What You Need To Know About Flight Delays And Disruptions – Zendesk

As we gradually recover from the ongoing effects of the pandemic, airlines, airports and aviation support services around the world are working hard to revive operations back to pre-Covid normalcy. This is something the industry as a whole is facing right now after being in hibernation for over two years.

AirAsia is trying to provide as many flights as possible to meet the huge surge in travel demand.

Our network (including flights on sale) continually evolves based on a number of factors including future forecast demand.

During this industry restart phase, we are experiencing more complexity across the ecosystem of airline operations, as all airlines are. To minimise any inconvenience, we always aim to make any required changes to our flight schedule weeks in advance wherever possible. However sometimes this isn’t possible. Unfortunately, at times we are forced to delay a flight instead of cancelling one to ensure guests are able to get to where they are going as soon as possible.

As a result, you may have had your recent flight with us delayed or rescheduled. We truly apologise for the inconvenience if you have been affected. We are improving our guest support processes and working hard to resolve any external issues we are currently experiencing. We thank you for your patience and understanding during what is one of the most challenging times in aviation history.

Why are flights delayed or rescheduled more than usual at this time?

1. The unprecedented and unpredictable nature of ever changing travel restrictions have been tricky to navigate over recent times. Changes in travel regulations and airport approvals can affect our schedules.

2. Many airlines including AirAsia had most aircraft grounded during the pandemic. To get all of these up and running with tip top serviceability and airworthiness within a short span of time, alongside all other airlines is a key challenge. There are delays getting more aircraft into service due to highly limited slots for aircraft maintenance (in Malaysia and regionally) as all airlines are working hard to get more planes in the air at the same time to meet strong pent up demand;

3. Safety is always our first priority and will always come before our schedule. Sometimes an aircraft requires unplanned engineering assessment for technical reasons. Pulling an operating aircraft out for maintenance reasons creates knock-on effects that cause flight disruptions across other parts of the schedule;

4. Manpower and spare parts limitations may also result in prolonged maintenance duration and aircraft shortages; and

5. From time to time unexpected circumstances will occur on the day of operations when flights are required to be retimed such as adverse weather and congestion to land at key airports.

Given all these issues, what are we doing to improve things?

While post pandemic flight disruptions are a global industry issue, with many factors outside of our control, we are doing all we can to keep them to a minimum.

We understand the frustration for guests who have been affected by a disrupted flight and are putting in place better operational procedures and more service recovery options as a matter of priority to help resolve these issues moving forward.

We have listened to our guests’ feedback and are focused on fixing what we can, to provide the best value and service possible, including:

We are increasing our human resources with additional live customer service agents to provide enhanced human interaction.
We are working hard to provide a stabilised operation with more spare aircraft to assist during times of disruption.
We have recently introduced a self service Purchases function for guests to change flights themselves to another flight of their choice free of charge up to a month in advance, when affected by a retimed or cancelled flight.
We are working closely with regulators and governments to reduce travel restrictions and paperwork to make flying more seamless and hassle free.
We are working with airports to increase services to our most popular destinations to meet strong demand.
We are also working on enhanced service recovery options to minimise any impact should you experience a disrupted flight.

When can we expect these disruptions to be over and flight operations back to normal again?

Guest satisfaction remains our top priority and we are working hard to resolve any external issues that we are currently experiencing which may have impacted our on-time performance over recent times, as soon as possible.

How do I know if my flight is affected?

We encourage you to check in 14 days prior to your departure where possible and ensure your contact details are up to date in the check-in-flow to ensure we are able to notify you with any flight updates ahead of time.

You will be notified by SMS and email of any change to your flight schedule as soon as we know via the registered contact details provided. Please ensure your contact details (email and mobile number) when booking your flight are up to date, and if you’re booking for a friend, to ensure that we have all the correct contact details together with the booking.
You will be automatically added into the flight broadcast channel in our AirAsia MOVE app, 14 days prior to your departure date. If there are any changes to your flight schedules, you will receive a broadcast message on this channel.

For your convenience you may check your flight status at any time via the AirAsia MOVE app or our website.

If my flight is retimed, what are my recovery options?

If your flight is rescheduled, you will be provided with the following recovery options:

1. Free move change to an available flight of your choice, irrespective of what fare you paid
2. Credit account
3. Refund

How do I change my flight? Will I be charged?

You can change your flight in 3 ways if you are affected by a cancelled or retimed flight:

Website

We have introduced an enhanced process in our Purchases to help guests manage their own booking. If you do experience a flight delay or cancellation, you will receive a notification via email, SMS or voice message. The flight change is FREE of charge for one (1) time move within 1 month from your original departure date. Once you received the SMS/Email/voice message, you may proceed to change your flight
via Purchases page.

Step 1: Go to Purchases, and click Change.

Step 2: Select the flight to be changed.

Step 3: Select the preferred flight date.

Step 4: Select the preferred flight.

Step 5: Check your add ons, click Confirm changes and done!

AirAsia MOVE app

Step 1: Launch the AirAsia MOVE app, and go to Purchases, and click Change Flight.	Step 2: Select the flight to be moved.
Step 3: Select the preferred flight date.	Step 4: Select the preferred flight.
Step 5: Check your add ons, and click Confirm changes.

Deeplink via Email Notification

You may move your flight by clicking the link in the email notification as shown below:

Upon clicking the button, you will be redirected to chatbot. The link is personalized and unique to you and your booking which helps you to make a flight change easier and faster!

Skip booking validation

You can select a new flight date and time of your choice and confirm. The flight will be instantly moved as per request.

If you made your booking through a Travel Agency or other third party, you can view your latest itinerary or contact your Travel Agency for further assistance.

What will happen to my pre-booked add-ons like baggage, seats, meals, insurance, etc when my flight is changed?

These pre-booked add-ons will stay within your booking. However, meals and seat selection on the new flight will be subject to availability which we will refund you for, if we cannot deliver.