‘Cheating’ or normal practice? Hong Kong budget airline HK Express cancels flights from January 15, sparks anger among travellers with bookings
- Budget carrier says move is to provide transparent outlook of arrangements after schedule review, and there are alternatives for customers, including full refunds
- Airline has also earlier faced complaints about prices of tickets already bought by travellers plunging by up to 60 per cent
Hong Kong budget airline HK Express has cancelled some flights from January 15 next year after reviewing its schedule, sparking complaints from disgruntled passengers scrambling to book trips.
Customers affected are eligible for full refunds as one of four alternatives offered, the airline said on Saturday, days after it was embroiled in a furore about prices of tickets already bought by travellers plunging by up to 60 per cent.
The cancellations came less than 10 days after the low-cost carrier had announced it would add more than 400 flights in the next three months to popular destinations such as Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, Bangkok and Singapore, amid the long-awaited easing of tough travel curbs.
An HK Express spokeswoman told the Post the airline had been reviewing its flight schedule in 2023 to provide passengers with a more transparent outlook.
“This has led to the retiming and cancellation of some flights from January 15, 2023,” she said. “Customers are also eligible for full refunds if there are no other suitable options available.”
The other three alternatives are sticking to the same route on other available dates, choosing another destination with a payment for the price difference, or having a refund in the form of cash vouchers for future air tickets with some rebates, according to affected passengers.
They slammed the airline for putting tickets up for sale before capacity was reached.