More than 20 stranded at LCCT

22 March, 2008

By RASHITHA A. HAMID

PETALING JAYA: More than 20 passengers were left stranded at the Low-Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT), claiming that the boarding gate for their flight to Brisbane was closed earlier than scheduled.

They claimed that the boarding time for Air Asia X Flight D7-2702 to Gold Coast, Australia, closed at 8.30pm, and the flight took off 10 minutes earlier at 9.40pm.

It is learnt that most of the stranded passengers were Australians.

The passengers claimed that airline did not inform them about the re-scheduled timing of the flight in advance.

One of the stranded passengers, Mark Jason Thomas, 28, who is a local, said no one was allowed to get past the boarding gate after 8.30pm.

He said when they checked with airport personnel, they were told that the flight was re-scheduled earlier by 10 minutes.

Another passenger, Mohd Nasir Mohamad Ashraf, said an Air Asia X official suggested that the passengers wait for the next flight to the Gold Coast on Sunday morning.

He said the airline refused to compensate or arrange any accommodation for the stranded tourists.

Thomas said the passengers had all reconfirmed their tickets earlier.

One of the passengers lodged a report on the incident at the LCCT police station.

This article is a verbatim copy of the original article from The Star.