My second encounter with Qatar Airways was no way near a pleasant experience. In fact I am appalled by their customer service and treatment of passengers. The rigidity and lack of knowledge by their airport staff was unbelievable. Having travelled around the globe and being a frequent flyer on Thai Air (Star alliance) I was facilitated by staff in many regions and countries. However arriving only 3 minutes after the closure of the counter and 57 minutes left for flight departure, I was denied boarding for flight QR 98 on Saturday the 9th of July 2011. Right in front of me was a business class passenger who was accepted. When I tried to plead with the woman in charge called Simona, she refused before even talking to the station manager. When she called, instead of requesting to facilitate a passenger, she told him, I told her so…. I told her I am going for condolences of a close family friend and will loose all my in country flights, she simply said sorry. I mentioned that I am 3 minutes late due to the fact that the train schedule was affected and all the trains were delayed several times, she mentioned that she is aware of it but will not be able to help me.
I was told that the ticket is not refundable and is cancelled. I tried frantically to call the reservation and support, it kept ringing and playing music without indicating that the office is closed on weekends and there is no hotline available for the five star airline. After this I called the Doha office where I was told that I should purchase another ticket worth $1200 if I wish to continue on my trip. On Monday the 11th when I called the reservation and support office the story changed and I was told that the dates of the travel can be changed since the ticket is valid for one year.
This experience left me traumatized and baffled. I was forced to think that for Qatar airways only Business class passengers matter. Their staff is devoured of any compassion for customers and therefore they should replace living human beings with robots. The lady in charge was not aware that all my official travels are indeed in business class since I work for a prestigious organisation. However after this experience I will insist using other options available from Copenhagen especially since Qatar Airways in its infancy has selected the wrong people to work for them.
I do wish that Qatar Airways management takes this story seriously to restore a tattered image in a world full of competition.