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‘Overbooking is not standard practice’ – CemAir and Airlink say
FlySafair overbooking saga continues
Two South African airlines, CemAir and Airlink have rejected FlySafair’s recent claim that overbooking is standard among airlines.
FlySafair recently came under the radar of the National Consumer Commission (NCC) after a customer complained about the airline’s conduct of overbooking and overselling tickets to consumers.
So we show up at the airport and @FlySafair says we don’t have seats for the same flight we paid for.
If you have 200 seats why take payments for 300 passengers 😮😮😳😭😭— Thato Miles Nsala (@Miles_Nsala) January 5, 2025
The airline apologised but also defended their practice, saying that it was a globally accepted industry standard used to manage no-shows and maintain affordable ticket prices.
“We do overbook flight to ensure we keep our tickets as affordable as possible for our passengers. We do see how inconvenient this can be and therefore offer compensation for passengers that were not able to take the flight they’ve booked,” the airline said on X.
…we do overbook flight to ensure we keep our tickets as affordable as possible for our passengers. We do see how inconvenient this can be and therefore offer compensation for passengers that were not able to take the flight they’ve booked. -BC
— FlySafair (@FlySafair) January 5, 2025
“An unethical practice” say CemAir and Airlink
Local airline, CemAir has released a statement denouncing overbooking as an unethical practice, adding that FlySafair does not refund fares for no-show passengers, which undermines its justification for the practice.
“We note the recent confirmation by competitor airline FlySafair that passenger overbooking is part of its standard business model as well as their assertion that it is a “globally-accepted” practice. FlySafair’s contention that “all local airlines indulge in this practice” is a baseless fabrication,” CemAir said in a statement.
“Furthermore, the justification from FlySafair that “overbooking assists in mitigating the financial impact of no-show passengers”, can only hold true if the airline refunds the no-show ticket fare, thereby suffering the loss of revenue on that seat with zero resale opportunity.” CemAir added.
Airlink also rejected FlySafair’s claims in a statement on X:
Notice | Airlink Does Not Overbook Its Flights.
Airlink would like to inform all its customers, and future travellers, that we do not overbook our flights. Contrary to what has been said publicly by FlySafair, not all South African airlines partake in this practice.#Airlink… pic.twitter.com/o6advaP4ot
— Airlink (@Fly_Airlink) January 14, 2025
What do you think of FlySafair’s policy of overbooking?
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