I should be happy right? But I am not.
Why?
10 hours flight delay
Our flight at AirPhil Express in Mactan Cebu Airport was scheduled at 10:10PM of Sunday (July 25, 2010) but because of the bad weather condition in Manila that night, we were re-scheduled to leave at 1AM of Monday, July 26, 2010.
This was understandable on our part, they just wanted our safety. Besides all other airline flights bound to Manila from Mactan Cebu that night were delayed some were even there as early as 3PM. Mom even said the weather was really bad in Manila so this was understandable.
1AM came and we were asked to board the airplane. Everyone were seated comfortably in their seat designations. Some, including I even fell asleep immediately. We were hearing some few announcements here and there that the flight will be a bit delayed because of “ground servicing“. But since we were all in the airplane we were all O.K.
2AM came and a flight attendant announced that we should disembark the plane . No reason was stated we were just asked to go down again . We thought the weather was really bad in Manila so we have to cancel flight.
The flight wasn’t canceled when everyone was at the waiting area, Gate 8 of the departure area of Mactan Airport in Cebu, an announcement was made that our flight will be delayed for 5PM.
This is when the passengers started to get aggravated, including me. No reason was stated or we were not able to grasp whatever they were saying anymore because we are all exhausted and want some decent sleep. We want to go home. Its a Monday for Christ sake, most of the passengers have a work and school to catch.
Segfred Santiago the idiot ground supervisor of AirPhil Express Mactan
Hungry and exhausted with a kid who has been inconveniently been moved from the lounge/ departure area Gate 5 , to the airplane, to lounge/departure area Gate 8 (she was half awake as we move her) I immediately approached this man to ask for an explanation.
This idiot told me that this is none of my concern and that he don’t need to explain anything to me. I raised my voice immediately and told him how could this not be my concern when this is my flight going home and you are delaying my flight back home, how dare he tell me this is not my concern.
Segfred Santiago said it wasn’t my concern because its an airplane problem and I don’t have anything to do with it.
What? An airplane problem?
Apparently, the ground crew or the pilot of AirPhil Express did something that caused them to hit their own cargo bay after landing. A slip of the tongue of Segfred Santiago said this happen before their staff made us board the plane just to have us deplane afterwards.
Santiago even pulled his ID card away when one of the agitated passengers tried to take a photo of him and his ID card and said “you don’t have to know my name” “you don’t have to take photos of me.” But of course this angered the passenger the more to which some took their video camera and video taped our discussion.
5am flight delayed
Knowing about the problem all the passengers have no choice but to surrender to the fact that we have to wait at the departure area Gate 8 for 3 more hours since the announced was made at 2am. We were all complaining because we all wanted to go home but since its out of our hands we have no choice but to wait.
At this point Segfred Santiago, who was the ground manager of the Airphil Express Mactan operation has the authority to do whatever he deemed necessary and is in line with their company policy which is “ friendlier andcustomer-centric”.
He tried to calm us by giving us some cold sandwich (a choice of Tuna, Chicken or Ham and Cheese) from Dunkin Donuts and a bottle of lukewarm mineral water. It would have been nicer if the sandwiches were warm and instead of water hot chocolate or coffee was offered.
Also, by the time the Airphil Express operations at that time already offered to check us in a nice hotel so we can all rest and not sleep and get more exhausted trying to squeeze our body on the cold and stiff metal chairs at the departure area.
We also learned that after we disembarked the airplane, the captain and the crew of that airplane booked themselves at Days Hotel so they can all have a good rest before the next flight.
AirPhil Express Poor customer service
Ten minutes before 5AM another announcement was made to inform all frazzled passengers that our flight will be delayed again for another hour because of the bad weather conditions in Manila which is a complete bull. The weather was fine in Manila that time as Cebu Pacific’s first flight bound to Manila already flown already.
All of us were livid at that time because we were all hoping to go board a plane and fly to Manila that time. This time the morning shift manager of AirPhil Express Jim Patindol arrived and was confronted by upset customers and tried to tell us some crap which we don’t accept at all. We wanted action we’ve been patient for 10 hours with them they should do something.
At 6AM AirPhil Express buses arrived and picked us up without a word or announcement that delayed passengers will now fly back to Manila.
In the airplane bound to Manila the usual round of food cart while up in the air did not happen. They didn’t realize all of us were hungry. They didn’t even offer us coffee or anything.
Filed a complaint against AirPhil Express Mactan Staff in Manila
We were back in Manila at 8AM. Most of the passengers missed their work, some were even suspended from work for not making it in time, missed school and connecting flights out-of-the-country. The inconvenience this delayed flight have caused us is not to be left alone.
At the Terminal 3 in Manila Airport some of the passengers went to the authorities to file a complaint which was backed up by the signature of the other passengers. We passed around a paper to get the number and names of our co-passengers. We plan to file a formal complaint because they never offered us anything to calm us down.
It took us 3 hours to get a result of our complaint.
We didn’t leave the airport without any assurance that something will happen. We were offered the round trip ticket to any of their 24 destination flights and the hotel accommodation at our chosen destination. This was admitting their wrong.
We were asked what else do we want.
We said we want the manager at the Mactan Airport to be fired because he is incompetent. We were told we were too brutal to have someone lost his job and livelihood. On our part that manager was the one who was brutal to us.
There was a baby among the 177 passengers and his milk supply/medicine was checked in. The parents asked for them when we were told we will leave at 5AM it was given to him at 5AM only. Someone missed a flight to China for an important business meeting. Someone was suspended from work because he didn’t make it on time. The lechon we intend to give as coming home gift to all perished! This was the inconvenience this delay caused us. Now they tell us we are rude?
The comfort they offered us at the Mactan Airport was a cheap way to avoid spending for hotel accommodations. That manager should be removed from his post for being incompetent.
Filing a complaint is a waste of time and useless
It saddens me to know that some of the passengers with us that day did not waste time to join us confront the management of AirPhil Express because they said “wala namang mangyayari dyan” (filing a complaint is a waste of time and useless).
This mentality we have here in the Philippines taking in shit should be changed if we want to improve the quality of customer service. We should not let them bully us around because its our right. The almost perfect weekend trip in Cebu I had was ruined by this flight delay and inconsiderate airline staff.
I know being passed around is very inconvenient and yes a big waste of time with the bureaucracy we are so used to. But if we want change we should strive to get the change we want.
It was a good thing that there were eight of us who got some time to spare to talk to the higher ups of AirPhil Express, if not this will all be forgotten and incidence like this will happen to other passengers again and again and again.
This will be my worst airport experience ever. This was the first time I had a flight delayed. What was your worst airport experience? Care to share?
Stay gorgeous everyone!
122 Comments
I plan to visit their office when I arrive in Dec 2011 pero ngayon palang eager na sister ko na sumugod dun. dami ko ng inaanak maambunan ng gift sa amount na 1,680 pesos ah! Pano ba ang dapat gawin, please advise? I’m really serious to go to their head office and complain
Thanks,
Hi, I wish I came across this site a long time ago. Now, I’m experiencing problems with airphilexpress, they are charging me 1,680 pesos for a request in change of salutation from “Miss to Mr.” for my husband. I’ve pleaded, explained, requested for consideration and they didn’t even bother. They still want me to pay, I’ve explained even in birth certs, passports salutation is not important whether you’re a mister, a miss, a Mrs. they should not categorize my concern as name correction because the name is correct, just the salutation. Ayaw talaga, mukhang pera sila. Imagine mas mahal pa ang simple salutation change compared sa rebooking fee nila of 672 pesos saka dito sa saudia airlines, change of flight date ang charge sa akin 50sr lang (500 pesos). Never again to airphilexpress! makakarma din kayo mga hayop kayo! no wonder di parin nila maungusan ang PAL, cebupac. Serves them right. I’ll spread the word here in saudi and even to my relatives in US, australia not to avail airphilexpress flights. sa iba nalang
You are not alone! I also found out how lousy this airline is when it comes to customer service. Look…they post a phone number, yet no one answers the phone! Look at their facebook page…there is no feedback mechanism! Maybe, it’s because they get lots of complaints from irate customers so they are shutting off whatever means of contact. I filed a refund of about 40,000 pesos for unused tickets..in fact, i did it the next day I bought them online…yet, they charged my card even if it could just have veen voided…and then said my refund can be credited in 30-40 days…yet up to this time (about 3 months now); no refund has been made. You call their office..it’s a waste of long distance fees (i live in Cebu & cebu office never answers the phone, too!)as no one answers it. My credit card keeps on charging me interest for the said unrefunded charge and I am tearing my hair out as there is no means you can follow it up. I’m just hoping, those people there get the heart attack…not us, poor customers! May the bad KARMA they sow…go back to whoever is responsible for their shitty policies!
Hi! Nakita ko ang post mo re Airphil and I truly symphathize with you as I also had same bad experience with airphil express but mas malala ang sa ‘yo.
Bumili kaming magasawa ng 2 roundtrip tickets from Singapore to Cebu in February 2011. One set of round trip tickets for May and another for July. For my May tkts, my flight was rescheduled from 11am to 7:30pm and I did not even receive a call or email from airphil. I only found out on the actual day for the flight when I was about to leave for the airport and I checked the airport’s website kung anong terminal kami sasakay. saw na ung flight ko was moved.
For my July flight, ang flight ko pabalik from Cebu to Singapore was again cancelled and I was rebooked the next day. Tawag uli ako sa airphil para magpa rebook. Sa awa ni Lord, na rebook naman ung flight ko sa araw na gusto ko (ito ay matapos makipagtalo ng 1hour sa agent nila on the phone and on overseas call) and ang bagong e-ticket ko ay pinadala by email. A few days after that, nakatanggap ng tawag ang sister ko na my flight is again cancelled. Since hindi alam ng sister ko ang full details ng bagong flight ko, she asked them to call me and gave them my Singapore number. Nobody called. The day after I reached Pinas, 4das ago, I called airphil’s reservations hotline (Joan) and was informed that my new flights are confirmed, walang bagong change. Napanatag na ang loob ko. However, today, kakatawag lang ng Airphil Express (Kevin) and he told me na ung flight ko daw was cancelled (the original flight) and that until today, hindi pa daw sila nakakatanggap ng acknowledgement galing sa akin and which day would I want to rebook the flight. I told him na na-i-rebook na ung flight 2weeks ago and that I have the new e-tickets. He asked me for the record locator. I was out at the time and nobody in their right mind would be carrying e-tickets around. I asked him to check under my surname (common sense di ba?!) which he did and found out that I have 2 confirmed flights with airphil. Then he blamed me kasi bakit daw 2 pa ung confirm flight ko. Ano ba yan Airphil? kasalanan pa pala ng pasahero kung bakit nakaka leche-leche ung system nyo. Then he asked me what to do with the other confirm flights. My goodness, kailangan pa palang i-spell out sa kanila kung ano ang dapat gawin.
I was online searching for an email address kung saan pwedeng magpadala ng complaints, pero wala akong makita. Seems na hindi sila concern sa feedback ng mga pasahero nila regarding their service.
Another problem din ng airphil express na to is they want to compete with cebu pac and other asian regional airlines but wala silang capability. Mag-o-open sila ng new routes pero di naman nila kayang i-support, ika-cancel nila ung ibang flights nila dahil kulang sila sa eroplano. Their management sucks.
Thanks sa blog…planning to get ticket pa nmn with them this Nov. 2011…Buti nlng I search for reviews muna…changed of mind n ako 🙂