1-hour Scoot flight turns into 22-hour nightmare
A Scoot flight meant to be a quick one-hour hop turned into a grueling 22-hour ordeal for passengers.
Passengers aboard Scoot flight TR469 from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore endured a nightmare journey due to persistent technical issues, causing significant delays.
Scheduled to depart from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) on Dec 28, 2024, at 7.10pm, the flight was initially delayed to 8.30pm.
However, the ordeal truly began shortly after passengers boarded. One passenger, who prefers to remain anonymous, described the harrowing experience to TNP.
“We boarded at 8.22pm, but the plane just sat there. The cabin had no ventilation, or at least the staff didn’t turn any on, and there were no refreshments. Kids were crying, and people were struggling to breathe,” she said.
Conditions inside the grounded plane became so unbearable the pilot eventually opened the aircraft door to let in fresh air.
“Passengers were bringing children to the door to get some comfort and made calls,” she recounted.
Around 9.43pm, the captain announced a technical issue and instructed everyone to disembark and wait in the boarding hall.
At 10.52pm, passengers were asked to reboard, only to encounter the same problem. Again, they were left without clear updates or refreshments.
The passenger expressed her frustration with the apparent lack of care from the airline staff.
“When I asked for water, I was told to get it myself from the back of the plane. Why couldn’t they just bring out a trolley and serve everyone? Is it really that costly for the airline to offer this simple gesture of hospitality?” she questioned.
By midnight, passengers were asked to disembark for a second time. The situation remained chaotic, with no clear updates from staff.
Exhausted and hungry, passengers waited for hours without any concrete information about alternative arrangements.
“Instead of calming us down and updating us on the status or simply letting us get off the plane, the pilot made an announcement asking us not to abuse service staff during this difficult time, because they had a 15-hour workday,” she said.
At 2.30am, she learned through her own inquiries that the airline was arranging accommodation. This information, however, was not announced publicly, forcing passengers to rely on word of mouth.
Clearing immigration at KLIA added another layer of difficulty, with only one officer on duty to process over 300 stranded passengers.
Finally, around 4.30am, passengers were transported to a hotel and promised breakfast and lunch.
However, the passenger missed breakfast after receiving a message at 9am that the flight would now depart at 1pm. Required to arrive three hours prior, she left the hotel at 10am.
“If I hadn’t jumped out of bed, I’d have missed my transfer to the airport. No one called my room or my phone with this update,” she said.
The chaos continued at the airport. Passengers checked in at 11am, only to learn of another delay, pushing the departure to 3pm. At 2.30pm, staff provided each passenger with a burger and water.
The flight finally departed at 4.42pm on Dec 29, landing in Singapore at 6.12pm.
Responding to TNP’s inquiries, a Scoot spokesperson said: "Scoot flight TR469, operating from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore, detected a technical fault prior to its scheduled departure at 7.10pm on 28 December 2024. As spares were required to be uplifted to Kuala Lumpur, TR469 could not be recovered in time."
"Affected customers were provided with accommodation, transport, and refreshments," the carrier added.
"Scoot sincerely apologises for the inconvenience to our customers. The safety of our customers and crew is our top priority, and we will continue to assist affected customers, where required."
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