Greater Bay Airlines faces flight cancellations due to internal communication failures

A lack of internal communication and cooperation within Greater Bay Airlines has resulted in the mass cancellation of 128 flights between Japan, South Korea, and Thailand, scheduled for February and March, according to a report submitted to the government.

The Transport and Logistics Bureau received the airline's report and supplementary information on January 29 and February 7, respectively.

The report indicated that the primary causes of the flight scheduling failures were inadequate internal communication and poor cooperation from customer service operations.

In response, the airline has conducted a thorough review and reached out to all 5,000 affected passengers, offering alternatives such as ticket refunds and transfers to other flights. 

"The report also outlined several proposed improvement measures. These include strengthening internal management procedures for flight scheduling, enhancing communication regarding changes to flight schedules and destinations, and ensuring stability and reliability in fleet and manpower resources," the bureau said. 

Also, the airline aims to improve customer service's ability to handle unforeseen incidents.

The bureau and the Civil Aviation Department will monitor the implementation of these improvement measures to prevent similar incidents in the future. 

Authorities will also maintain close communication with the airline regarding its aviation network development, fleet, and manpower situation, ensuring the steady growth of local airlines while optimizing civil aviation resources.

In the report, the airline attributed the significant cancellations to decision-making and communication failures by a new commercial and management team hired late last year.

This team, responsible for aircraft resource allocation, neglected the airline’s cancellation protocol, delayed decisions excessively, communicated poorly, and overlooked customer service considerations.

As a result, the airline has removed the team from its position.

Secretary for Transport Mable Chan addressed the media on Wednesday, saying that while the late delivery of new aircraft was not the primary cause of the incident, it highlighted the need for early planning regarding aircraft configurations and regular maintenance.

“With the Easter Holiday approaching in April, the government urges airlines to learn from past experiences and make more informed decisions,” Chan said. 

She also called for effective implementation of the optimization measures outlined in the report.

Lawmaker Chan Han-pan noted that the airline's internal communication issues are not severe, suggesting that the government should collaborate with the airline to address relevant concerns.

(Wallis Wang and Ayra Wang)