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On June 10, a Sudan Airways flight caught fire on the runway at Khartoum airport, which resulted in the runway being closed due to the damage. Such incidences can wreak havoc for airport officials and passengers of other airlines. This is when an airline’s resilience is tested. Here is an account of a person who was stranded at the airport the day after the incident and had to bear through much inconvenience in order to finally fly out on the Qatar Airways operated flight to reach his final destination – Delhi, India.
Image courtesy BBC news
“I was in Sudan for a presentation and experience sharing with East African Telecentre Networks. I was scheduled to travel back to Delhi on Qatar Airways, via Doha. Traveling the day after the crash, I was issued boarding passes at the airport, even though the runway was only open for small planes as it was partially damaged. All passengers were standing in front of the boarding gate from 2 PM till 9 PM without any information, food or water. Communication with the ground staff was difficult due to language problems, and they did not seem to have any information as well. As the night approached, the airline refused to put us in a hotel, since they claimed this wasn’t their fault. Luckily, our trip organizers made alternative arrangements for us for the night.
The next day I was told at the counter that home leg from Doha to India was confirmed, but they were not able to re-issue a ticket from Khartoum to Doha as there wasn’t a computer at the airport. Finally, they booked me on the evening flight, but that meant I’d miss my connecting flight to Delhi. The flight departed late from Khartoum, and was told at Doha airport by Qatar Airways staff that I’d have to wait for 20 hours at Doha airport to catch next day flight to Delhi. I wasn’t prepared to wait this long, and after much coercing, pursuaded the staff to put me on a flight to Kathmandu, Nepal, which would then allow me to get on a connecting flight to Delhi the same night. I finally reached Delhi, only to find that my luggage was missing. It finally arrived 36 hrs later. I was offered no compensations from the airline, and have lodged a complaint with them.”
Interestingly, Qatar Airways has been given 5 start rating by SkyTrax, a rating which “recognises consistently high standards of Staff Service delivery in Onboard and Airport environments.” The airline certainly didn’t live up to their reputation in this instance.
Three key lessons can be learned from this incident.
- Ground staff, even if outsourced to other agencies, must maintain the service standards set by the airline. They should take responsibility of the passengers and not shrugg it off.
- In times of crises, like these, the most important asset is perfect information. The airline should make extra efforts to keep the ground staff updated, and the staff in turn should keep the passengers updated of the latest information. Nothing fosters trust more than this.
- Consistency in service quality is key in upholding customers’ confidence over time. Even though Qatar Airways may be spectacular most of the time, just one incident like this can erode trust and ensure that the customer defers to another airline. Moreover, he is much more likely to tell others about an unpleasant experience, rather than a pleasant one. So the multiplier effect can be derimental to the brand name.
Ponder that!
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