Desperate travellers blamed poor arrangements by airlines for their confusion and delayed trips, as thousands were still stranded at Chek Lap Kok airport yesterday in the aftermath of Severe Typhoon Vicente.
Some arriving passengers were held in their planes for hours, waiting for a parking spot on the tarmac and buses to take them to the terminals. Others said airline staff failed to provide them with clear messages on baggage and flight times.
The Airport Authority said 348 flights were delayed and 39 cancelled as of 5pm yesterday. Cathay Pacific and Dragonair said they needed a few more days before operations could return to normal. Flights would be delayed until the end of the week and further cancellations might be necessary, they said. The airlines would waive charges on booking changes for all tickets.
About 100 Hong Kong Airlines' passengers at check-in counters were upset and angry as almost all of the 90 flights scheduled on Tuesday evening and yesterday were delayed or cancelled.
Urvashi Sethi's New Delhi-bound Cathay Pacific flight was delayed four times before she finally boarded the plane at 3.30pm yesterday - 20 hours after the scheduled time.
'It is absolutely inhumane treatment. I have never been in a situation where I had to wait so long to just get some information,' said the 40-year-old professional golfer, who was going on holiday. She was asked to go home at 7am yesterday by airline staff as her flight was further delayed to 2.45pm.
'There was only one person working at the gate counter serving over 500 passengers and there was no announcement whatsoever telling us why our flight was delayed over and over again,' Sethi said.
