Virgin Blew it?

Crikey that's a corny title. I have to stop saying 'crikey' too. I filled out my application for Australia citizenship the other day and for some reason I feel I should start saying 'crikey' and 'strewth' a lot more.

Anyhow, I travelled to Sydney yesterday on Virgin Blue. I didn't even bother to check other carrier prices because I like Virgin Blue, and the fare was fairly reasonable anyway - $125 in either direction.

There was a mad dash to get to the airport, mainly because the wife was unorganised and decided that morning was a good time to sew up her trousers. But I checked my email at 7.15am and got to the airport at 8.15am to check in for a 9am flight. As I arrive at the desks, I find out my entire flight has been cancelled. Gone. Vanished.

Get to the desk and talked to the girl who straight away informs me the earliest available space is on the midday flight. Hmmm. Three hour wait at Brisbane domestic terminal to fly to a meeting that will be starting when I'm taking off? "No," I said. "That won't do." Or some other words communicating the same sentiment.

Eventually she gets me on the 11am, and I reschedule the meeting for 1pm and other than spending $50 on books to pass the time, everything works out fine.

Then we have the trip back the next day and my flight is at 3pm. Except I finish early and get to the airport about 11am. So I ask nicely if I could move to an early flight without incurring the usual $40 fee, to which I get the reply "I'll have to check with my boss." Not a problem.

I go and see the boss...or at least the gate-keeper to the boss who, after I explain my two hour delay the day before and my unhappiness at having to wait, naturally says "I'll have to check." Two minutes later - and via a brief chat with a famous female TV presenter who jumped the queue as she had 10 minutes to catch her plane and I can't remember who the hell she is - he comes back.

"You're lucky," he says. "She's in a good mood and she'll move the flight for free for you."

Now this is the second time in two weeks that airport staff have used the line "you're lucky" with me, both for doing something that should naturally be part and parcel of what they do - customer service. Am I lucky to get customer service? Am I lucky that they have taken a little bit more effort to right a wrong that they had caused the previous day?

Customer service isn't about 'luck'. How different would my attitude have been if he had replied something like this:

"That's fine sir. We're happy to do that and we apologise about the cancelled flight the next day."

The result with my flight is the same; the result with my attitude is immensely different.

Did he think with his original response that he would be 'teaching me a stern lesson?' so I'd never ask again? What exactly was the message he was trying to get across to me there? Was he pissed they lost an extra $40 in revenue?

The 'you're in luck' expression should be removed from any customer service manual.

Airlines are transparently all the same - they fly you from A to B in a vehicle with too many seats and charge you too much. If they can find a way to offer you a benefit to improve your experience, then they are the ones that should consider themselves lucky to have had that opportunity to effect one of their customers.