Man waits at Perth Airport for more than 15 hours without getting on flight

A frustrated traveller has shared his story after he waited 15 hours at an airport without getting on his flight.

A frustrated traveller has lashed out at Virgin Australia after he waited for more than 15 hours at Perth Airport without getting on his plane to Melbourne.

Firefighter Jackson Howell and two of his mates were at the airport from 4am until 7pm last Thursday as they waited to start a long-anticipated week-long snowboarding trip at Mt Hotham.

But when they went to board their 6am flight, only of them was allowed on the plane.

“One of my mates and I got to the gate with our tickets and luggage loaded, and then were told in a very nonchalant way ‘too bad so sad, we aren’t getting on because they overbooked the flight’,” Mr Howell told NCA NewsWire.

Jackson Howell and his friend were not allowed on their flight because it was overbooked. Picture: NCA NewsWire / James Gourley

“We had no idea what was going on. There was one supervisor available who couldn’t even acknowledge us until after he closed all the other flights and our plane had left.”

Mr Howell said they “begged and pleaded” to get on another flight as they had accommodation in Melbourne that evening and a connecting bus to Mt Hotham early the following morning.

They were told by Virgin that they could get on a 6pm flight to Melbourne that evening.

“Not ideal but we would get there, so we waited at the airport all day,” Mr Howell said.

He explained that because he had already validated his parking for a week and did not live near the airport there was no point in going home.

So Mr Howell and his friend waited for half a day at the airport but were greeted with another nasty surprise when they finally went to board again.

“It comes to 6.20pm and next thing the flight is cancelled and we are treated like scum. Staff were so rude, they didn’t want to give us any options at all for another flight,” he said.

“We had to buy an expensive flight with Qantas for this (Friday) morning.”

Only 3 bag drops open at @VirginAustralia Perth this morning. People still lining up to drop bags after flight departure time #chaos#PerthAirportpic.twitter.com/36uvLnuBZQ

— Lisa (@lmelvy79) June 30, 2022

Mr Howell said the whole experience was “disgraceful” and passengers deserved to be treated better.

“The whole thing is disgraceful … the pure disregard for the fact we took precious annual leave for our first trip since pre-pandemic and this is the result,” he said.

“I understand there’s difficulties in the workforce but what was the $500m bailout for if they can’t even do their jobs?”

Stories of delayed, overbooked and cancelled flights have become common at Perth airport since school holidays started more than a week ago.

A Virgin Australia Group spokesperson apologised for any disruptions to their customer’s flights.

Airports across the country have dealt with big daily crowds due to the school holiday rush. Picture: Emma Brasier

“We sincerely apologise to any guest impacted by changes to our flight schedule and we are working around the clock to ensure our guests get to their final destinations safely,” they said.

“Where possible, Virgin Australia is proactively communicating with guests who have been impacted by a schedule change. In the event that we are unable to offer a suitable recovery option, a full refund or travel credit is being offered.

“The number of travellers flying with us this school holidays has increased by 15 per cent in comparison to 2019 levels, which is significantly higher than the recent Easter holiday period.

“We have not been immune to the challenges experienced globally and our team is working incredibly hard to help our guests get to their destinations safely.”

Airlines across the country have struggled to keep up with resurgent travel numbers while dealing with staffing issues and last week’s heavy weather in NSW.