Tiger airways simply the worst airline

[Oneworldplus2]

I try to fly QF as much as possible, but when l have to fly a LCC, l arrive extra early (at least 2 hours minimum) and pack light. That usually solves most of your problems from the get go.
I even went through a stage when l was living in London of going to all the Easyjet airports because l was watching "Airport" on telly. In the end, by the time you've paid the tube/overland, connecting train/bus/mini-bus to some airport out in the middle of nowhere and visa-versa on the other end, you'll spend the same amount of $$$ just going to LHR in the tube and flying BA. But, it was a good experience.
Also, nothing like seeing Ryanair in action. Cattle class to the max. There weren't even magazine holders in the seat infront of you. The emergency exit info was a sticker on the head-rest infront of you, lol. Minimalistic comes to mind.
Live and learn l guess.
I can't speak about TT as l haven't used them, but they are probably on par with Ryanair/SkyEurope/Easyjet.

 

[Mr Ed]

Just a quick question? Out of the $39 spent on flying, how much of that $39 is spent on keeping the plane up in the air?

In other words how much does it cost per seat to maintain a plane so it doesn't fall out of the sky or fall on me?

 

[docjames]

Just a quick question? Out of the $39 spent on flying, how much of that $39 is spent on keeping the plane up in the air?

In other words how much does it cost per seat to maintain a plane so it doesn't fall out of the sky or fall on me?

Depends on the age of your aircraft.

New A320s will be cheaper to maintain than 23 year old 767s.

Hence why most of the world's LCCs and ULCCs use brand new aircraft.

 

[straitman]

Depends on the age of your aircraft.

New A320s will be cheaper to maintain than 23 year old 767s.

Hence why most of the world's LCCs and ULCCs use brand new aircraft.

Alternately the 767 has probably paid for itself but the shiny new A320 is still being paid off. This would have quite a balancing effect upon the equation.

 

[NM]

Alternately the 767 has probably paid for itself but the shiny new A320 is still being paid off. This would have quite a balancing effect upon the equation.

another variable is the taxation and depreciation laws applicable to the airline in the country they operate or are registered.

I understand a gong rate for a full service airline is likely around $0.10 per seat mile flown, while a LCC would be targeting something more like $0.06 per seat mile flown. But remember that the number of seats on the aircraft only sets the upper limit to the number of paying passengers that can be carried. So don't take those number and multiply out the number of miles an individual passenger flies on a particular flight. Those are very much averaged costs and each flight will vary depending on the actual loading, sector distance, costs at origin and destination etc. But of course some costs, like head office and back-office systems are reasonably fixed.

 

[docjames]

Alternately the 767 has probably paid for itself but the shiny new A320 is still being paid off. This would have quite a balancing effect upon the equation.

Yes, but we're talking about maintenance, not depreciation. Which is another cost to consider I agree.

 

[Walter Plinge]

Depends on the age of your aircraft.

New A320s will be cheaper to maintain than 23 year old 767s.

Hence why most of the world's LCCs and ULCCs use brand new aircraft.

Which must be one reason why US airlines are in poor financial condition. Watching the aircraft in Austin TX last year they all looked quite old. The AA MD80 I flew on must have been 20 years old.

 

[Oneworldplus2]

I have also done a fair few dummy booking searches on AA and almost all have come back with MD-80's somewhere in a multi-sector search.
1) How many of these does AA use?
2) When are they going to start replacing them?

This is going to cost AA alot of money down the track. Ontop of that, there are constant delay's to Boeing's new Dreamliner.

I have to admit that the last 2 times l've used Jetstar, all the aircraft felt very fresh, like they had just been delivered. SYD-Hamilton Island and SYD to AKL.

 

[clifford]

I have also done a fair few dummy booking searches on AA and almost all have come back with MD-80's somewhere in a multi-sector search.
1) How many of these does AA use?
2) When are they going to start replacing them?

This is going to cost AA alot of money down the track. Ontop of that, there are constant delay's to Boeing's new Dreamliner.

I have to admit that the last 2 times l've used Jetstar, all the aircraft felt very fresh, like they had just been delivered. SYD-Hamilton Island and SYD to AKL.

Isn't this going off topic? I thought the thread was about Tiger.

Mods, what are you doing?

(Or have I missed something?).

 

[Oneworldplus2]

Sorry. But, are we that stringent?

 

[serfty]

[OT]

... MD-80's somewhere in a multi-sector search.
1) How many of these does AA use?
2) When are they going to start replacing them? ...

~265 with a further 88 stored.

American Airlines Fleet - Airfleets

and yes, they are being replaced (slowly).
[/OT]

Now back to Tiger ...

 

[straitman]

[OT]
~265 with a further 88 stored.

American Airlines Fleet - Airfleets

and yes, they are being replaced (slowly).
[/OT]

Now back to Tiger ...

Do we have to talk about Tiger :?:

 

[JohnK]

I think most of us are aware that Tiger is terrible but to be fair you can't expect to have excellent service when purchasing ultra cheap airfares.

I have not and will not by choice fly this form of air transportation.

I am thinking about booking a day trip on Tiger for the thrill of it.

I don't know, if you don't have checked luggage or don't have connection, I don't know what the problem is.

Or you don't really need to be at the destination at the expected time....

 

[pauly7]

Or you don't really need to be at the destination at the expected time....

or be at the destination at all....

 

[Evan]

Well SIN-HKT-SIN was just acceptable.
It was cramped (seemed worse than JQ/3K), but it was mostly on-time.
Its just transport, nothing more. I would only use again if the price as it was this time significantly cheaper.

 

[chevinoz]

Tiger Airways is the worst airline I've ever had the misfortune of flying with! My critique is based on my experiences in over 30 years of domestic & international air travel.

No matter how cheap it appears beware the hidden costs! Check-in fee! Oversized luggage fee! Overweight luggage fee! Re-booking fee!....

Beware of cancelled services! Services are delayed & cancelled regularly, the best you'll get is a meal voucher & a longgggggggggggg wait at the terminal to board another flight. 2-1/2 Days at the Gold Coast Airport in one instance.

Beware of lousy customer service! Particularly the off-shore customer service centre at the end of their one & only advertised contact number! Long queues, hang-ups & mis-information are a regular occurence.

Longgggggggg wait at check-in counters and small & overcrowded terminals.

Let me reflect on my family's recent experience.

Last minute travel to Brisbane for the Vic School Holidays, Tiger was the only airline that had affordable (not cheap,cheap) seats available at that time.

Called Tiger customer service to confirm the departure terminal, answer "International at Melbourne Airport".

Arrived airport 90 mins prior to departure time & parked car in Long Term car park. Headed to the International terminal - WRONG! After wandering around international departures for 15 mins trying to find the Tiger counter we were directed to the correct terminal at T4 (old Virgin). I'm told the Tiger customer service person had meant Melbourne International Airport!!!!!!

After walking the family to T4 (10 mins or so) we arrived at the Tiger check-in counter 50 mins prior to departure to find that they were no longer checking in baggage. The "young" fellow behind the counter was not open to any reasoning or discussion re our plight, the only option given to us was to pay an additional $210 to be moved to the 5.30 am flight next morning.

So there we were, 8.30pm & home was over an hours drive away. Taking into account the cost of fuel, toll charges & the 4am start next morning, we decided not to return home and so began our search for some affordable accommodation nearby. Having paid the $24 to get the car out of Long Term parking, we checked into a nearby motel 2 hours later, best rate $170, all for 5 hours sleep.

Arrived back at the Tiger terminal 4.30am next morning 90 mins prior to departure (Tiger reccommends 2 hrs). We'd already paid the extra $20 per passenger to get a 15 kg baggage allowance ($55 pp if paid at the airport). One bag weighed in at 15.3kg, they then proceeded to try and extort another $55 from us for the extra 300 grams. No way was I going to pay them another cent, so I unpacked the case on the scales & removed my diary & jacket which I was then allowed to carry on as cabin baggage at no further cost (WHAT A JOKE!!! 300 grams is 300 grams, whether it's in the hold or in the cabin. WHY THE FUSS?)

The guy beside us was about to kill the check-in chick. He had a carry-on bag that he'd taken on board many different airlines while travelling the world. Tiger was telling him that it was oversize by 3cm and were demanding he pay $55, he was not happy. Every other queue was held up with people unpacking suitcases at counters trying to reduce the weight of their luggage. How efficient is that? Especially given that most of the stuff removed is carried on board as hand luggage anyway. $5 of the $55 baggage fee is supposedly an administration charge...SURE!

Once we'd left the check-in counter we were in yet another queue, this time weighing hand luggage to make sure it was under 7kg. Once again, people were forced to wait while passengers unpacked their bags in the queue.

Moving on, there was yet another delay while we stood in the queue at the security point. A very narrow & innefficient choke point.

The T4 terminal is very cramped with little seating available when 2 or more flights are scheduled to depart. Food & beverages are typically overpriced and there are queues at counters. Access to the aircraft is via the tarmac which was quite uncomfortable given the cold winter winds at Melb Airport.

Once on board, it becomes apparent that the aircraft are not cleaned regularly, there is no in-flight entertainment and the aircraft are not fitted with in-seat radios or video screens. All food & drink must be purchased and they DO NOT accept cash or eftpos on board, credit cards only. I had cash but I'd left my cards in my luggage, I couldn't even buy the family a drink of water... WHAT A JOKE!)

I ended up heading back to Melbourne earlier than expected, I booked with Qantas and left my family to return with Tiger as originally planned. My family reported that the service from Tiger in Brisbane was just as bad as Melb. Our itinerary had a seat booked for me including a 15kg baggage allowance that I'd paid for. Tiger would not allow my family to use the seat nor would they allow my family to use my 15kg baggage allowance despite us all being ticketed on the same itinerary. Once again, my wife had to unpack a jacket to bring a bag below 15kg. It turns out that they subsequently resold my seat & yet offered no refund.

Admittedly, I didn't read the Tiger T&C in any detail and I incorrectly thought they were on par with other budget airlines. HOWEVER....

Given the whole "Tiger" experience I will never ever fly with them again. At the end of it all I could have flown my whole family on a Qantas every day fare, at a time convenient to us, for less cost than we ended up incurring with Tiger.

The airline is a joke and deserves every bit of the negative press & consumer backlash that it incurs. The company has taken domestic air travel in Australia to an all time low.

 

[dajop]

Called Tiger customer service to confirm the departure terminal, answer "International at Melbourne Airport".

One thing I don't understand is why you just didn't look up on tiger website, or via google, pretty easy to find that information. Also IIRC the overhead signs on the entry road into Melbourne airport indicate that Tiger departs from T4 and provide appropriate directions. In fact my itinerary for recent Tiger flight clearly indicates the following:

Melbourne Intl Airport (Tullamarine, T4)

 

[chevinoz]

One thing I don't understand is why you just didn't look up on tiger website, or via google, pretty easy to find that information. Also IIRC the overhead signs on the entry road into Melbourne airport indicate that Tiger departs from T4 and provide appropriate directions. In fact my itinerary for recent Tiger flight clearly indicates the following:

One would expect a customer service representative, regardless of company, to be able to provide accurate information pertaining to the airline they represent. There's no excuse for broken English when dealing with customers in a predominently English speaking population.

Next time you arrive at Melbourne A/P in darkness, try & pick out the T4 (Tiger) signage at the inbound traffic light junction. The signage is 1/10th the size of all other airport signage & easily missed. Try then to count the directional signage through the maze of taxis to the drop-off point, the whole traffic grid is an afterthought & poorly sign posted.

I don't believe the word "budget" gives any excuse for poor customer service.

Cheers.

 

[medhead]

I don't believe the word "budget" gives any excuse for poor customer service.

Cheers.

Unfortunate as it is but that is exactly what budget means - no customer service. All the information is available via the lowest cost method - the internet. I've booked one flight and i've read the website in detail and I know that I can't expect too much from Tiger - i.e. a seat, I know I've got to turn up as early as possible, I know that I might have to buy a last minute flight with Qantas. I'll accept that bet because it might save me a chunk of money.
Tiger also have a TV show that clearly demonstrates what to expect from Tiger. (no doubt probably also making them money from advertising)

I really feel for your situation and it is a terrible situation. Unfortunately that is the Tiger business model and they seem happy to stand or fall on that model.

 

[kamchatsky]

One would expect a customer service representative, regardless of company, to be able to provide accurate information pertaining to the airline they represent. There's no excuse for broken English when dealing with customers in a predominently English speaking population.

Next time you arrive at Melbourne A/P in darkness, try & pick out the T4 (Tiger) signage at the inbound traffic light junction. The signage is 1/10th the size of all other airport signage & easily missed. Try then to count the directional signage through the maze of taxis to the drop-off point, the whole traffic grid is an afterthought & poorly sign posted.

I don't believe the word "budget" gives any excuse for poor customer service.

Cheers.

Sorry to hear your experiences, but Tiger has always made it clear that they are a Low Cost airline, and clearly states their rules, fees and charges. I fly TT and have no problems with them because I knew what to expect of them, and I just get from A to B without problems, and saved heaps as a result of this.

For anyone who wants a stress free experience, QF and possibly DJ is probably the way to go.