H2Otstr Posted February 23, 2010 #1 Share Posted February 23, 2010 There is a good possibility that British Airways will be on strike when we head for our GCT river cruise (March 20th). We have air with GCT. Does anyone know how air will be handled? Has anyone had this happen to them that has traveled with Grand Circle? We are flying Dulles to Heathrow to Basel going over. Brussels to Heathrow to Dulles coming back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
letsgo39 Posted February 23, 2010 #2 Share Posted February 23, 2010 http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/british-airways-strike-possibility.cfm Here is a link from Fodors about the options should BA strike. Also check to see what your travel insurance covers in the event of a strike. I don't know if GC would get involved or not but should considering they booked the flight for you.Since you bought their air it seems that they would be the ones to rebook you if needed. I would definitely call them and ask.Good luck.What a pain in the:eek: British Airways threatens this EVERY year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H2Otstr Posted February 25, 2010 Author #3 Share Posted February 25, 2010 Here is the email that I received today when I asked "WHAT IF": When an airline goes on strike they are responsible for rebooking their passengers on other airlines or on flights that are still going. We are hopeful that British Airways will be able to avoid the strike. Your best bet is to take you E-Ticket information along with you when you go to the airport and present it as you would if no strike were happening at that time BA will be able to reschedule you. If they strike prior to your departure date contact BA and they will rebook your flight. If you need assistance please feel free to contact Grand Circle Travel. I hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KCcruisin07 Posted February 26, 2010 #4 Share Posted February 26, 2010 I hope there will not be a strike. We booked our own flight with British Airways with frequent flyer miles from VISA. (We are flying in early May.) Any idea/suggestions about that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBDriver Posted February 26, 2010 #5 Share Posted February 26, 2010 I hope there will not be a strike. We booked our own flight with British Airways with frequent flyer miles from VISA. (We are flying in early May.) Any idea/suggestions about that? I'm a little concerned as well. We also booked BA on our own. I'm trying not to panic, telling myself that May is a long way away, but when you book on your own, you have no travel agent to help you :(. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H2Otstr Posted February 26, 2010 Author #6 Share Posted February 26, 2010 We are also going back in May, via BA, that we booked on our own. I don't think there will be a problem in May, but might be in March. What if we get to the airport with our E-tickets and BA can't put us on another flight??? I guess we will see what happens as time draws nearer. We received our documents yesterday from Grand Circle for our trip. Sharon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBDriver Posted February 27, 2010 #7 Share Posted February 27, 2010 What I can gather is that they will still operate "some" flights. If they decide to give notice 7 days before our scheduled flight, and actually strike on the day we fly, we are to show up and hope to be o.k.?? Maybe I'm reading it wrong. :eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H2Otstr Posted February 27, 2010 Author #8 Share Posted February 27, 2010 What I can gather is that they will still operate "some" flights. If they decide to give notice 7 days before our scheduled flight, and actually strike on the day we fly, we are to show up and hope to be o.k.?? Maybe I'm reading it wrong. :eek: That's the way I interpret it, too. If I see that they are on strike a couple of days ahead, I will call them and see what we are to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBDriver Posted February 27, 2010 #9 Share Posted February 27, 2010 That's the way I interpret it, too. If I see that they are on strike a couple of days ahead, I will call them and see what we are to do. I guess all we can do for now is take a "wait and see" attitude. Fingers crossed they find a solution and can avoid this mess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KCcruisin07 Posted February 27, 2010 #10 Share Posted February 27, 2010 They are encouraging people to leave contact numbers/information. Presumably that is so they can contact you and re-book ahead of time. I would not rely on that because of the huge number of reservations involved; if they vote to strike and the date is within/near our travel dates, I would contact them asap and ask to be re-booked on another flight. We booked through a travel agency that works with VISA, so I would first ask them to handle it. Since we do not plan to have a cell phone while traveling, I have given them one email address for me and another for my husband. If this is still going on, I may give them the hotel and AMA numbers as well. Hopefully this will be resolved before then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBDriver Posted February 27, 2010 #11 Share Posted February 27, 2010 We don't plan on travelling with a cell phone either, and we have given BA an e-mail address. So exactly who would we contact? We booked BA flights through an on-line discounter. :confused: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H2Otstr Posted February 27, 2010 Author #12 Share Posted February 27, 2010 We don't plan on travelling with a cell phone either, and we have given BA an e-mail address. So exactly who would we contact? We booked BA flights through an on-line discounter. :confused: Do you have a BA Air number? If so, then you contact BA. GCT booked our air. It was considered "free air" if you leave from certain cities. We got our BA air number right away, along with our seating. On our May trip I booked our air directly with BA. Had to pay $30 each for the long legs of the flight. It was $15 each for the short leg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBDriver Posted February 27, 2010 #13 Share Posted February 27, 2010 Do you have a BA Air number? If so, then you contact BA. GCT booked our air. It was considered "free air" if you leave from certain cities. We got our BA air number right away, along with our seating. On our May trip I booked our air directly with BA. Had to pay $30 each for the long legs of the flight. It was $15 each for the short leg. I have booking confirmation number, if that's what you mean. We didn't get seat assignments. It will cost us $200 to book our seats ahead of time. We can book for free when it comes to on-line check in 24 hours in advance. That's what we plan on doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KCcruisin07 Posted February 28, 2010 #14 Share Posted February 28, 2010 Wendy, I think Sharon meant the reservation number for BA. It is a combination of around 6 numbers and letters. It's the number you use with your name when you go online with BA to "Manage my account." I think your online booking agency would help you. Be sure to take the phone number you can call from Europe, maybe their email address in case that's easier. I think we should be okay, especially with a week to work things out. Are you flying to Budapest or stopping somewhere on the way? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBDriver Posted February 28, 2010 #15 Share Posted February 28, 2010 Wendy, I think Sharon meant the reservation number for BA. It is a combination of around 6 numbers and letters. It's the number you use with your name when you go online with BA to "Manage my account." I think your online booking agency would help you. Be sure to take the phone number you can call from Europe, maybe their email address in case that's easier. I think we should be okay, especially with a week to work things out. Are you flying to Budapest or stopping somewhere on the way? Yes, I have that number. We stop in London on the way to Budapest. It's just a brief layover. I'll make sure I have every phone number and e-mail address with us. I'm hoping this will be a non-issue, but I can imagine the headaches it will cause for anyone it does effect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KCcruisin07 Posted February 28, 2010 #16 Share Posted February 28, 2010 I know. I hope it is a non-issue for everyone involved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H2Otstr Posted February 28, 2010 Author #17 Share Posted February 28, 2010 Kathy, can you send your email address to me? I have some questions about Sedona (not Cruise Critic related). Just put Sedona in the subject line. Thanks, Sharon h2otstr@aol.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KCcruisin07 Posted February 28, 2010 #18 Share Posted February 28, 2010 Sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KCcruisin07 Posted March 1, 2010 #19 Share Posted March 1, 2010 Wendy, Can you send your email address to me at hotgumbo@hotmail.com? I have something to ask you that is off the topic. (My husband was a Cajun chef.) This is not my regular account, but I will check for messages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sk8teacher Posted March 4, 2010 #20 Share Posted March 4, 2010 The CEO of BA has posted an update on their website about the strike and their plans HERE. It sounds as though they have put together a pretty good plan in case the strike does happen. Cheers, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H2Otstr Posted March 4, 2010 Author #21 Share Posted March 4, 2010 Thanks for the updaet, Bill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBDriver Posted March 4, 2010 #22 Share Posted March 4, 2010 Thank you. At least we know they are making an effort to get most people to their destination. Fingers crossed it doesn't come to that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBDriver Posted March 5, 2010 #23 Share Posted March 5, 2010 Wendy,Can you send your email address to me at hotgumbo@hotmail.com? I have something to ask you that is off the topic. (My husband was a Cajun chef.) This is not my regular account, but I will check for messages. Done! Ask away! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBDriver Posted March 18, 2010 #24 Share Posted March 18, 2010 I just saw this posted on the BA website and thought I would update this thread: Cabin crew strike Unite, the trade union that represents the majority of British Airways (BA) cabin crew, has announced its intention to take strike action from 20 to 22 March and 27 to 30 March 2010. Here's a link for more details. http://www.britishairways.com/travel/strike-ballot/public/en_gb?refevent=HOME_URGENT_CENTRE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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