Caribbean Star - by N Mills
20 March 2007
I was booked on Caribbean Star/LIAT flight 772 from Port of Spain to
Barbados on Friday 9 March. This flight was due to leave Piarco at
1520, but in effect it did not leave until 1945, a delay of over four
hours for a flight lasting about one hour. As a result of this delay
several passengers missed connecting flights from Barbados and had to
stay overnight. Passengers were not kept properly informed by Caribbean
Star/LIAT reps. This flight was listed as "On Time" when passengers
checked in and whilst in the departure lounge at Piarco. Without any
explanation, the listing for flight 772 to Barbados was changed as a
flight heading to Grenada. Passengers were then told they would be
leaving for Barbados at 1610, then 1645. This never happened! One
excuse given by a Caribbean Star/LIAT rep was "this usually happens on
Fridays" I was curious as to the days of the week when flights would run
as scheduled. When informed about the possibility of some passengers
missing connecting flights from Barbados the reps stated "There's
nothing we can do" they were not able to contact the relevant airlines
to keep them in the picture, passengers had to alert other airlines
themselves. Chaos then resulted when passengers were asked to board a
flight to Barbados, it seemed that two flights were merged into one, and
some passengers who boarded the aircraft then had to disembark as all
seats were already taken. Caribbean Star/LIAT then realised that they
did not even know which passengers were actually onboard the aircraft,
so each passengers name had to be taken by the stewardess, resulting in
a further delay. On arrival at Barbados it was a lottery whether your
luggage was in either Barbados, Antigua or St Lucia, as some of the
overnight stayers did not receive their luggage. Apart from these
problems I was shocked at the treatment of a disabled passenger who
missed a connecting flight from Barbados and was required to stay
overnight, this passenger had difficulty walking and required a
wheelchair. It seemed that Caribbean Star/LIAT did not communicate to
the hotel what assistance this passenger required, other passengers had
to inform hotel staff of his needs and help with his luggage and arrange
his evening meal. Avoid Caribbean Star/LIAT if possible as customer
service is not a high priority.
Caribbean Star - by V Speedwell
9 January 2007
What intrigues me about Caribbean Star is its slogan, which I believe
reads: "Caribbean Star - A whole different altitude". Well, leaving
aside the ghastly pun I would like to suggest that it be changed to "a
whole different attitude" and they do something to change the attitude
of staff. I flew with the airline this Christmas to St Vincent (2006).
We arrived in Barbados without much of a hitch, and there was no hint
when leaving the country that Caribbean Star was suffering from
"Christmas baggage syndrome" and that our bags would take some time to
get to their final destination. In fact the airline representative was
at pains to point out that our luggage would be taken on the plane and
we need not worry. Sadly she forgot to state which plane, which day and
which year. We arrived at St Vincent to be confronted with an arrivals
hall knee-deep in suitcases. All passengers waited expectantly at the
carousel hoping to recognise suitcases - all to no avail. The flight
was about half full, but only one piece of luggage belonging to one
passenger on our flight, came out. The amazing thing was there was no
explanation. No representative from the airline saw fit to make
themselves available for questions/explanations. The people who were
there made us feel as if we were invading their privacy when we enquired
as to where our luggage might be. We eventually ended up back in
departures talking to a very bored girl who took details of our luggage.
No apologies, no explanations. When I asked about compensation I was
told that they would pay 25 US dollars per 24 hours that luggage was
missing. I finally got my luggage on the third day and my friend got
hers on the 5th day. We also got compensation, but it took a lot of
phone calls - including one to the Caribbean Star head office in Antigua
to make it happen. The most appalling thing about Caribbean Star is its
lack of customer focus and therefore lack of customer service. I
questioned their representative in St Vincent for about 20 minutes on
the second day that my luggage was missing. After our conversation, I
got a pretty good idea as to what the problems were and also some
thoughts about possible solutions. If this lady had made herself
available to passengers on arrival and explained what was happening and
what they were doing about it, things would have been different. But
she didn't. In fact I actually saw her - on the third day - turn her
back on passengers who were complaining. Never mind 'altitude', it's a
change it 'attitude that is required if the airline is to succeed.
Caribbean Star - by Antony Davies
17 December 2006
Third time this year with Caribbean Star on business with a ticket
bought for me by my company between TAB and GND. Check In staff
friendly and polite in TAB, the flight arrived and departed on time. I
found the single flight attendant friendly and welcoming, the new DHC-
8-Q300 is a much a more comfortable, quieter and brighter cabin
environment with ample legroom for the 30 min flight, a great
improvement over the two older DHC-8-300s that I have flown on with
Caribbean Star before. Luggage delivery in GND was prompt. The touches
that would be nice on such a short flight would be just one friendly
word from the flight crew and perhaps the offer of a juice/water cuplet
as there is no service to speak of. Overall a much better experience
than my other two trips with Caribbean Star.
Caribbean Star - by Kadian Walters
12 August 2006
If ever you have to travel to the Eastern Caribbean and you want to fly
in comfort and peace of mind, do NOT book a flight with Caribbean Star!
The service is totally unacceptable! Apparently the computer system
that Caribbean Star uses randomly puts passengers on "stand by" when it
generates a boarding pass. Whether you book your flight two months or
two weeks in advance, whether you check in 3 hours in advance paid for
your ticket a month in advance, you run the risk of being placed on
"stand by" by the "system. Unfortunately on our way to Dominica from
Barbados 5 out of a group of 9 were given "stand by" boarding passes.
As the name suggests, we were literally “standing by”, for more than 4
hours just to get on the "minibus in the sky". We were not able to get
on 3 other flights because of the "stand by" boarding pass that the
"system" generated. No fault of our own. Even though they claimed we
were “priority passengers”, we were repeatedly sidelined. What a laugh!
Is there a good programmer out there who can create an efficient system
for Caribbean Star? Ok. As for the service we received, there was none!
We asked to speak with a Caribbean Star representative and were only
told of a "Michael" who was always "unavailable". We have come to the
conclusion that there is NO Michael!. It got so bad even the Liat
representative was trying to help us. Caribbean Star you need to do
better. No one even came to give us meal vouchers, we had to repeatedly
go to the information desk and we still were not able to speak with a
rep. Please employ competent individuals who are able to communicate
with the passengers in a polite and effective manner. The aircraft
itself was in a deplorable condition. An arm rest came off in my friends
hand, the pouches for the magazines were ripped and it was obvious that
there was hardly any upkeep of the interior. It also stinks! And so the
flight attendant walks around with an air freshener trying to get rid of
the horrible scent just before take off! So after being placed on stand
by since after 6 am, we finally got on a flight after 4 pm!
Everything that could go wrong on an airline, check Caribbean Star!
Trust that Caribbean Star will make you late, have you waiting with no
intention of compensating you, and yes they will loose your luggage.
Fortunately they delivered it to where we were staying in Dominica. What
a miracle! Don’t give up your comfort or risk your life just to save a
few dollars! If traveling to the Eastern & Southern Caribbean ensure
that you take Air Jamaica, BWIA or Liat! If this kind of disregard for
people’s time and comfort continues, Caribbean Star will very soon
become a fallen star!
Caribbean Star - by Jean-Louis Vergaert
21 June 2006
Port of Spain - Barbados return. I must say that I did not have any
problem, except one delay of one hour (not a big deal as the Priority
Pass lounge in POS is superb). Dash 8 is comfortable, my only problem
was that too much moisture in the locker wetted the content of my
handbag. Otherwise, proper service, smiling attendant, no security
problem. Finally, I want to emphasize the low cost: US$ 50 for one leg
trip - come on, fellows, let us not complain. At least this company does
not indulge in ripping off its customers.
Caribbean Star - by Antony Davies
18 April 2006
Caribbean Star. First flight from Grenada to Tobago on a tatty, grubby DHC-8-300 and the flight
attendant could barely raise a hello, let alone a smile - the flight crew obviously from the same
charm school as her and not a single announcement from them. Flight was overbooked which caused an
uncomfortable 15 minute delay to departure in 90 degree heat, they only realised when during
boarding when onboard the aircraft they ran out of allocated seats. My seat was adjacent to the
emergency exit at 10B, the window had a piece shattered from it on the inner pane. No proper cabin
checks for take off or landing apart from the demonstration, which resulted in a passenger being
allowed to have a trolley bag on the floor in front of the exit and both passengers there with large
bags on their laps. No safety brieing for exit passengers to ask if they were capable to open the
exit if required. No service offered, the flight attendant just sat on her seat doing puzzles
according to one of my fellow travellers. A steep and last minute dive made for what seemed an
alarming approach into TAB. No service offered inflight, and although a short flight, on my previous
trip with LIAT drinks were offered and served on request as were smiles and announcements, and
seemed far more professional. Caribbean Star certainly did not shine for me. We arrived on time and
in one piece and that was about it!
