Downgraded from business class-AGAIN[Flight Change Revoked]

[Duffa]

So we're in the taxi to PER, nice and early for QF 776 and while we are on the freeway I get a text saying my flight has been delayed by 2.5 hours and will now get in at 01.30, not 23.00
I go to check-in desk and am told there are plenty of seats on the 16.35 then get sent to the service counter. While in the service counter queue I ring 131313 and after explaining my situation am directed back to desk 20 where the helpful agent rebooks us on the earlier 16.35.
In the J lounge with my 2 redemption J tickets, and am paged to the front desk.

QF - "We are sorry, but we've had to rebook you on the original QF 776, still delayed to 19.05"
Me - "But I have boarding passes for the 16.35 - see here"
QF - "Oh!, let me check with xx"
xx - I'm afraid we had to move you back to 776, we've overbooked.
Me - "So we've been bumped?"
xx - "No, in the chaos, we booked too many passengers on the earlier flight. While you were downstairs being rebooked, we were upstairs being rebooking other pax too. We booked too many.

AND THIS IS WHY I AM SO ANNOYED

The conversation should have been................

xx "Sorry Duffa, but we've had quite a few requests for the earlier flight as you'd expect, including revenue pax and P1's etc, even though they arrived after you did. So we had to bump you; as the lowest priority pax."
Me " Well I'm disappointed, but I understand"

So my request to Red Roo is - please tell your staff not to lie to customers (You're asking me to believe that a computer allowed 4 people to be allocated to 2 seats ...... yeah right!!!)

As ever, I will defer to the knowledge and experience of my fellow AFF'ers for their take on my situation.

 

[mannej]

Were you in Y on the 776?

 

[Duffa]

Were you in Y on the 776?

No; 2 x J redemptions
Was offered 2x Y seats on the earlier flight and told they weren't great seats. With a points refund.

 

[mannej]

I am missing something, where is the downgrade?

 

[Duffa]

I am missing something, where is the downgrade?

I had J boarding passes for the 16.35; was in the lounge and was bumped off that flight!
What would you call it?

 

[markis10]

I am missing something, where is the downgrade?

OP thought they had managed to change to the earlier flight in J but it was reversed, and if they wanted to stick to that flight it would be in Y

 

[Duffa]

OP thought they had managed to change to the earlier flight in J but it was reversed, and if they wanted to stick to that flight it would be in Y

Spot on, markis10!
More annoyed with the BS explanation

 

[mannej]

Purchased J, flew J is not a downgrade to me. Yes it was messy but not a downgrade

 

[Duffa]

Purchased J, flew J is not a downgrade to me. Yes it was messy but not a downgrade

I had J boarding passes and was called to the desk
"Downgrade to Y on this aircraft or get bumped to J seats on a flight 3 hours later....... neither a pleasant prospect

 

[opusman]

At the end of the day all that happened was your flight was delayed. You still flew the flight you had booked in the seats you had booked.

 

[mannej]

At the end of the day all that happened was your flight was delayed. You still flew the flight you had booked in the seats you had booked.

Exactly. The OP was not downgraded, the thread title is misleading.

 

[markis10]

Exactly. The OP was not downgraded, the thread title is misleading.

Semantics, the OP was downgraded if he wanted to fly the flight he changed to .

QF are having an interesting night

http://www.australianfrequentflyer....ogram/why-jetstar-flight-charter-64456-3.html

http://www.australianfrequentflyer..../yet-another-qantas-business-class-64462.html

 

[Duffa]

Exactly. The OP was not downgraded, the thread title is misleading.

Whilst I disagree with you on this point, no-one has commented on the misleading explanation for the bump!
Are the QF computers really that dodgy??

 

[basso]

So my request to Red Roo is - please tell your staff not to lie to customers (You're asking me to believe that a computer allowed 4 people to be allocated to 2 seats ...... yeah right!!!)

I know many folk on this board have the opinion that if an airline employees lips are moving, they are telling lies - but why would the concoct such a story. Clearly it ended up overbooked - perhaps you got the seats of someone not checked in yet. You can't prove they were telling lies.

 

[Duffa]

I know many folk on this board have the opinion that if an airline employees lips are moving, they are telling lies - but why would the concoct such a story. Clearly it ended up overbooked - perhaps you got the seats of someone not checked in yet. You can't prove they were telling lies.

I know I got the seats of someone not checked in yet. They had higher status than me, or were originally booked on that flight, and they got my seats - still no problem with that.
Just be honest and tell me I got bumped for someone else. Not that the computers allowed 4 people to get the same 2 seats!

 

[Princess Fiona]

Ok, your flight was delayed and you were re-booked at your request on an earlier departure. Subsequently you were advised that the re-booked flight was over-booked and you would need to travel in Y on that flight or go on your original ticketed flight in J ?
Is that the upshot ?

If so I'm struggling a little bit with the thread title

 

[GalaxyNexus]

Semantics, the OP was downgraded if he wanted to fly the flight he changed to .

QF are having an interesting night

http://www.australianfrequentflyer....ogram/why-jetstar-flight-charter-64456-3.html

http://www.australianfrequentflyer..../yet-another-qantas-business-class-64462.html

My guess is that they're tweaking their yield algorithm to "optimize" revenue, with the side effect of more bumping and overbooking situation. Either it's unintentionally bad side effect, or they consider this the "normal cost of doing business" and we'll see this as the new normal, going forward.

 

[Duffa]

Subsequently you were advised that the re-booked flight was over-booked and you would need to travel in Y on that flight

Isn't that a downgrade??

 

[Princess Fiona]

Isn't that a downgrade??

No it's IRROPS

 

[Princess Fiona]

Semantics, the OP was downgraded if he wanted to fly the flight he changed to .

QF are having an interesting night

http://www.australianfrequentflyer....ogram/why-jetstar-flight-charter-64456-3.html

http://www.australianfrequentflyer..../yet-another-qantas-business-class-64462.html

Actually it's a bit more than semantics IMO. Multiple agents at the lounge, check-in and at the call centre are attempting to re-book passengers on a delayed flight to an earlier departure. They admit that they have made a mistake and over-booked the earlier flight, offering the OP the original flight or fly earlier in Y.
As for QF having an interesting night, there seems to be a somewhat dramatic flavour to two instances of IRROPS