From: anthony@cs.uq.oz.au (Anthony Lee)
Newsgroups: rec.travel.air
Subject: Experience with Air China
Date: 26 Aug 92 01:03:37 GMT
Reply-To: anthony@cs.uq.oz.au

I do not have any recent experience with Air China.
I am just forwarding this article for someone who does not have
access to rec.travel.air.  If you got queries then mail him not me.

=============================================================================
 
        I am a Chinese student at the University of Calgary in Canada.
    From July 20 to August 16, I was in China for a home-touring trip
    after my four-year's living out of the Motherland.
 
        As everyone who visited China during the past few months might
    agree, there have been indeed a lot of changes and improvement since
    Mr. Deng's visit to southern coast cities: ideology and politics have
    been no longer in extremely tight control and economy becomes the
    central task of the country.
 
        However, we did experience many unpleasant things and we saw more
    corruptions in China, but we understood these things are inevitable
    during this time of transition.  Neverthless I feel guilty if I don't
    tell the following experience I had with Air China and China Eastern
    Airlines at the Shanghai International Airport, because many of our
    fellow Chinese students are planning to go home for a visit and they
    might experience the same problems if they don't know my story.
 
        In early July I bought an Air China's return ticket through Canada
    Swan International Travel Ltd. at Vancouver.  As Canada Swan mailed the
    ticket to me, they reminded me of having to confirm my return flight
    at least 72 hours (three days) ahead of departure.
 
        I did as they advised, FOUR DAYS ahead when I was in Shanghai.
    Strange enough, my seat was already cancelled by the time I confirmed
    it.  I was very mad, as everyone could understand it when this thing
    happened.  I argued with them, but they had a "good" excuse well
    prepared for me: my travel agent made a mistake; they should have told
    me that the return flight should be confirmed at least 7 days in stead
    of 72 hours ahead.  What could you say to this as you knew they were
    playing balls? (When I phoned my travel agent after I got back, they
    told me they just passed what Air China had instructed and they had no
    control over this.)
 
        Since I was eager to come back and I knew I would miss my
    connecting flight (Canadian) at Vancouver if I postponed this one, I
    went to the Shanghai International Airport anyway on the pre-scheduled
    date (August 16).  I had a hope that the plane would not be full as it
    was not one month ago or someone who had a seat would miss the plane as
    I had the luck four years ago when I left China the first time.
 
        But all my hopes went into the air when I got to the airport.  I
    thought I was the only one who had the bad luck, but I was wrong, I was
    totally wrong.  After the check-in was finished, I saw at least 20
    people there waiting for seats (I think I know the reason why the
    Airlines did this to us and everyone who read the last part of my story
    will figure it out).  Some of these people confirmed the flight as I
    did but was told cancelled; some of them didn't do that at all, they
    never dreamed of that outcome and they and their many relatives were
    deeply shocked.  Some of them are Canadians (not Canadian Chinese);
    some are students like me.
 
        While we were waiting for the normal check-in to be finished, I
    chatted with a white man standing beside me: "How do you like your stay
    in China?"  He shrugged in a typical American way: "It was OK except
    this part."  He is Carl from Vancouver (I forgot his long family name).
 
        As the normal check-in got to the near end, those of us who didn't
    have seats started to get very upset.  We frequently asked the girl at
    the check-in counter whether she got any seat left.  Her answer was a
    sure "no".  At this moment, a fourty-or-so man standing behind the
    girl, probably the girl's supervisor, got very excited. "Listen!", he
    said, "those of you who don't have a seat, please be smart.  If you
    pay 2,796 FEC (Note: about $600 Canadian), I promise you'll get a ticket
    of the business class.  Otherwise ... we don't have a single seat for you.
    You got it? Those who pay will get your luggage checked-in immediately."
 
        Some of us who knew the trick got very angry.  They started to argue:
    "It is ridiculous.  You've got some seats left, why don't you let us
    aboard the plane.  We won't pay more.  It is you that cancelled our
    flight, you are responsible for this."  Some said: "If the same thing
    happened in North America or Europe, we would be offered a business class
    seat without any further charge." The male officer seemed to get quite
    used to these arguments: "Don't you ever dare to debate on this!  This is
    China, not a foreign country.  We do things our way."
 
        A student-like young man beside me shouted: "I have to go to work
    tomorrow, just tell me where to pay the money."  He seemed to have enough
    cash for doing that.  I saw no use to join the argument, I followed him
    shortly.  But I did not have enough cash.  I already used it all -- like
    most other people.  But I happend to have my MasterCard with me.
 
        When I got back to check in, there were still about five people at
    the counter arguing with the male officer.  Now he had jumped out from
    behind the counter and pointed his fingers at each one's nose: "You want
    to go? Then pay the money and we'll let you go.  Don't you dare to say
    anything."  I thought his manner of pushing us was much worse than that
    of a peddler selling things on the street.  What do you say, my fellow
    Chinese?  The only thing I could think of was that the people of my
    motherland just wanted me to have more "good" impressions about China.
 
        I wouldn't believe what I described above if I hadn't experienced
    it in person.  I hope Air China and China Eastern Airlines will eliminate
    such a bad practice or they would for sure loose their credits and all
    their customers -- there's no doubt about that.
 
        For those who still want to go with Air China, I recommend you to
    learn from my lesson and confirm your return flight as long as you get
    to China and reconfirm it at least 7 days ahead of departure.  For those
    to confirm in Shanghai, please call 327-3016 or 327-7888 (no one told
    me these numbers before).  For those in other cities, check your local
    phone book or ask your travel agent.  Good luck.
 
                                        Aubrey J. Zhang
                                        U. of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
                                        August 20, 1992
 

--
Anthony Lee (Time Lord Doctor) (These are my opinions !)
email: anthony@cs.uq.oz.au	voice:+(61)-7-3651204 FAX:+(61)-7-3651999
SNAIL: Department Computer Science, The University of Qld, 
       St Lucia, Qld 4072, Australia
Newsgroups: rec.travel.air