I am SO bummed! I'm supposed to be in Hawaii right now

[KLLund]

Well I did read all 9 pages and I am in total sympathy with Tina and stand in awe of your poise and graciousness .. you are one truly lovely individual and I hope we meet up on a cruise someday.

 

This is such a sad series of misfortunes it almost boggles the mind.

[Adventure Addict]

I left for Maui from Sacramento on March 25th and had planned to return with my family on April 1. We were ticketed on Aloha, so found we had no return flight. United offered to get us back at a discount on April 2nd. On the 2nd, they grounded all of their boeing 777s for inspection. And you guessed it, that's what we were booked on. Now United was really backed up with passengers and said they had no seat available for a week. We called around and almost selected ATA (by the mercy of God we didn't make that mistake) and booked 6 full fair tickets on Hawaiian.

 

New reports indicated that United and Hawaiian were bringing in extra plans to get all 20,000 stranded tourists home. Of course they did! And were happily charging full fair for all of those seats.

 

I am grateful we were able to go, but the 4 extra days of car rental, condo rental, food, and 2x the price for tickets, put a bad taste in our mouths and a very empty hole in our wallets. Ouch!:eek:

[simplelife]

MAYBE because you just upgraded and most likely did so via credit card, in fact have not "Paid" for your cruise yet ... maybe there is a loop-hole or gray area here, that allows you NOW to get insurance or at least contact your credit card company to dispute the upgrade charge...?

I pay for all flights with my Discover card and they provide free flight insurance. Other credit cards have similar perks.

[AFT_LOVER]

but the air miles hould be returned to her account since the airline didn't show for their paid trip. She also learned that insurance is a must!

 

 

Okay MACOP - you are right. They did not go on the cruise. Let me ask this:

 

If you overslept and missed the flight, and therefore no cruise, would you expect the miles back?

 

If at the last minute you were afraid to fly, would you get your money back?

 

If you decided not to go, and therefore there was no cruise, should you get the miles back?

 

If your good friend was sick, and you decided not to go, should you get your miles back?

 

If there was a personal issue, and you decided not to go, should you get your miles back?

 

If the taxi company did not show up to take you to the airport, should you get your miles back?

 

If your boss said you could not leave on vacations, should you get your miles back?

 

No, to all the above. You redeemed your miles. You spent them. You cashed them in. The fact that you did not show up for the cruise you PROMISED to be at has nothing to do with the cruiseline or your miles. You are out of luck. Why in the heck do they care why? You paid for the cruise and you did not show up.

 

They might feel sorry that the airline folded up, but that is NOT their problem. They are in the business of selling cruises.

 

Next.

[AFT_LOVER]

CO, Delta, NWA, US AIR, and they are still flying since the creditors took pennies on the dollar. the magic word is LIQUIDATION, where all planes are sold, and creditors get money from the judge after the sale or takeover. So far no liquidation mentioned on Ohio's Skybus, Aloha (who has been bankrupt as has Hawaiian) or ever ATA.

 

They could - but the reality is that they'd prob never see a dime (or else class action lawyers would already be advertising).

 

Businesses do have creditors - obviously they have more debts than assets. In bankruptcies, secured creditors get paid first, unsecured/individuals last.

 

Say for example that you go bankrupt. The people holding the note on your house and car get first dibs - the loans are secured by property they can repossess to reduce the debt. They will get their money faster and more likely to get it then say the local payday loan place, dear Aunt Edna who you borrowed from (even if she's holding a promissory note), etc.

 

The people who own the planes and equipment will get paid first. Then their suppliers (fuel/food/etc). Then probably any retirement benefits they are on the hook for (that money is separate and protected, at least in theory). Individuals holding air tickets would be the last - and since more bills than assets - they'd get nothing most likely.

 

 

-Aloha Airlines has creditors. And, those creditors will get in line to get some of what is ato them. Just because they declared bankruptcy does not mean all their debt is automatically cleared. Everything will be sold off and the money dispersed accordingly.

 

So, what about a law suit against Aloha Airlines? I would think that you could find an attorney who would gladly take this on. There must be hundreds of people who were severely affected by this. Sort of a class action law suit? It is Aloha's fault that you missed your cruise. So perhaps it's worth looking into trying to get Aloha to compensate you?

 

Told you it was probably not the smartest suggestion ever, but I'm grasping at straws. Any knowledgable people out there on a subject like this?-

[ohioNCLcruiser]

CO, Delta, NWA, US AIR, and they are still flying since the creditors took pennies on the dollar. the magic word is LIQUIDATION, where all planes are sold, and creditors get money from the judge after the sale or takeover. So far no liquidation mentioned on Ohio's Skybus, Aloha (who has been bankrupt as has Hawaiian) or ever ATA.

 

I believe thats pretty much the same in the airline business. I don't remember an airline shutting down because of ch 11 (then it would be ch 7) and then restarting as the same company as before.

 

ATA is done

Skybus is done

Aloha cargo is still going as aloha cargo..for now..

[AFT_LOVER]

what NCL called about & the good news I am praying for you for, then the TA that cashed in in air miles for an airline going under & they didn't know???? And that credit card with the miles that makes you use their TA, that doesn't assist, so I'd cancel the card if they don't care. AMEX BLUE is better......

[ohioNCLcruiser]

This should also be a warning about booking on some airlines such as ATA, Skybus, Sun Country etc who have been close to shutting down for months..sometimes if the deal is too good to be true then it is.

[falken]

I pay for all flights with my Discover card and they provide free flight insurance. Other credit cards have similar perks.

 

Discover provides a $500,000 Flight Accident Insurance, should you suffer injury or death durring your flight. Unless you have some special card, I am not aware of any credit card that has any other type of insurance on it for flights (but you are able to do a chargeback with any of them if services were not provided as agreeded, aka, they go out of business).

 

Edit: For no additional fee anyway, I know you can sign up for insurance via american express and they will automatically bill you an additional charge for every airline ticket you buy and provide a full list of insurance benefits.

[garycarla]

I pay for all flights with my Discover card and they provide free flight insurance. Other credit cards have similar perks.

 

Unless I missed something else, that is not gonna help. Here is a quote fro the Discover website:

When you purchase an airline ticket with your Discover Card, you're eligible for up to $500,000 of Flight Accident Insurance.*"

[garycarla]

what NCL called about & the good news I am praying for you for, then the TA that cashed in in air miles for an airline going under & they didn't know???? And that credit card with the miles that makes you use their TA, that doesn't assist, so I'd cancel the card if they don't care. AMEX BLUE is better......

 

MACOP - as another poster requested, could you please take a minute and read your postings before hitting the button. Some of your thoughts are not getting into the typed words and it gets confusing.

 

But, if you are attemtpting to blame a TA for booking an airline that they somehow KNEW was going under - that is totally wrong. Airlines, or any other company for that matter do not, and in most cases, legally can not give out any information that they are about to close the doors. Everybody finds out at the same time.

[redroses27]

on my american express i pay 10.00 for any problems with my flight i get my money back

[80sGurl]

Kathy, thank you so much!! I too hope we meet up on a cruise someday, how about Hawaii?? LOL

 

I just left a message for someone at NCL that called us, a Reservations Supervisor. She called my husband's cell phone yesterday. She'll probably tell me to contact Guest Relations with a letter (which I'm going to do today) but I'm wishing she offers me a glimmer of hope!

 

Tina

 

Well I did read all 9 pages and I am in total sympathy with Tina and stand in awe of your poise and graciousness .. you are one truly lovely individual and I hope we meet up on a cruise someday.

 

This is such a sad series of misfortunes it almost boggles the mind.

[80sGurl]

Your problem is actual the opposite of mine but I was wishing I had your problem ;) I hear ya though on the extra expenses, that really hurts. It is awful to me that these airlines will gouge the customers when they know they are in a desperate situation. It's just not right...

 

Tina

 

 

I left for Maui from Sacramento on March 25th and had planned to return with my family on April 1. We were ticketed on Aloha, so found we had no return flight. United offered to get us back at a discount on April 2nd. On the 2nd, they grounded all of their boeing 777s for inspection. And you guessed it, that's what we were booked on. Now United was really backed up with passengers and said they had no seat available for a week. We called around and almost selected ATA (by the mercy of God we didn't make that mistake) and booked 6 full fair tickets on Hawaiian.

 

New reports indicated that United and Hawaiian were bringing in extra plans to get all 20,000 stranded tourists home. Of course they did! And were happily charging full fair for all of those seats.

 

I am grateful we were able to go, but the 4 extra days of car rental, condo rental, food, and 2x the price for tickets, put a bad taste in our mouths and a very empty hole in our wallets. Ouch!:eek:

[80sGurl]

I booked my tickets thru Orbitz. It was a combination of US Air and ATA. I had no idea about ATA's financial issues. For the future, I will definately look into it and make sure I'm not on an airline that is having financial problems. I'm not even sure how I'd know they are having financial difficulties? I guess searches on the internet would result in articles about it?

 

Tina

 

This should also be a warning about booking on some airlines such as ATA, Skybus, Sun Country etc who have been close to shutting down for months..sometimes if the deal is too good to be true then it is.

[80sGurl]

.... in this case, my TA didn't book the airfare, I personally did thru Orbitz. My TA was only involved in the cruise reservations and mileage redemption (he's directly associated with Carnival Sea Miles Credit Card)

 

Tina

 

 

 

MACOP - as another poster requested, could you please take a minute and read your postings before hitting the button. Some of your thoughts are not getting into the typed words and it gets confusing.

 

But, if you are attemtpting to blame a TA for booking an airline that they somehow KNEW was going under - that is totally wrong. Airlines, or any other company for that matter do not, and in most cases, legally can not give out any information that they are about to close the doors. Everybody finds out at the same time.

[garycarla]

on my american express i pay 10.00 for any problems with my flight i get my money back

 

But, would that be any help in this situation? Getting the money back for the flight is not the issue. They needed to be in Hawaii to get on the Cruiseship.

[garycarla]

I booked my tickets thru Orbitz. It was a combination of US Air and ATA. I had no idea about ATA's financial issues. For the future, I will definately look into it and make sure I'm not on an airline that is having financial problems. I'm not even sure how I'd know they are having financial difficulties? I guess searches on the internet would result in articles about it?

 

Tina

 

pretty much all airlines are having financial problems. Southwest might be the only exception.

[Sea Island Lady]

So sorry for your unfortunate loss of vacation! :( Take that $2000 you are getting back on air and take the children off for a long weekend somewhere that you DON'T have to fly. :)

 

The ironic thing about my miles is that my travel agent forgot to deduct my account the 88,000 miles. I booked this trip back in october and happened to review my miles balance online for the first time in march, just to see how many more miles I had accumulated off my credit card. I noticed he hadn't deducted the 88,000 miles! In my own right consious, I felt I needed to be honest and let Sea Miles know. So they made an adjustment a few weeks ago and took the 88,000 miles, as they rightly should have. I'm not saying I regret being honest, I just think it's funny the way it all worked out.

 

It has been our experience, when using miles/points that the points are not taken off the credit card books until AFTER the trip date.

 

I had a suggestion for the other poster from Columbus, but she hasn't been on this thread lately. I'll go see if she started her own thread. ;)

[80sGurl]

just got off the phone with that NCL supervisor that called me. Apparantly they were calling people that didn't make it on the ship because I guess there were mechanical difficulties that caused them NOT to make the Hilo stop at all!! So they wanted to make sure the families not on the ship got notice in case they were planning on meeting up in Hilo

 

I did talk to her about our situation, she was very sympathetic and nice and only suggested writing Guest Relations. She said that because we didn't have travel insurance, it's an iffy situation. But because of the extenuating circumstances, you just never know what they might do...

 

I asked her how many other families couldn't get on the ship and she said she knew of at least 10...

 

Tina

[kenish]

For the future, I will definately look into it and make sure I'm not on an airline that is having financial problems. I'm not even sure how I'd know they are having financial difficulties? I guess searches on the internet would result in articles about it?

 

80sGirl, I read this entire thread and really sympathize. I can't imagine how disappointed you and your family must be. The one "hidden gem" is the example you've set for your kids when "life happens".

 

The woes of ATA and Skybus received a lot of coverage in the travel and financial press. (ATA for example, closed their hub at MDW a month or two ago). Another good resource is www.flyertalk.com

 

On the Canadian alternative, if anyone else in SoCal is in a bind, there are really good LGB-SEA fares right now. JetBlue has started competing with Alaska on this route. SEA is still shy of YVR but close enough....

 

Last comment, my Karmic experience with travel insurance was a cruise several years ago. I decided for the first time ever to insure a cruise. The afternoon before sailing, my son went OTB on his dirt bike. Fortunately nothing serious and the ER said he was good to go. I got the message and have bought it on every vacation since where I'd be out serious $$. (We also impose a 1 week ban before a big trip- no motorcycles, mountain bikes, or skateboards for either of us).

[Bigdog49]

but the air miles hould be returned to her account since the airline didn't show for their paid trip. She also learned that insurance is a must!

 

MACOP please read the details of the story. You keep saying Tina should get her air miles back. THERE ARE NO AIR MILES. She is getting her money back on the airfare through her credit card company.

 

THe issue here is the cruise was paid for in part with SEA miles from Carnivals credit card. Those miles were gone when the ship sailed just like her cash.

[80sGurl]

Yes, this is true. But to be technical, US Air is actually refunding us our airfare expenses, not my credit card (if we want to be exact) :)

(hey, I'm an accountant... details details)

 

US Air is taking responsibility because they were the 1st leg of my trip. I have to say I am appreciative of the fact they are doing this. If you think about it, they could say, "too bad, so sad" but they really came to bat for me. In fact, when we went down to the San Diego Airport to apply for our refund, we had the nicest man behind the US Air counter spend about 30 minutes on his computer and on the phone trying his hardest to find SOMETHING for us. I really appreciated that. Through this whole debaucle, I've really experienced all levels of customer service.

 

 

 

MACOP please read the details of the story. You keep saying Tina should get her air miles back. THERE ARE NO AIR MILES. She is getting her money back on the airfare through her credit card company.

 

THe issue here is the cruise was paid for in part with SEA miles from Carnivals credit card. Those miles were gone when the ship sialed just like her cash.

[Sea Island Lady]

just got off the phone with that NCL supervisor that called me. Apparantly they were calling people that didn't make it on the ship because I guess there were mechanical difficulties that caused them NOT to make the Hilo stop at all!! So they wanted to make sure the families not on the ship got notice in case they were planning on meeting up in Hilo

 

I did talk to her about our situation, she was very sympathetic and nice and only suggested writing Guest Relations. She said that because we didn't have travel insurance, it's an iffy situation. But because of the extenuating circumstances, you just never know what they might do...

 

I asked her how many other families couldn't get on the ship and she said she knew of at least 10...

 

Tina

I am sorry that the call didn't give you much comfort. Be glad that you didn't pay out the wazoo for a flight to Hilo and then see no ship in site!:rolleyes:

[lvtotrvl1]

Wow...alot of reading but I think I'm up to date.....First I am sorry for your situation...what a bummer!

 

First I would call your TA's manger back right away...it is not your responsibility to be writing a letter (although you can)...Agencies have certain people they deal with that can make the process go a bit faster. Generally they like to please agencies as much as possible since so much business comes from agents. Your situation is an iffy situation, however I have had a few instances (with clients that had had deaths in the family) where NCL will give a credit for another cruise. It is not a quick process usually, but I have had success. If you do write a letter, I would be as nice as possible ( as you seem to be in handling this situation) and I do think you will be happy with the results. I am sorry your TA did not have the sympathy needed in this situation. AS far as your reluctance for future airline reservations....I can't say any airline is safe these days, but I would stay away from the low fares...even Southwest fares have increased over the years...I never understood how Skybus could charge 10.00 for a ticket and stay in business?

 

Good Luck and I hope you will keep us up to date! And I also hope you will be vacationing soon!