air travel

My latest moan about the ‘budget’ airline Flybe. 
I needed to travel to the west country and, as Airsouthwest are no longer flying to Plymouth (£76, no add-ons) I had to look for alternatives.
Exeter with Flybe?  Why are they so expensive?  Why is it BA are often cheaper (to Gatwick – unfortunately they don’t fly to Exeter). How come Flybe can fly to Southampton for around half the price of their Exeter fare? How come I could fly to Southampton, hire a car and fly back for the Exeter fare? It just goes on and on and, like most people, as a result I spend ages on my PC trying to get the best deal. Go by boat? Fly to Gatwick & train down? Southampton and hire a car? It’s a nightmare, but what really gets me, is I just hate dealing with spivs.

Their website is a master of deception, and you need the mind of a detective to avoid the traps they lay for you.
Having got over the shock of the price (which goes up as you progress), you’re then invited to spend over a hundred pounds more to ‘upgrade’. And why does this ‘upgrade’ vary enormously in price depending on which flight you choose – can be £70, £90, £105 …. and what’s it for? It’s not as if you’re changing to a bed for a long-haul flight.

You’re then asked to select what baggage weight you require – 15, 20, 23 or 40kgs.
And here’s part of the spiv aspect – not long ago Flybe announced in the JEP that baggage weight was a critical part of their calculations, as it decided take-off weight and therefore fuel requirements etc – ‘a safety issue’.   Bollocks.
Some passengers will weigh as little as 8stone (c. 50kgs) Some will weigh 140kgs or more – and there’s 100+ paswsengers, meaning passenger weight (assuming 100 persons) could be anywhere between 5000kgs to 14,000kgs – an – admittedly extreme possibility – of  9,000kgs difference. But, no worries, baggage weight is critical!
And have you noticed how small the ‘no baggage’ option is? Almost invisible. Spiv factor no 2.

Then we have the insurance salesmanship. Easier to avoid, this one, but still a trap for the unwary.

Then there’s the  ‘chose new seats / accept seats’ option. Makes you believe you have to accept one of the two options, @ £6 per leg per person. Spiv factor no 3. You don’t have to – just ‘continue’ to where it then says ‘continue without seats!! What, are we standing now??
And the final insult? You use your Debit card, because there’s no charges attached, right? Not with Flybe .
Add another £6 for one person, one way.
I just hate having to use a company that looks upon its clients as a nuisance rather than a valued asset.
A couple of years ago, a friend’s luggage was lost between London and Jersey. Flybe took a week to find it – and then it had to be collected by the owner from the airport.
Last year BA lost my luggage (left behind at Gatwick). I went to the desk and they were very helpful. A couple of hours later it was delivered to my house.

Flybe a budget airline? Should be renamed Spivair.