My complaint is in regard to our return flights from Dubai to Istanbul and connecting flight to LAX on Friday April 27, 2012, Flight no. TK 763. The flight from Dubai had a delay of approximately 4 hours. Because of this delay we were not able to get on our connecting flight TK 0009 to Los Angeles. The delay from DXB was caused by your incoming flight from Istanbul that wasn't arriving in time. The coordination at the gate executed by your Manager Auch Mitarbeiter haben Persönlichkeitsrechte, also bitte keine Namen posten. Danke in Dubai was very unprofessional and led to disastrous consequences and nerve racking frustration.
The situation on the airport in Dubai became so tense due to the fact that the passengers didn't receive any information on the status of our departing flight from Auch Mitarbeiter haben Persönlichkeitsrechte, also bitte keine Namen posten. Danke that it even was required to involve the Manager of Emirates Airport who had to come to control the situation. It escalated to a point that passengers were shouting and fighting in order to obtain any information from your staffAuch Mitarbeiter haben Persönlichkeitsrechte, also bitte keine Namen posten. Danke. He wasn't able to cope with the situation and didn't communicate any information on the actual status of the delay. On demand by passengers what is going on he stated that the airplane would arrive in the next 15 minutes - and this for the whole time of delay of almost 4 hours.
How can it be that there is only one single Manager stationed in Dubai for Turkish Airlines. The staff member of Dnata who are working to check-in passengers cannot represent Turkish Airline in an appropriate way since they are not directly acting on behalf of Turkish Airlines. In our case, we didn't want to leave the Airport of Dubai until Auch Mitarbeiter haben Persönlichkeitsrechte, also bitte keine Namen posten. Danke was providing us a solution how our trip to Los Angeles would be continuing. Auch Mitarbeiter haben Persönlichkeitsrechte, also bitte keine Namen posten. Danke confirmed us in front of the Manager of Dubai Emirates Airport that he personally would book our connecting flights from Istanbul to JFK on the same day and JFK to Los Angeles, also for the same day. He confirmed that we would arrive on Friday 27 April 2012 in Los Angeles. As compensation for our inconvenience he confirmed that he will book us on a Business Class flight from Istanbul to New York and from NYK to Los Angeles. I repeat, this statement was made byAuch Mitarbeiter haben Persönlichkeitsrechte, also bitte keine Namen posten. Danke in front of the Manager of Dubai Airport. He also confirmed that he will take care of the booking while we are flying from Dubai to Istanbul.
When we arrived in Istanbul, the situation escalated because, first of all, more than 300 passengers were standing in a line to complain and required connecting flights. It is unbelievable that you, as a globally operating company, can have a situation let escalate to such a point.
When it was our turn at the desk, we expected to get automatically our changed bookings and boarding passes accordingly to the confirmation of Auch Mitarbeiter haben Persönlichkeitsrechte, also bitte keine Namen posten. Danke.
There, our contact person Auch Mitarbeiter haben Persönlichkeitsrechte, also bitte keine Namen posten. Danke who introduced himself as Manager Turkish Airlines Transit Desk at Istanbul Airport told us he wouldn't care what Auch Mitarbeiter haben Persönlichkeitsrechte, also bitte keine Namen posten. Danke in Dubai had stated. He would be the only one who is responsible for booking connection flights and he would not be willing at all to book anything accordingly to the confirmation of Auch Mitarbeiter haben Persönlichkeitsrechte, also bitte keine Namen posten. Danke. In a very brutal and crucial way he was treating us and all the other desperate passengers at the desk. He gave us the choice to accept either his proposed booking or we otherwise would have to stay in Istanbul for many days in the airport. With this behavior and arguing and by leaving us waiting in between to work on other complaints and by clearly signaling that he had psychological power over us, he forced us to accept his booking change.
The choice he gave us to delay and stay in Istanbul and to be booked on the next day's flight to LAX, we couldn't accept because we had an important business meeting on Saturday. In addition, we couldn't accept the other days flight because he didn't agree on paying the hotel stay in Istanbul and we would have additional charges on top of visa cost for entry to Turkey that he didn't confirm that Turkish Airlines would cover for it.
All in all this means, if we had agreed on accepting his flight offer for the next day, we would have had extra charges of 2 X visa cost, taxi transfer to the hotel in Istanbul and additional hotel costs for the one night. Because of the latter mentioned we didn't want to accept and because we couldn't afford to arrive the next day in LA.
Since we didn't have any other choice, we were forced to accept his offer to be booked on the NYK flight No. TK011 Istanbul to JFK with a connecting flight DL 120 JFK to LAX. The problem of this flight, we had a stop of 11 hours in JFK Airport. My ticket was booked on comfort class therefore he booked me on a comfort class seat from Istanbul to JFK, but for my flight with Delta Airlines120 from JFK to LAX, he only booked me on Economy class. Although, due to my original booking, I had payed for comfort class and DL 120 comfort class seats were available, he wasn't willing to book this class with the argument he wasn't the owner of the Airline.
For all the trouble and inconvenience, although the Manager in Dubai had already confirmed that type of compensation, he wasn't even willing to upgrade my husband from Economy to Comfort class without charging. After such dramatic tension and stress I didn't want to sit alone in Comfort Class I was forced to upgrade my husband's seat for additional 205 Euro extra charges. I congratulate you, you have a very remorseless, relentless Manager named Auch Mitarbeiter haben Persönlichkeitsrechte, also bitte keine Namen posten. Danke who isn't willing to help desperate and crying passengers at all. He has no idea what so ever what customer service means and how to treat customers in a respectful way.
After we had received our boarding passes for JFK and LAX flights and I asked him what we should do 11 hours at JFK airport he commented that if we are very lucky we might get a hotel at JFK airport from Turkish Airlines covered, if not we then have to wait the 11 hours at the Airport.
When we arrived in New York Airport the next disaster happened. The very unfriendly way of treating customers in New York continued at the airport. We received a coupon for a hotel but our luggage was missing. Our luggage tag showed that it was booked from Auch Mitarbeiter haben Persönlichkeitsrechte, also bitte keine Namen posten. Danke to LAX directly. After US law, luggage pieces are to be declared at customs at the first entry in the US. Therefore, with your procedure, you have undermined US customs law. As US citizen it is my duty to announce this violation to our custom office. I am sure, you will be fined by US customs.
Finally, we tried to file our missing baggage claim at JFK. The problem there was that your staff member of Turkish Airlines wasn't cooperative at all and denied to accept a claim of missing luggage because he believed and tried to convince us to claim missing luggage at Delta Airlines after our arrival at Los Angeles Airport. Only after long discussions, shouting and after having a nerve breakdown followed by crying due to all that stress I have suffered from and after the security at the airport got alerted, he was willing to write a lost and found department claim file ref. #JFK TK 18422.
On Saturday 28 April, we took the flight DL 120 from JFK to LAX and I had to sit in Economy on the very back of the airplane in a very tiny seat for a six hours flight. I cannot understand, although you are partner of Star Alliance why Turkish Airline hasn't booked me on the United Airlines flight at 6.20 am in the morning. If Mr. Goekhan had booked me on the early morning United flight from JFK and LAX, I would have been able to conduct my business meeting on Saturday morning.
We finally received our luggage on Sunday morning 2.00 am by courier. This was the first night we normally would have been able to recover from this stressful situations Turkish Airlines put us through, but this again was interrupted and in addition, in the morning, I realized that the luggage had been damaged.
For all the inconvenience, the stress, nerve racking and physical exhaustion you caused my husband and me, I have finally decided to hold you reliable and responsible for all the damage you put me and my husband through. Therefore, I asked you to refund the full ticket price for me and my husband for the personal damage, because a 20 hours flight took us 42 hours flight. In addition, as compensation for our personal damage and because I had to cancel my business meeting on Saturday morning in LA, I expect from you USD 5,000 per person. I know that if I sued you under US law, you would have to pay a lot more for the personal damage you caused. Based on international law, you are already obliged to refund the ticket price. Therefore, I have informed my credit card company Capital One to dispute the booking price. I will also inform my visa card to dispute the ticket price of my husband.
I expect a response from your side within the next 10 days. In case I don't receive any adequate compensation, I will use legal advise. In addition, I will inform media and press about the miserable treatment and terrible customer service experience with Turkish Airlines "globally yours".
Finally, I would like to inform you that this was our first and last flight booked with Turkish Airlines. The reason why we booked with your airline is that my husband is a very big Lakers fan and we live in the neighborhood of ×××.
As Lakers fans, we will inform the Lakers Manager and ××× personally about our experience with Turkish Airlines. I will make ××× accountable for this very dramatic experience with you, because he was advertising for your airline.
Sincerely,
×××
