FLYGLOBESPAN review : 24 June 2008 : by C Kelly

Customer Rating : 1/5

Haven't actually flown yet but very concerned at the reviews here about Globespan. I will be travelling with a family member in poor health to Calgary. We only booked in the first place because we could get premium class allowing our family member enough room to make the trip at all. Having read the reviews I worry about safety and fear long delays. Short delays can happen anywhere but Globespan seem to have a lot of very long delays. Am thinking about cancelling and taking the financial loss balanced against health.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 20 June 2008 : by D McNiven

Customer Rating : 1/5

Booked holiday back in January for June - originally supposed to return on the sunday afternoon 1330 hrs flight but received an email stating now 2110 hrs. Arrived for return flight 1800hrs only to find the flight was then delayed and delayed and delayed until we finally left Barcelona at 0600hrs the following morning. Flyglobespan had no one at the airport to inform passengers on the change - a piece of paper handed out along the check in queue.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 19 June 2008 : by D Sherwin

Customer Rating : 1/5

Booked YYC-GLA for a June 17 departure at 2325. Departure was first delayed by an hour because "ground crew had new equipment and didn't know how to use it" (according to staff). After a further delay, we were informed that problems had developed with one of the engines and that an engineer was looking at the problem "and would give us an update in two hours". At 0230, we were finally advised that the problem would be fixed - the NEXT DAY at 0930, and that the flight wouldn't actually depart until 1530 to allow crew "minimal rest time". As we deplaned into a deserted Calgary airport, each passenger was handed a sheet containing contact information where we could lodge our complaints. No vouchers, no apologies to passengers, no attempts to assist stranded passengers with hotel bookings, etc. I was lucky enough to have originated my trip in Calgary, and had a place to stay, but most other pax had got on board in Vancouver and were simply left to fend for themselves, without any resources whatsoever. After finding this review site (too late!) and reading the multitude of similar complaints, I cancelled my tickets (and now must argue with the company, and Visa, despite assurances that the cancellation "had gone through"), and booked with another airline. The entire affair was just shocking.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 19 June 2008 : by D Robertson

Customer Rating : 1/5

Supposed to be leaving for Vancouver from Glasgow at 16.15 today. Got a call from Globespan at 10.45am to say the flight is delayed until 8am tomorrow. At least we are still at home but can we be sure the flight will leave tomorrow?

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 18 June 2008 : by M Smith

Customer Rating : 1/5

Flyglobespan got flight time wrong by 8hrs, we arrived at the airport in Barcelona at 1030 for our flight to Glasgow at 1330 only to be told it wasn't scheduled until 2110. The flight was then delayed and delayed and delayed until we finally left Barcelona at 0600hrs the following morning. Flyglobespan had no one at the airport to communicate with the passengers and offered each passenger a food voucher which got me a cold meat roll and a bottle of fanta. The whole process was a shambles from start to finish and would urge anyone flying to give globespan a massive side-step.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 17 June 2008 : by S Worrall

Customer Rating : 1/5

Manchester - Calgary. I arrived at Manchester airport at 8am and checked in fine. At the gate we had an announcement to say the plane had arrived late therefore we had to wait for the plane to be cleaned etc and had to wait half an hour. 2-3 hours later nothing was said. People did go and ask the ground staff what was going on but all she would say is "I cannot tell you anything." Eventually after 8 hours waiting with only 3 announcements we were told the flight had been cancelled with no explaiation. We were transfered to a hotel and given a letter saying the flight would be at half 6 the next morning. To add to the stress we were also informed that the flight would be via Vancouver instead of direct to Calgary. We eventually left Manchester airport at 8-30am after a 2 hour delay. The plane was very old and the pilot mentioned that the reason for the delay was due to a member of the cabin crew who didn't have a pass/ID to get into the airport, which no-one believed. The flight home was only a delay of an hour. The plane was only half full maybe people are realising that they shouldn't fly with this company anymore. How they are still operating is beyond me! I can't believe this is an "award winning airline" - an award for what? The most abysmal airline in the world. The question is how are they still operating?

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 17 June 2008 : by G Hay

Customer Rating : 4/5

Toronto to Glasgow Business Class. Upon arrival at Hamilton Airport, the check in queue for Business Class had only two people in it, so we were checked in and through security to the lounge in under 10 minutes. Business Class was boarded first - a 757 with 24 seats in business. Water, headsets and blankets were handed out prior to take off. The business seats have a 38" pitch, they are wider and more confortable than I had expected. The biggest let down on this flight was the inflight service (ie meal and beverage service). Dinner which was being served around midnight took over 90 minutes to serve the meal to the 23 business class passengers - not appropriate for a night flight where most people want to rest. Breakfast was a similarly long winded process with each element of the meal being offered up individually rather than all being plated at once. Entertainment was in the form of ceiling monitors, 3 films were shown and a choice of 10 audio channels.Staff were professional, rather than friendly. I think they would benefit from scrapping the Business Class service and simply offer enhanced seating with economy service as they dont have enough staff to provide the service in an efficient manner.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 17 June 2008 : by N Street

Customer Rating : 4/5

My wife and I flew Flyglobespan from Hamilton to Edinburgh. There was a short delay in Hamilton (no big deal) but staff, both airport and cabin crew were curtious and helpful. The flight itself was pleasant and uneventful.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 17 June 2008 : by A Campbell

Customer Rating : 2/5

Glasgow to Calgary Business Class. Nine hour delay to flight but no attempt made by airline to contact passengers before they left for the airport although the plane had been running many hours late for several days. Once on the plane the service was quite good!

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 13 June 2008 : by Lorraine Umbers

Customer Rating : 3/5

I booked a flight from Calgary to Glasgow return. I chose this company as I had flown with them a number of years ago. I arrived at Calgary airport at 1500hrs for my 1800hrs flight only to be told that it had been delayed until the following day. I had not received an email to update me and was I was furious. I then found this site and my fears grew. Fortunately I live in Calgary and was able to return home for the night, I saw some people being sent off to hotels. On returning to my home address, I had a phone message from Globespan – made after I had left for work on the morning of my flight – advising me of the delay. I eventually left Calgary at around 1400hrs a day later and instead of arriving at 0930 (the scheduled time if I had flown out the day before), due to the delay I arrived at 0500hrs which was a nightmare for my parents who came to pick me up. Globespan have now sent me an email apologising for the delay – no reason given – and advised me to make any claims through my insurance! I had my allocated seat on the plane, staff were friendly and helpful. The food was OK – I've had much worse (I was in the cheap seats!). I did not pay for the extra coffee though when that came round (GBP1.75 for a tiny paper cup of coffee is extortionate). The plane was about 66% full, so I had no-one next to me and I moved to a block of three empty seats for a snooze later in the flight. Returning home to Canada I was a little concerned about delays, but no problems - plane not full so plenty of space to move around. I would consider using them if I did not need to be anywhere in a hurry or for a specific date – they are too unreliable. It is a shame as they when they get it right they are very good - but when they mess it up they mess it up big time. I am waiting to hear how some friends of mine got on flying with Zoom around the same time I flew, as they seem to be more reliable for future flights.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 7 June 2008 : by Phil Underhill

Customer Rating : 1/5

My wife and I have just returned from a holiday to Canada, and unfortunately the carrier was Globespan. I have ticked the box marked 1 star as unfortunately you are not given the chance to tick anything lower! This airline is pure rubbish and I would like to correct Colin Rhodes when he says that "Customer service is not a concept that is embraced by their agent in Nice". Globespan do not even understand the meaning of customer service so why should their agents be any different?. Also it may help Globespan if they could use some of their ill-gotten gains to purchase a clock and learn to tell the time. We were eight hours late departing Manchester on the outbound flight and no reasonable excuse was given, but we were given a voucher to the value of £4 each which just about buys a cup of tea at Manchester airport. On the return journey they couldn't start the engines because the on board generator failed, and there were several other problems which caused a delay of 45 mins in departing. I am afraid that if Globespan were the last airline on earth, then I would never fly again!

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 7 June 2008 : by Tom McMullen

Customer Rating : 1/5

Just had a 6 day holiday in Toronto. Upgraded to business class for the extra leg room, the plane left Edinburgh an hour late but made this up in flight, service on board was good. Once at Hamilton it was very quick through immigration (its a very small airport). This is where problem begins. From touchdown to the Flyglobespan organised transport leaving was 2 hours. We had to wait for everyone to clear customs then everyone sat twiddling their thumbs for another 30 minutes for no reason whatsoever. The rep then proceeded to try to sell tours before disappearing to his other bus while people thought about it. He then came back 15 minutes later and took the bookings and money. We finally set off in a small bus with no air con in rush hour. total time from touchdown to arriving at hotel 3.5 hrs. Temperature on bus well over 100 degrees. For our return we were scheduled to be picked up at 6.30 for the 10.00pm flight. Upon arriving at Hamilton and queuing for checkin (there was a separate sign for business class but no queue or anyone serving), we overheard someone at the next desk being informed that there was a 3 hour delay but no one knew why, the girl dealing with us didn't appear to be going to share this with us until we asked and even then appeared indifferent. Hamiltons facilities are a joke, my local post office is better setup than this. 1 cafe and a coffee shop. After we eventually took off we were informed the delay was due to scheduled maintenance, funny that it was scheduled but no one was informed. In all I wouldn't travel with them again if they were the last airline around.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 6June 2008 : by D Henderson

Customer Rating : 1/5

Flyglobespan, a joke! We were due to fly 17th May, we left 17 hours late. We received a £8 food voucher. Return on 1st June we were 18 hours late. It is a total farce. Our pre booked seats were all taken - 2 of my grandchildren, aged 3 & 5 were allocated the emergency exit, their parents 3 rows behind. It was a total shambles!

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 6 June 2008 : by Tom Parker

Customer Rating : 1/5

My daughter has recently returned from Florida with Globespan and booked from Glasgow even though we live in North Wales due to the very competitive price. Even with the train fare it was considerably cheaper than flying from Manchester. The outward flight departed on time and was excellent according to my daughter who was travelling alone. Alas that is the end of the good news ! The return flight was delayed approx 20hours. Should have arrived am Sunday for a train connection but eventually arrives Monday morning 0211. No possibility of trains until 0600 so being a concerned father I had to drive up to Glasgow to pick her up. Naturally Globespan not remotely interested in compensation. Other than the measly £20 for over 12 hour delay. (when is that ever going to increase) from the insurance company it looks like my full tank of petrol to get there and back is at my expense. Globespan are Low cost and Low quality with little in the way of customer service. They are running too tight a ship and one little hiccup has a knock on effect for days. They must spend more on hotel accommodation than fuel!!

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 6 June 2008 : by Kenny Luke

Customer Rating : 1/5

We were due to fly from Glasgow to Sanford on 17th may at 10.30 am, we received a call from Globespan the evening before telling us that there was a delay and would not be flying out until 11.10pm, 1 hr later we received an other call telling us it was now 2.30am Sun. When we arrived at the airport the departure time was now 4.30am! So that was the first day of our honeymoon up in smoke!! We were then due to fly back at 6.30pm on 31st May. On arriving at the airport we were told that the fight was now not taking off until 11.10 am the next morning! We were put up overnight in the Sheraton Hotel which was a superb hotel, but by this time I just wanted home. We eventually took off at 12.45 on the Sun afternoon arriving back in Glasgow in the middle of the night, what a nightmare. This company is so badly run it is astonishing. The flights themselves and cabin crews on both flights were of a high standard.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 3 June 2008 : by Ivan Brenkel

Customer Rating : 1/5

We flew Flyglobespan from Edinburgh to Nice on Tuesday. We left 2 hours late, and 1 hour into the flight had to turn back due to a technical fault. We had to wait for another plane and left 8 hours late.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 3 June 2008 : by M Cleminson

Customer Rating : 1/5

My husband and I flew Glasgow-Sanford on 26th April, returning May 17th. We had been watching the outbound flights the previous week and were concerned about the long delays. Noting that our plane hadn't even departed from Sanford Airport we contacted the airline to be told that there was no delay and check-in remained as normal. It wasn't until the evening before we were due to fly that the airline contacted us and informed us of a 14 hour delay. We eventually departed Glasgow on 26th April at 11.30pm. The flight was freezing cold and we received no form of apology or explanation. Our return flight (May 17th - 5.30pm) was no better. My husband checked our flight status online before departing on our 3 hour journey to Sanford Airport. Again, the flight had not even departed from Glasgow. We contacted Globespan to be told the flight was again delayed however check-in remained at the same time. Having our own home in Florida, and through making several more calls we were eventually told that we could stay put and check in the following morning at 4am. Arriving at the airport we were stumped to see that it was still closed for the night! After a whole lot of hassle, check-in finally opened at 6.45am and our flight departed from Sanford at 9.10am (over 14 and a half hours late). This airline is a shambles - it is extremely unlikely that we will ever fly with them again - a great shame as it is such a good route. (The one star isn't even warranted)

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 3 June 2008 : by T Wright

Customer Rating : 1/5

Was due to fly from Glasgow to Sanford tomorrow morning (Sat 31st May @ 10:30am) but have just had a call to say that flight has been delayed 18 hours and will now not depart until 04:30 Sunday 1st June. With this being such short notice we have had to cancel our pick up for the airport and we cant get a minibus company to pick us up now as they are fully booked for the Sunday departure. Will never fly with Flyglobespan again and I'm not even in the air with them yet.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 31 May 2008 : by A Wallace

Customer Rating : 1/5

Having read a lot of bad reviews about Flyglobespan I had become very concerned. I thought no airline could really be this bad. How wrong I was! I was due to fly Manchester to Calgary at 1035 30th May. it is now 1700 and I am now sat in a hotel room still very much in Manchester. We were transported here after 6hrs in departures - we have been told we will now fly at 0430 tomorrow. The reason finally given for the delay is lack of air crew. The info we have been given by the ground crew has been very limited and inaccurate at best. I have been checking departure times for this route for the previous 2 weeks and both weeks these same flights were severely delayed. I have never flown with such a bad airline and I haven't even taken off yet.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 31 May 2008 : by M Jackson

Customer Rating : 1/5

Booked Glasgow to Sanford on 17th May. Flight was delayed 18 hours due apparently to rest facilities being closed for the crew at Vancouver! Return flight delayed 4 hours for technical reasons - a spare part had to be flown in a light aircraft from Fort Lauderdale to Sanford. Lack of information a real problem with this airline. Pity because the crew are excellent. Will never book with them again.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 30 May 2008 : by David Barrow

Customer Rating : 1/5

Faro - Edinburgh. Arrived at Faro airport in good time for check-in with hand baggage only and pre- booked seat. 3 check-in desks were open but they were for 3 flights to Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Teesside. The Teesside flight was leaving 45 minutes after the Edinburgh flight and it was clear that there were people in the queue going to the North East. It was also clear that the end of the queue would not reach the desk before check-in closed. The ground handling agent Servisair could not perform a check-in and said I would have to wait but she informed the desk that I was in the queue and if it was about to close, she come and get me. Needless to say, the check-in closed and no-one came to check me in. I went back to the agent who told me to go straight to the desk. It became clear that there were others still trying to check in for Edinburgh but the passengers for the Teesside flight were abusive about people trying to 'jump the queue'. Finally managed to check in and run through security just making the flight. At Edinburgh we were parked as far away from the terminal and has to be bussed in. However, the front of the plane had to get onto the last bus ending up at the back of the immigration queue. It seems that however hard you try to make the travel experience more bearable, the airlines, airport operators, or ground agents attempt to make the experience as stressful and unpleasant as possible.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 30 May 2008 : by Colin Rhodes

Customer Rating : 1/5

Nice to Edinburgh. Due to arrive 10:00pm 27/5/2008. Arrived 6:45am 28/5/2008. Shambolic is not an adequate description. Customer service is not a concept that is embraced by their service agent in Nice. The marketplace will ultimately decide their fate. Suffice to say this is my first and last experience of their customer service.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 30 May 2008 : by J Kirkpatrick

Customer Rating : 1/5

Glasgow to Palma : nearly a two hour delay going out, and moved departure gates three times. Impression was that the staff don't have a clue - professional they are not. Finally boarding the plane they called those passengers who had pre-booked seats and told them to sit anywhere and the booking fee would be refunded - needless to say no refund yet. Palma to Glasgow - charged excess baggage 4Kg at 7euros per kilo, and when I said it was the same weight as Glasgow, I was informed that Glasgow staff don't do their job properly, then told there was a delay probably until after midnight. Finally took off 6 hours late. Looking through reviews I found the exact timings had happened two weeks earlier. After two previous years trouble free travelling with Globespan this may be the last

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 28 May 2008 : by A Burnie

Customer Rating : 2/5

This is an outfit which has no concept of customer care. Two of us flew Edinburgh/Faro late May. We paid for pre selected seats in accord with their seat plans. On both legs, the aircraft had been changed so the seats were nothing like selected. We were not warned outbound, but an email was sent re the inbound flight while we were actually on holiday so we did not find out until check in, where they could not offer any explanation. Also paying for excess baggage was false economy as hand baggage was not weighed at all. If you must fly with this lot do not pay for any "worthwhile extras". I did complain when home but they simply trot out the old "terms and conditions" excuse. They are unconcerned when you warn that you will not use them again. Go elsewhere for your flights!

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 27 May 2008 : by G Dickson

Customer Rating : 1/5

Alicante to Edinburgh. Having travelled for years using FlyGlobespan they now seem to be having problems keeping to their published schedules. The above flight was to leave Alicante at 2020. At Alicante airport they said the flight would be approx 30 mins late. The flight left one and a half hours late! Twenty minutes before landing in Edinburgh airport, the captain announced the runway at Edinburgh was closed and the aircraft had been diverted to Glasgow! He said he had only been informed of this 5 minutes before. A customer service agent from FlyGlobespan was going to meet everyone and direct them to the buses for the transfer to Edinburgh. They were nowhere to be seen. The coaches eventually left Glasgow airport at 01.30. The last four or five flights I have taken with the airline to and from Alicante have all been delayed. It's a shame to see that instead of Flyglobespan trying to make things better in light of competition on the route, they are operating in a way that would make you think they have really lost sight of the customer. The above flight was a complete catalog of errors from start to finish and the words "sorry" did not leave the lips of one of the FlyGlobespan staff!

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 24 May 2008 : by Iris Ferguson

Customer Rating : 1/5

My daughter flew Globespan on 17th May to Barcelona due to leave at 9am. She didn't take off until 4.30pm due to technical difficulties they say. Also a friend also flew Globespan this week and had a six hour delay. What's the problem why can't Flyglobespan cope?

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 22 May 2008 : by A Leask

Customer Rating : 1/5

Easily the worst airline I have flown. This was supposed to be a direct flight from Hamilton to Gatwick. However, a week before departing, this was changed to indirect via Glasgow. The plane was an old leased, repainted, Icelandic Air. Business Class was booked. The departure was delayed approximately 10 hours, and food was the worst I have ever had. The staff was nowhere to be seen at the airport (they were using Air Canada check in staff) and the inflight service was at best, indifferent. The return flight was not as problematic; however, I did notice that the outbound flight (ie turnaround flight out of Hamilton) was again delayed 10 hours. The scheduled turnaround was 2-3 hours, which is obviously insane as they were using the same crew as the inbound flight from Gatwick! (Hence why the turn-around flight was delayed by 10 hours, as the crew had to sleep!). Utterly shambolic. What award did they win, exactly - stupidest airline?

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 22 May 2008 : by A Bell

Customer Rating : 3/5

Hamilton to Newcastle nice flight no problems. One week before trip return flight cancelled from Newcastle had to go to Manchester by bus - get there at my own cost which being the UK is not cheap. My biggest worry was that this was the last flight from UK for the season. On an upside this flight was a steal. But you do get what you pay for in everything .

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 22 May 2008 : by P Cameron

Customer Rating : 3/5

Just back from Florida with Flyglobespan. Inflight entertainment remains laughable, jacks on all our seats didn't work and TV screen was so far away - three out of our four seats couldn't recline - not ideal on a 9hr flight. Complained but told to find a seat that could recline. Also a crowd of very drunk golfers on board were eventually refused drink - far too late by then, not good with young children sitting nearby.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 21 May 2008 : by L Little

Customer Rating : 2/5

Flew with Flyglobespan to Sanford - due to fly at 9.30am, didn't fly till 3.30pm. Return journey due to fly at 6.00pm and didn't leave Sanford till 01.45am the next day. The customer service you receive from Flyglobespan is appalling, no globespan reps to be seen anywhere. Poor service from globespan - pity as would have been good to have a reliable service from Scotland. I for one wont ever fly with them again.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 17 May 2008 : by G Kelly

Customer Rating : 3/5

GLA-LPA-GLA 737-800. Flight delayed for 4 hours outbound due to a birdstrike on incoming aircraft and no replacement readily available. £4 voucher offered to passengers which was a little on the paltry side. Inflight service as expected, reasonably priced trolley service crew friendly. Return Journey completely uneventful and even managed a snooze. The delay aside the journey was pretty good for a no frills carrier.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 29 April 2008 : by Bill Marwick

Customer Rating : 4/5

Glasgow/Palma return. On time, our pre-booked seats were fine. Crew courteous. We were in seats 1A and 1B - crew baggage had filled the overhead bins and we had to go searching for a space for our hand luggage. Only problem (this was not Globespan's fault) arriving at Glasgow at 9.30pm on a Thursday evening to be told that the 'international side' was not open and we were taken by bus from a domestic gate to an international gate. Two flights arriving at same time (ours and a KLM from Amsterdam). Chronic shortage of immigration staff. 3 on duty - 1 dealing with non-EU citizens (of whom there were about 4) 2 dealing with approx 200 passengers - very poor service.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 22 April 2008 : by D Montgomery

Customer Rating : 1/5

Edinburgh to Las Palmas. Outbound flight time changed about 3 weeks before the flight, then delayed departure at the airport meant we arrived in resort about 8 hours after we had planned. Inbound we had paid extra to reserve seats together - got to Las Palmas Airport to be told variously "The Computer is Down", "The aircraft has changed" - no seats together, no explanation, no refund. Paid extra for meals both ways, easily the worst airline snack pack (not even a meal) I've ever seen.

FLYGLOBESPAN review : 21 April 2008 : by J Gainty

Customer Rating : 1/5

Just returned from 2 weeks in Florida and would not under any terms recommend Flyglobespan as a carrier. Going out was pretty uneventful despite a fuel stop in Maine, and inflight service was limited with only 2 films shown on central aisle tvs which were showing serious signs of age and 1 toilet broke down halfway through flight. The return leg was more of an event, the plane was delayed from Glasgow due to a 'technical issue' for 6 hours and we were given compensation of $10 to get a meal and refreshment This did not even cover that so had to be added to despite the EU regulation being to provide suitable food and refreshment. No Flyglobespan staff were available or visible to deal with this and the handling staff at Sanford were left to communicate with passengers. When the aircraft did show up some 6.5 hours later the attitude extended by some of the cabin crew was deplorable. The plane was at least 20 years old and still had ashtrays in the armrests, we were advised that they have also been delayed and were exhausted as well. We were advised at check in that because of the delay we would be flying non stop to Glasgow as there was no need to refuel at Maine but low and behold once boarded we were then advised due to a strong headwind we would have to stop at Maine after all. This plane was an old Icelandair plane which needed to stop at Iceland for fuel. I feel Flyglobespan are very unprofessional both in their handling of this delay and the lack of staff available to deal with this - when the cabin staff had to deal with the passengers were very offhand and dismissive.