Qantas mistake leaves couple stranded in NZ
A couple from the UK has been left high and dry by Qantas, with the national carrier refusing to let them board a flight from New Zealand to China without a visa, even though they didn’t need one.
Ian and Jane Swann, from Devon, UK, had been visiting their son in Christchurch and were planning to fly to Sydney, where they would continue to Beijing.
China’s new 144-hour visa exemption period allows foreigners to stay five nights without a visa, and the Swanns were planning to do so, until Qantas stepped in.
News.com.au reports staff at Christchurch airport refused to let the Swanns board.
“They say we do not have a visa and their information is we require an approved visa prior to boarding flight,” Mr Swann said.
The couple asked if they could fly to Sydney, as they had necessary permits to enter Australia, but Qantas stepped in again and steadfastly refused.
The Swanns reportedly spent the whole day at the airport trying to sort the matter out, before pulling the pin on their Beijing holiday and forking out $2,100 for flights from Christchurch to London.
“We spent some 54 hours in transit back home — an exhausting, stressful and expensive time for us, and not the way this trip-of-a-lifetime should have ended,” Mr Swann said.
Qantas apologised for the incident in a statement.
“We apologise for the inconvenience caused to the Swann family who were incorrectly denied travel from Christchurch to Beijing for allegedly not having the required visas,” a Qantas spokeswoman said.
“We’re working with our check-in team to ensure this mistake doesn’t happen again and have reached out to the customer to offer compensation.”
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