The parents of a 13-month-old baby were shocked when they learned that Qantas Airways had booked their 13-month-old baby onto a separate flight to her parents, who were trying to get home to Australia.
After almost a month of European travel, parents Stephanie and Andrew Braham were prepared to go home to Australia after a day of a stop-over in Bangkok, Thailand. When the family arrived at Rome-Fiumicino International Airport, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, a partner of Qantas, told them at the check-in desk that the airline did not include their baby in their booking on the flight from Amsterdam to Bangkok. This flight would take at least 11 hours.
According to Business Insider, the parents were surprised by the development as Stephanie booked the flight in advance. She booked a flight connecting them from Amsterdam to Rome, then from Amsterdam to Bangkok, Thailand, where the family would spend a night before heading home to Australia.
Qantas told them they booked the baby on a different flight that departed 40 minutes after their flight. The mom said that they initially booked through Qantas with British Airways. Two months later, they were told over the phone that there was an issue regarding the connecting flights. Hence, Qantas rebooked the family to KLM flights.
More than 20 hours on the phone
The parents argued that their daughter would sit on their laps during the flight, but KLM said it could not add the baby because the flight was full. They spent 90 minutes discussing the matter with KLM, and eventually, as the case remained unsettled, the flight left without them.
The couple spoke to Qantas at the airport, but the airline said they did nothing wrong. The couple left the Rome airport six hours after they missed their flight and stayed in a nearby hotel. They booked a room and contacted Qantas's customer service. The couple said they were talking to the airline all night, hoping to find a flight back home, but the customer service was a nightmare because the line kept cutting off.
The couple told Business Insider that they called Qantas 55 times and spent around 20 hours, 47 minutes, and 13 seconds speaking to customer service.
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The next flight available is 12 days later
An agent eventually called the couple to inform them they were rebooked to Australia on July 26, 12 days after they were supposed to leave Rome.
In a statement to Daily Mail, Qantas said the incident was a "backend administrative error," and that airline would reimburse their accommodation while they waited for the next available flight. However, KLM did not comment about the couple's flight disruption. Stephanie said Qantas would pay the couple 200 Australian dollars per night.
The couple said they spent 15,000 Australian dollars out of pocket for the extra accommodation, food, travel, entertainment, and the income they lost from being away from work.
As per Newshub, this is not the first time that the airline has given their customers frustration. A mom took to social media about a similar incident where the airline booked her three-year-old to a different flight from hers.
The term "Joyced" has recently been used on social media to express their disappointment at the airline's service, referring to its CEO, Allan Joyce.
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