" I rudely told her NO as I had just paid ┬г130 to reserve the seat I wanted.
The service was awful, the TV barely watchable (and the same size as Economy with Qatar), the food almost inedible . Ryanair would have been better.
Never again. Back to Qatar for me, even with the layover.
Re: Can TG's restructuring stop the slow decline of the airl
Last month I took Qatar to/from the UK. I reckon the business class is as good as most other airlines first class product. I had three different aircraft - 777, A380 and Dreamlliner. All were exceptionally comfortable, although I cannot understand all the fuss about the Dreamliner - it was my least favourite of the 3! The food (served whenever you wish) was really tasty and the 3 red and 3 white wines also excellent quality. The large vdo screens are great. The only disappointments were the movies! IFE is the one area where I think Qatar can improve. Plus the new business class lounge at Doha is huge with several restaurants. An added bonus is that if you connect gate to gate, you don't need to go through yet another security check. It was seamless.
I was not going to London and so the 2 hours connecting time in Doha was not an issue. It would have taken as long at Heathrow. More pertinent is that thanks to one of Qatar's periodic sales the total journey price was Bt. 26,000 less than it would have cost on BA.
Any EU citizen now arriving on BA at Heathrow Terminal 5 faces massively long Immigration queues and no fast track if London is your final destination. Security checks if you are connecting to another UK destination are often as bad. I now avoid LHR whenever possible.
Re: Can TG's restructuring stop the slow decline of the airl
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Originally Posted by fountainhall
Any EU citizen now arriving on BA at Heathrow Terminal 5 faces massively long Immigration queues and no fast track if London is your final destination.
On my last few arrivals at LHR -terminal 5, terminal 3 and the other new terminal, I've gone straight through the e-passport gate with no waiting.
Where it goes badly wrong is with the luggage handling. The most recent wait was almost an hour & it is usually 45 minutes or so. This is a disgrace, although probably a result of operating with a unionised workforce where it's very difficult to fire the most idle workers. A solution needs to be found.
As for Thai preventative maintenance, well I also noticed that's poor to non existent.
Also, just look at issues like the large corrosion holes in the floor of the pedestrian overbridge to Don Mueang airport. If that's their idea of how things should be done, the same kind of culture will seep into aircraft maintenance.