Norwegian Airlines

Guest post by  Eden Miller
I flew New York JFK - Oslo-Gardermoen Flight DY7002 on January 12, 2014 at 21:30 - 10:50. I sat in seat 18J, next to the window.

When I first sat down, I felt a small drip of water hit the top of my head. I looked up and saw that some previous passenger had stuffed a paper napkin in the space between the light and the luggage compartment seam, and it was wet. I asked the stewardess if I could be moved, and she said the flight was full, and "oh yes, that drip always happens but only on take off and landing." I then had to specifically ask her for napkins to plug the hole further as she did not volunteer a solution.

When I pulled the old, wet napkin out in order to plug it with a dry napkin, a piece of the plane fell out on my head, along with plenty of water. It is a small, white, plug shaped silicone or rubber gasket. I then shoved all the napkins I had in the space, which was dripping water on my head like a faucet. It was still dripping through, so I then shoved my wool scarf in the hole as well, and rigged it to the overhead luggage door so as not to fall.

I paid extra for this seat. I had to sit with a faucet running on my head for 7.5 hours, and then a dirty, wet wool scarf. Their flight attendant's cavalier response was ridiculous and inappropriate, especially when I showed her that a piece of your plane was broken and in my hand. I have it if they'd like me to mail it back. We had not disembarked yet, and I could have been offered better customer service, or an alternate flight arrangement to get me to Berlin if the flight was truly full (I don't think it was). I have been a frequent flyer for over 30 years, and NEVER have I had this happen, contrary to the flight attendant's claim that a leaking plane was "normal".

After WEEKS of waiting for a response from Norwegian Air Customer Service and several calls to Oslo to expedite, I received this answer: "We apologise if our staff on board this flight did little to solve the problem you experienced on the way to Oslo. We understand that you should not need to use your own scarf to stop the water dripping and that the staff should have provided you with napkins, since this plane was full and they did not have the opportunity to move you to another seat. This unfortunately do not entitle you to a refund of the ticket or compensation.

We will take your information to the right department so they can rectify their routines and make sure that this will not happen again. We apologise once more for the inconviniency this might have caused, but do hope to have the opportunity to welcome you on board when you next choose to travel."
Recap: Faucet on my head for 7.5 hours, a piece of the plane in my hand, ruined scarf, no response from flight crew, and Too Bad For You message a MONTH later from Norwegian Customer Service. Unbelievable. Avoid this awful airline.

** since posting on Tripadvisor, I've had several people question me on a) why I didn't get more paper napkins rather than ruin my scarf (??), b) doubt that it was really a full on run of water, and c) why I didn't move seats.  The flight attendant had told me that the flight was full, and I didn't move because I was in the window seat, so I couldn't get up until I was well on the way and my seat mates let me out for a bathroom break well after takeoff.  At that time, I saw people in other sections sprawled over the extra adjoining seats.  By then it was too late.

Update: Apparently Norwegian Airlines has been getting a record number of complaints to the governing body as reported in NEWS in English.no:

Unhappy Norwegian Air customers have lodged a record number of complaints, both with the embattled airline and the Transport Complaints Board (Transportklagenemnda). More than 200 grievances have been registered with the board alone, as Norwegian’s new Boeing 787 Dreamliners continue to cause major issues.
Norwegian Air's first new Boeing 787 Dreamliner finally landed at Oslo's main airport at Gardermoen on June 30. The airline has now begun testing them before putting them into service on Norwegian's new long-distance routes to Bangkok, New York and Fort Lauderdale. PHOTO: Norwegian Air
‘Dreamliner’ has been something of a misnomer for the trouble-plagued Boeing 787s. The Transport Complaints Tribunal has received a record number of complaints from Norwegian Air passengers after Dreamliner problems caused months of cancellations and lengthy delays. PHOTO: Norwegian Air
“We have never before seen this scope of complaints in a single case,” Judge Einar Kaspersen who chairs the tribunal told newspaper Dagens Næringsliv (DN). Kaspersen said the first port of call for disgruntled customers was the airline itself, then the Tribunal reviews Norwegian’s handling of the case. “There are probably many who neglect to go further with the matter after they’ve first been rejected. Anyone can complain further.”

When your airline declares bankruptcy

Be careful when there are warnings that an airline may be going out of business.

A coworker of mine, +Leonid Notik, is currently stuck in the Ukraine trying to get home from Odessa, because “Aerosvit” apparently is in bankruptcy. Here is his story so far:

I needed to land Odessa we circled 5 times and then they would not approve our landing so the airline then flew us to Kiev (which is a distance of 900 km away). They left us at the airport and said “You will have to continue on your own.” We made a fuss and then they tried to fly us to Odessa once more failed so again we returned to Kiev.

Then they told us that they did not have an airplane that to land in weather conditions like these. So we were organized into a vehicle to travel 10 hours, at a cost of $40 each.

So we had a night without any sleep yesterday. Two days ago I saw that the flight board said the flight was okay so we rented an apartment for the day in Odessa. When checking with my travel agent she told us that everything is fine, but in the evening, when we were already in Odessa (and I suppose to leave the other day) I called her once more (having been taught by bitter experience) to check that everything was still fine and the answer she gave me was that “the flight is canceled”, and that we must to arrive to the airport to see how can they help us.

When we got to the airport yesterday they told us that they won't have an airplane this week and we have to fly to Kiev.

I checked and there were no seats on the bus to Kiev on the necessary dates and there are not places on the train in the necessary dates , by close to miracle we paid extra to a friend of my fiancé's father (he is a bus driver) and the friend canceled the ticket of one of passengers and accepted mine :)

So take the time to check out that your airline is not in trouble before flying, and if you used a travel agent ask them for help should something go wrong.

Photo by Leonid Notik, used with permission.

Guest Blog: Traveling with a Toddler

Guest Blog by Linor Flatto

Plan.

So you've decided to travel with a toddler. Yes, you are opening new worlds to your little one, sharing new experiences and expanding their horizons, and all this at the expense of your sanity and back muscles. Parenting a toddler is hard enough without more complications, but here's a few tips to ease some worries:

Plan it like you plan the day: when does your child sleep and can he/she sleep during the flight? Try to find a flight that doesn't disrupt the precious sleep-eat daily routine. If you're planning a day flight, make sure you bring lots of entertainment, but don't assume that they sleep on night flights.

Prepare them for the flight with songs and stories about it. Tell them what's going to happen.

Chill. It might be stressful to think about everything and anything, but try to calm down, and if they sleep on the plane, try to nap as well (although being a parent, when else can you catch up on the latest films than with the in-flight entertainment?)

Paperwork needed before the flight

•  Children over the age of 2 pay for a separate ticket and get their own chair. Obviously make sure their passport is valid.
•  If choose to brave travelling alone, make sure you have a letter of consent to allow the child to travel from his other parent, some countries are hysterical about allowing a child without both parents.
•  Remember that you will need to queue at passport control, even if you have the fast-track finger-printing card. Yes, Children slow you down.

 Special packing requirements – don't forget the kitchen sink!

Guest blog: traveling with a pet

Guest Blog: The worst flight of your life – without a plane incident

by  Assaf Flatto

If you ever have the fortune of relocation for work or relationship, congratulations to you, but if you have to take your pet with you, I sympathize with you for the grief you are about to endure.

If you own a cat or a small pet (rodent, rabbit, hamster) then you are, relatively, in luck, but if you have a medium or large dog, that is where your trouble start.

Tenchi (Photo By Assaf Flatto)

My experience is based on the regulations I have encountered in my country and with the EU regulations, but the Airlines all share the same rules handed down by the IAWA so there is no going around them, unless you own or know someone with a private plane.

The first hurdle is the “local” veterinary services; you cannot book a flight without notification from the country /district or municipal vet, regardless of the fact if you have had your pet with the same Vet since he was a puppy. 

So you have to take him for inspection, which in my case was a glance at the dog, a look at the papers and rubber stamping a form, for that I had to book a meeting 3 weeks in advance, have blood drawn from my dog, wait in the waiting room 45 minutes and pay $90 US.

Once I passed this hurdle, it was time to book the flight, here you are restricted with cages, you have to bring a cage for the pet, and you'd think you could find a place that will rent one – No, either you buy one at the pet shops (that is if your dog is in the sizes they hold in stock), or you order one specificly, or if you cannot, you can rent one from the Airline – which I highly recommend not to do.

Booking the flight is like passing a bureaucratic semi marathon, it cannot be done on-line as you can imagine, so you wait on the phone and (I tried 3 airlines) then they have to look up what the procedure and price is, and prices can vary and fluctuate, cargo flight (I.e. the only one for pets heavier the 12kg) is cheap $150US, but if I could I would have paid a full seat price for my dog.  

Training dogs to sleep in the cage is a matter for the individual dog, so I cannot say what is right, let’s just say that mine hated the thought and so did I.

 Then the day to travel to the Airport arrives, you gather your stuff, the pet, the cage, all the proper documents and head for the airport.

In the Airport you first need to verify your booking at the check-in desk, then go pay for the dog's flight ,in that desk you will also have to show the veterinary certificate for the dog and (in some cases) the medical insurance for the dog.

You the need to hand your pet in the oversize luggage, word of advice, make sure your dog did his toiletries before the flight and do not give him any food right before, cover the cage bottom with old papers and place something with familiar scent in with him.

Once you hand him (in the cage) you walk to the boarding gates, have your heart set to stone for that distance while you can hear him cry out for you.

Once you are on the plane, make sure to remind the craw that you have a pet in the cargo, there have been instances where the cargo pressure was not pressurised or heated and that caused death to animals, make sure the craw are aware, and then take your sit.

The first part of the nightmare has passed.

During the flight (if you are like me) most people try to sleep and enjoy some slight turbelance, but not during this one, every bump or twist of the plane I found myself cursing the wind and the engineers that build the plan, why can't they make a flight with no bumps?

Some people will ask to visit the pet in the cargo, unless you have a very friendly craw most requests will be denied, at most (maybe) someone will go and look on your pet and say “he is fine”, but don't be fooled by that statement, though there is not much you can do but nod and say “thank you.”

Once you land, you will have to pass border control, and collect you luggage before your pet is brought to you, if you fly to Paris, insist they check again, I had to wait 1 hour AFTER I got my stuff till they brought my dog to me.

They have not checked his papers but I think that is because they didn't want to admit to messing up.

Once you get your dog take him out of the cage ASAP! ! and remember to keep him on the lead/leash in the terminal, he will try to pee in the first place he can – keep him away from the police dogs.

Normal behaviour will resume slowly. Give him time to recover from the ordeal, and let yourself relax in his presence, you will need it as he will need you.

One thing I promised myself and my dog after that one – Never again!!

Call for special case guest bloggers

As I have been discussing this blog with people, it has become apparent that there are a few areas where I am unqualified to offer advice.

For example, I have had the pleasure (or suffered) with having small children around me while flying. So  can talk about kicked seats, amusing games played, etc. but I have never been the adult responsible. I have one friend who has offered to write a guest blog on the special considerations for traveling with an infant, but I have no one to write about traveling with a toddler or small child.

So if there is anyone out there who can offer advice that would help people in any of these situations (or any others that I missed) I would appreciate them providing a guest blog to help everyone else.

• Traveling with an infant (already have volunteer) 
• Traveling with a toddler 
• Traveling with a small child
• Unaccompanied child traveling alone
• Traveling with someone with special needs (blind, wheelchair, etc.)
• Traveling with a person with special medical needs 
• Traveling with a  utility animal
• Traveling with a  pet in the cargo hold
• Traveling with a pet in the cabin

In particular I  would look to pass on advice about

• Paperwork needed before the flight
• Special packing requirements
• Special considerations at the airport
• Special considerations on the flight
• Special considerations for accommodations 

If you are interested in providing a guest blog please reply in comments or via an email to me