Travellers, Beware: The 10 Most Common Problems When Riding a Plane

Travelling is a fun experience minus the delayed flights, long hauls and waiting hours. Well, as they say, the journey is nothing compared to the view when we are there. At least, we can take solace from it but before the sights, we really have to deal with travel and its worse.

There is a consultancy group called Skytrax that released a list of complaints that afflicted the airline industry for this year alone. It is important that travellers know the usual complaints. So, what are the complaints? Here’s the ranking according to Skytrax:

• Lost luggage: We do not want to wait in vain. Unfortunately, there will come a time that our bags are mishandled. The good news is that the cases of mishandled bags are dropping. In fact, according to SITA, air transport’s IT specialist, the cases of mishandled bags dropped 61% in 2014. This is a good thing knowing that the global passengers are continually rising. This tells us that we should not pack valuable things if we do not want to experience mishandling. We have to avoid putting jewelleries, money, laptops and other valuable things.
• Delayed flights: The second biggest complaint is delayed flights. Almost all people have episodes like this.
• Uncomfortable seats: When we have long flights, we want a comfortable seat with legroom. Unfortunately, not all airplanes offer the comfort of a first class airplane.
• Hidden charges: Some travellers feel deceived and tricked because of hidden charges. Hidden charges are one of the reasons why some travellers are backing out.

• Customer service: If the airline has a poor customer service, the word will spread thereby creating a negative image. Travellers just want friendly and approachable personnel.
• Cabin cleanliness: Airlines know the importance of a clean and sanitized environment but there are people who are not satisfied.
• Refunds: Problems with refund are also common amongst travellers.
• Booking terms and conditions: Not all travellers read the booking terms and conditions. Understanding it is difficult especially if we do not have time to read it. Complaints usually involve booking terms and conditions.
• Airline meals: Travellers know that not all airline meals are delicious.
• Change of aircraft: Travellers also complain about change of aircraft which is uncomfortable.

If we notice, we cannot do something (at least on our end) for these complaints because it is all the industry’s concerns. When we travel outside Singapore, we can only hope that it will go smoothly and comfortably as possible.