Woman Refused a Tigerair Flight to Sydney Because She Was 3 Minutes Late
By Sinead Maclaughlin, The Daily Mail | Aug. 21, 2016
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An airline refused to let a woman board her flight to see her sister in hospital because she was three minutes late.
The Melbourne woman identified as Lenny, 27, was flying to Sydney after learning her sister had been hit by a truck.
But when Lenny attempted to check in with Tigerair at the airport after being unable to check in online, she was told she would have to get a later flight.
"I could barely speak because I was crying so much, but all the [Tiger employee] said was: 'Do you want to pay US$92 for the next flight?'," Lenny told to The New Daily.
Knowing that her sister was undergoing emergency surgery and facing a possible leg amputation, Lenny understandably upset when she arrived at Melbourne Airport.
"The website wouldn't let me to check-in online, so I had called Tiger on the way and they said I would have to do check-in when I got there," she told The New Daily.
But when she reached the check-in desk, Lenny learned she was three minutes late and was unable to board her flight.
She was told she would have to wait for a later plane, despite her original flight not being due to fly out for another 42 minutes.
The distressed Lenny said the representative seemed to ignore her distressed plea, as did the surrounding Tigerair employees.
Lenny was forced to pay a US$92 fee to check-in for the next flight, even though her original flight still hadn't boarded by the time she had gone through security.
Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, a Tigerair spokesperson said their system acts like most other airlines, once check-in has closed, they are unable to reopen the system to check anyone in who is running late.
"If you're late to check in for your flight or board our aircraft we can't wait, because it delays all the passengers who were on time and has a knock-on impact throughout the day," they said.
"Our check-in desks close strictly 45 minutes before departure."
The spokespserson added that they didn't know why their online site didn't work, but said they sympathised with Lenny's personal situation.