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 Trip to Cancun Nov/Dec 2007
Posted Tue January 22, 2008 4:53 pm, by Kristine C. written to Funjet Vacations
Write a Letter to this Company
The following is a bullet-pointing of our return trip from Cancun, MX, on Saturday, December 1st:
Our flight was scheduled to land in Milwaukee at 2:20 p.m.
Midway through our flight, the plane began to circle, clearly taking us off our flight plan
After circling for awhile, it appeared that the plane needed fuel.
The flight was redirected to Rockford, IL
Conditions were icy
The plane landed in Rockford at approximately 2 p.m.
Information from the flight deck and staff was very limited and very spaced out
A movie was shown
The passengers began to become anxious, had many questions
Communication, if any at all, was poor
Rockford personnel began to try to de-ice the left wing of the plane.... which went on and on
The expectation was that the plane would eventually be deiced and be routed to Milwaukee
The de-icing continued on the same side of the plane. It was clear that they did not have appropriate equipment, etc.
The air conditioning system was turned off and the air became hot and stifling
The bathrooms began to smell of urine and the toilets were close to capacity
No additional food or beverages were offered (or perhaps even available)
The plan eventually taxied to a terminal
Now there was another wait as there was no custom's agent
Eventually, the staff admitted that they had communicated poorly to the passengers, and that they had waited way too long to make the decision to remain on the ground in Rockford
They even admitted that they considered these alternatives hours earlier
Passengers were allowed off the plane around 7:45 p.m. and hoarded like cattle into a paint fumed "international" terminal that was clearly under serious construction.
There was an exceptionally long wait to get through customs
Then the wait for the luggage began. One person was eventually there getting the luggage off of the plane for approximately 200 passengers.
There was no luggage carousel, so passengers began handing back luggage to make way for new luggage as it came through a small area of the room we were in.
The area was extremely crowded and there was no where to sit down. Passengers by now were clearly very upset.
Hours of time was wasted during the attempt to de-ice the plane, and "lies" that the plane might take off for Milwaukee were now a joke! Ryan had clearly lost their respect.
Now that the passengers were in a crowded area with luggage, an announcement was made that there was still no word from Ryan on what would happen next.
Many of the passengers "skated" their way outside in the freezing rain with their luggage from the "international" terminal to the other terminal.
There was nothing open at the terminal, no rental cars, no food or beverage, etc.
Passengers began making calls on their cell phones in hope of finding lodging for the night. It was now after 9 p.m.
After some time, the Radission and Holiday Inn Express began sending shuttles. Remember, there were approximately 200 people on this flight.
We arrived at the Radisson at approximately 10:30 p.m. The kitchen was closed. The staff at the hotel was gracious, checked us in, and offered to keep the kitchen open offering a chicken dinner plate as most of the passengers now were very hungry.
Many of the passengers indicated that they would not be getting back on the plane again in the morning, for a potential 17 minute flight back to Milwaukee. They were making arrangements with family members and friends to get home. We did the same.
We now have potential lodging and food charges (for food that was delivered by Radisson staff stating that we would not be charged) for food that we did not order. We also incurred gas, tolls, and time by a family member to pick us up in Rockford.
I think that Ryan on behalf of FunJet and Apple owes something of an apology to the passengers on this trip for errors made, should not charge passengers for overnight accommodations or food offered by the hotel that evening, and reimburse passengers for the time and trouble incurred to get back home!
Many passengers were extremely upset and indicated that this would be the last time they travel FunJet/Apple/Ryan! I know that I will probably never travel with Ryan again, and I now have an awfully bad taste for Funet in general.
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by BellaSera Posted Wed January 23, 2008 @ 5:26 PM
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Saturday, December 1st, 2007 was the first big winter storm of the
year in Milwaukee. I know this because it was also my husband's work
Christmas party, and we nearly found ourselves on the side of the road
because travel conditions were terrible. So I imagine Mitchell
International was a disaster. As others mentioned, the airline cannot
control the weather.
However, I think you do have a valid complaint with this: "Eventually,
the staff admitted that they had communicated poorly to the
passengers, and that they had waited way too long to make the decision
to remain on the ground in Rockford. They even admitted that they
considered these alternatives hours earlier." Had they made the
decision earlier (and they easily could've because it snowed all day),
you at least could've relaxed in your hotel room, gotten something to
eat, etc. So yes, I think they owe you an apology. But that's all.
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by ~Fiƒi-la-ƒlea~ Posted Wed January 23, 2008 @ 9:40 AM
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That sounds like a horrible experience. I'm sure they did the best
they could do but I think today airlines are so limited in how they
can remedy these situations.
My concern would be for children who are traveling to meet their other
parent. I remember when my nephew had to travel alone when he was
young and the other parent waiting to pick him up when he got there.
Something like this would be terrible for him, not having credit cards
or too much extra cash and then getting stuck. Good thing for cell
phones today though.
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Honestly, it seems that the majority of your "bullet" points (sans
bullets) would be beyond the control of any travel agent, no matter
how competent.
What are "potential lodging and food charges"? Potential? You aren't
sure whether you'll get billed for them? Did you provide a credit
card number? If not, no worries.
It sounds like the people in charge of getting you from Point A to
Point B to Point C did their best.
I think you should be grateful for the people who did so much to get
you on your way.
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