Civil Servant Forced to Buy New Ticket After Airline Oversells Flight

On August 16, 2569, a civil servant filed a complaint after being denied boarding on a flight from Trang Airport to Don Mueang Airport despite having booked in advance. The passenger had reserved a window seat and ordered food on August 10, arriving at the airport early to check in. After briefly leaving the counter to retrieve a government travel warrant he had forgotten in his car, he was informed the flight would be delayed from 14:55 to 15:30. Upon his return, staff told him the flight was fully booked with 189 passengers checked in and offered an alternative airline ticket plus 1,500 baht compensation and a 150 baht meal voucher.

The passenger rejected the offer because he had an urgent appointment and needed to reach Don Mueang before 18:00. He purchased a new ticket for 3,800 baht on a 17:35 departure, preventing him from fulfilling his original commitment. While airline staff attributed the problem to a system error, another employee revealed the airline routinely overbooks by 2-3 seats per flight to account for no-shows, allowing them to resell those seats. On this flight, all booked passengers checked in, creating the shortage.

The passenger questioned the airline's transparency and accountability, noting his ticket was booked August 10 with a locked seat and meal pre-order. He demanded clarity on how overbooking occurs, how tickets are managed, and how revenue from oversold seats is recorded. He also recorded a video conversation with airline staff in which an employee initially asked not to be filmed but later confirmed the ticket was valid and the seat was locked, admitted the system had problems, and acknowledged the flight was oversold. When asked exactly how many extra seats were sold, the employee could not provide the number and directed the passenger to contact the airline's central office for booking details.