Last week we had rather sad news that my mother in law had passed away, naturally my wife needed urgent ticket to Pakistan, the trouble was we were not gonna make the PIA flight from London at 8pm on the 18th Jan. As we are in Birmingham we went along to Birmingham Airport to see if we could get onto the Emirates flight, all was well, we got the tickets from the emirates counter and as we went to check in I was informed that the Emirate staff who had issued the ticket at BHX had made a mistake and booked us on the flight for the 19th. I was naturally very angry as we had to get to Pakistan very quickly, i found the Emirate staff very rude, the chap who sold me the ticket just folded his hands and said that he made a mistake and there was nothing he could do to rectify it, i asked to speak to the duty manager this too was refused, i asked for a refund which was eventually given. Myself and and my wife were naturally upset as it would have meant that we would surely miss the funeral in Pakistan. I have sent a complaint email to Emirates but I am not holding my breath.
By this time it was very late so I called the PIA call centre to see what the chances are of getting on the earliest flight to Pakistan on the 19th as we would miss the funeral anyway and i would rather stay here in the UK then face a 12 -13 hour wait at Dubai on the original Emirates flight which was booked in error by emirates. The call centre gave me a reference number i went to the PIA booking office in BIrmingham and the ticktes were booked and we finally departed on the evening of the 19th. The difference between PIA emloyees and the Emirates employees made me realise the difference in understanding the situation and being acomodating us at a such a difficult time.
I have always had good experience with PIA everytime, when the Ash cloud happened our aircraft was flown back to Isb where we were quickly whisked off to a hotel stay for 2 days, no other airlines made any such plans and most left there stranded at airports.
For me PIA performed very well for me when it realy was important for me.
So PIA 5 STARS and Emirates big fat zero.

No but whatever you have said is your opinion. It does not change the fact or the reality which is that Emirates quite possibly could be a 5 star airline but PIA noway!!! Not with the current management and the situation.

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4 engines 4 long-haul

The point is that the five star reputation of Emirates did bhattman no good whatsoever in the circumstances he described. OTOH, he got exactly the service he needed from PIA, which as we all know is the purveyor of a very inconsistent product.

Agree Completely, PIA is Inconsistent, Sometimes Pain in the Arse, and Sometimes soo Helpful.....

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Aviate, Navigate, Communicate

Sorry to hear about your loss,may the departed soul rest in peace
It's true that PIA is hit or miss.But circumstances bhattman was facing PIA comes out at top.I had similar experiance where I had to find seats for my relatives traveling to Pakistan because of bereavement.They didn't have confirmed tickets,I went to Birmingham airport and spoke to man in charge,explained the situation and he actually made sure my relatives get the seats first if they become available.
Fact of matter is PIA is only surviving because of Pakistanis using it and it caterers our needs quite well and exactly same thing is reason for it's decline.
My moto when traveling with PIA, dont board the plane expecting any thing and you'll find the flight quite pleasent.

Sorry to hear of your loss.

To give an opposite view, let me tell you about my experience earlier this week. A relative of mine is here in the UK and has a return ticket to go back to Pakistan in a few months. He has some urgent business in Pakistan and therefore needed to change his ticket. After looking up the phone number to the local pia office (manchester), I spent virtually the full day listening to a ringing tone on the phone with no answer. I eventually gave up and tried the next day, with the same result. I then tried the glasgow office, which was answered within two rings, and was informed by a polite lady that we could change the ticket but would need to go physically to manchester pia office. I told her I couldn't get an answer on the phone and she confirmed I was trying the correct numbers.The next day I went to the manchester office, to be greeted by 3 staff who seemed very annoyed that my attendance interrupted their chatting and snacking on biscuits. Whilst I was there, I noticed the phones were on silent (you could see the red lights ringing but no sound). I confirmed this by dialling the office number on my mobile and seeing the red light flash on the desk phone and no sound. Food plates were strewn across the desks. Not at all professional. Changed the ticket and left, thinking that there is no wonder the airline is on its a$$, if the frontline staff are anything to go by. The only thing that keeps them flying out of the UK is the lack of competition. The moment another carrier flies direct to Islamabad from Manchester can't come soon enough. I personally don't mind going emirates via dubai or air blue via turkey. Most passengers however want the direct flight. Once pia lose that monopoly, they will see the passengers leave in droves.

Am sorry to hear about your loss.Plz accept my condolences and Prayers.
Being a frequent flyer on PIA as well as Emirates and other airlines, i too must agree that while PIA is so inconsistent on some days really bad, others average and then a rare occassional good day, I have many a time felt a bit snubbed with some, not all of the Emirates staff and crew. Given a choice i personally rate Qatar Airways above Emirates in this regard.

Quite agree on the inconsistency part of PIA in addition any complaints to the relevant authorities due lapses on part of the staff go on unheard as generally the employees on foreign stations are big time 'Sifarishi's' with solid political backings.

Where as on the other hand if the complaint reaches the relevant quarters in EK, EY or QR appropriate and prompt action is taken against such individuals.

This we can forget ever happening in PIA unless the concerned staff is a political orphan.

With any airline, its always a hit or miss situation and PIA + EK are no exception.

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Moin Abbasi