FlyGlobespan - by G McCoach

12 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

GLA-BOS return Premium Economy. Both via Knock. Legroom in Premium Economy not the 34 inches advertised when I reserved last December. I would estimate 30 inches at best. Scottish cabin crew very professional. Boeing 737-700 ER clean and appeared to be new. Food and drink service very good. BOS- GLA Premium Economy seating was again poor and 3 abreast instead of the advertised 2. We also didn't receive the seats we had reserved (4A/C) and which had been confirmed. Swissport staff at Boston Logan unhelpful in this regard. Cabin crew professional team. I would have awarded 5 stars but I have to deduct 1 star because of the poor seating in Premium Economy.

FlyGlobespan - by J Cairns

12 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

GLA–Vancouver, Calgary–GLA Business Class. Outbound arrived in Vancouver 50 minutes early and on return arrived 10 minutes early. Food on both flights good. Plenty of space in cabin and attentive staff. When flying with Globespan, you have to temper your expectations to the price you are paying. Our flights were about one third of BA/Air Canada Business Class. So something has to give at this price. The service was not to the level of BA Business Class and the IFE is old and outdated. But it represented good value for money.

FlyGlobespan - by Derek Burrows

11 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Outbound: Stansted-Hamilton flight 90 minutes late. Total chaos at check-in after check-in desks changed to 2 adjacent positions. Staff gave pax conflicting instructions as to their particular desk, no-one seeming to know what was happening and no-one seemed to be in charge. The result was that both queues became one large group. Check-in staff dealing with premium pax did not initially know baggage allowance, having to phone someone to find out. Despite premium economy and business class terms listing priority boarding there was no order of loading, all pax being boarded simultaneously. Inbound: Hamilton – Stansted. This flight was only one of 3 Globespan aircraft arriving on time but was delayed outbound because the aircraft, although being on ground for several hours, was not refuelled until passengers had boarded and were strapped in for departure. How can any airline allow this to happen? Broken headphone socket on my seat prevented me from receiving the entertainment service for which I had paid. The adjacent seat controls were faulty allowing the occupant to receive only channel 5 (music). Cabin staff were totally uninterested in the faults so presumably they were carried over to subsequent flights. The premium economy service for which I had paid was no better than other airlines economy service, in some parts, worse. It compares very unfavourably with premium economy of other airlines. Globespan has not replied to my email. The owner of the Ontario leisure business with whom I stayed has been told by the travel agent which handles many of his client's bookings that he, and other agents, have stopped taking Globespan bookings because of their frequent delays and passenger complaints. As I live in Norfolk, Stansted is very convenient for me but my experience of Globespan standards mean that for future Toronto flights I will make the longer journey to Gatwick and use the flights operated by Canadian Affair.

FlyGlobespan - by Bob Higginson

11 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Manchester to JFK. I've awarded 1 star and that is for the cabin crew. I had changes to departure time, seating arrangements, and a whole day to the return flight, all just 2 weeks prior to departure. Was given the option of cancelling, but had already paid for internal flights, villa in Florida and car hire, so they had me. Fact of life, you only get what you pay for!! Have e-mailed them with no response, they probably don't have enough staff to deal with all the complaints.

FlyGlobespan - by D Murphy

11 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Man- Hamilton, Toronto. All going well on arrival at Manchester, quick check-in, told plane on time. Due to depart at 11.55am. At 11am board changes to 'next information at 4pm'. After numerous questions to ground staff at Manchester who didn't have a clue what was going on, eventually spoke to someone in Edinburgh who said we would be told at 4pm that we were delayed till 10pm and would be issued with meal vouchers and a letter confirming this. 10pm - told a technical fault from earlier couldn't be fixed (even though there had been no movement around the plane at all since early morning and had it had been stood on tarmac in complete darkness since then). Told after a few more changes in story that we would be bussed to hotel at Manchester, to then be bussed following morning from Liverpool to fly out at 1.30pm the next day. Sure enough, at 10.30am the next morning we were bussed to Liverpool to be told we had a further delay until 3pm - 3pm told we would definitely leave at 5pm. 5.30pm we did eventually depart on a small plane, a full 29 hours after we should have! Liverpool ground staff told me they always do this - say it is technical but apparently they just don't have the crew for the amount of flights needed. Return flight, half hour delay, no hot drinks for whole flight, full, hot, packed, plane far too small for transatlantic travel. Do not flyglobespan - with the delays and missed hotel bookings and car hire it is just false economy.

FlyGlobespan - by Darach Corcoran

11 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Knock to Boston business class return. Flight in a 737-700ER. Excellent cabin staff. Overall we found this an excellent service - my concern was the somewhat limited leg room for business class seats. The policy of leaving an empty middle seat does not really compensate for more leg room. Overall a pleasant trip.

FlyGlobespan - by B Sowden

6 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

I wish we had seen this website before booking! Glasgow to Hamilton return. Flight out reasonable, but dirty plane. Long delay getting out of Hamilton, miles from anywhere. Returning to UK, plane 3 hours late in, damaged to nose meant flight delayed to next day. Put up in Sheraton overnight, but vouchers did not cover price of meals. Flight home next day on repaired 'plane. Booked business seats only economy available. Sent e-mails, letters etc. No response from Flyglobespan. Only hope is that travel agent we used has 'blacklisted' them. Will actively dissuade people from booking with them, a shambles of an airline.

FlyGlobespan - by S Griffin

6 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Glasgow to Boston 31st July. Flight from Glasgow was 1 hour late departing. We arrived at our hotel, written confirmation of our reservation with us, to find the hotel had not heard from Globespan and had no rooms reserved for us. It was day 3 of our holiday before the situation was resolved, during which time I wasted many hours sorting it out myself. The flight back was also delayed. The inflight meals, outbound and return, were awful and they charged high prices for drinks and snacks. I sent a written complaint to Globespan 2 weeks ago and received no reply.

FlyGlobespan - by Chris Allery

6 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Glasgow to Hamilton return. We had been informed of the 4 hour re-scheduling of departure 2 months prior to flight, but this was too late to re-arrange connecting flight! Then a further 90 minute delay in Glasgow, before the unknown scheduled detour to Iceland to pick up more fuel! Why they couldn't have refuelled in Glasgow, or Halifax ( Nova Scotia), I'll never know the true reason? Flight attendants excellent, but 5 or 6 attendants are insufficient for a transatlantic flight. Food and drinks satisfactory, but the drink with the lunch arrived long after I had eaten. Arrived in Hamilton weary, after so many delays; a very long day. However, the return home was confirmation of Globespan incapacity to think through the logistical requirements of running an airline to new destinations! To have 3 planes departing at 8.30pm from a tiny airport, where the infrastructure wasn't designed to cope with this demand, was staggering. Queues snaked around most areas of the building, with only 2 booking-in desks open to process the ever increasing anger and disbelief of passengers. I think, even those in business class seats were turned away from priority booking and told to join the end of the queue. It was a shambles. The lack of information to passengers is a serious matter which Globespan need to address, if they are going regain credibility. There was little choice of hot food to eat at the airport, since they had virtually run-out due to the delays caused to nearly 400 passengers. by this time, toilets in the departure lounge were smelly. The flight was again late in departing. 5 attendants stretched to meet the requests of the passengers; the chief steward, spent all his time serving 7 people in business class, and left the rest of his crew to deal with a full plane. The meal was okay, but long delay between drinks and meal. Were Boeing 737's 800 series really designed for transatlantic flights? They are so restrictive when it comes to serving food, drinks and passengers using the toilets. I would never advise people to fly business class, since they may be regularly inconvenienced by those needing to visit the washroom at the front of the plane! I suggest they get rid of business class and use the segregated space of 12 seats for passengers, increase the number of crew and give everyone a much improved experience of customer care. Was it worth paying a few hundred pounds less for our two tickets? Debatable. Would I fly again with Globespan? There are certainly far better options available.

FlyGlobespan - by S Hamilton

6 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

If there was a No Star I would award it! Luggage that goes missing for five days our of a 10 day holiday, 7 hour delays. Customer relations is a figment of the company's imagination even when you try to contact them at their head office in Edinburgh. I could go on and on and on, but from reading submissions on this site, it would seem like a lot of others have received similar service, or lack thereof. I sent a four page "epistle" to Globespan of our experiences with this airline - can't wait for their response! Then again I may never receive a response.

FlyGlobespan - by R Edwards

2 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

After miserable 'premium' flights from Manchester to Vancouver return costing over £500.00 each, I wrote to Globespan complaining about the quality of care on the flights - non-existent! We certainly did not even get soft drinks never mind alcoholic and felt very let down. Tiny tv screens which were impossible to see, but it did not matter as it was old rubbish. Delays both ways, but infinitesimal compared to some poor souls, however terrible food, no pillows or blankets provided, only two soft drinks throughout the flight both ways. Although I did not expect to receive a reply, three e-mails and a letter sent first-class recorded delivery brought absolutely no response from this firm, and I now do not expect to get one. Keep away from this outfit, the whole business is a wild lottery of what you get, no matter what you have paid for it. You have been warned. Appalling service why are they allowed to continue flying?

FlyGlobespan - by J Stacey

2 September 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Manchester to Hamilton. Flight OK apart from a 1 hour delay. We were advised that Globespan were in dispute with their caterers and they were waiting for the flight food to be delivered! The return flight was a total farce. We were picked up by our shuttle bus at 5pm and arrived at Hamilton to be advised our flight would be delayed until the following day. The board said due to a mechanical fault! After queuing for 2.5 hours we were given a voucher to be shuttled to the Sheraton at Hamilton. Dinner, lunch , breakfast vouchers provided but they do not cover the cost of the meals at this hotel. The hotel staff were friendly and tried their best but the service was dreadfully slow and food served below average. We eventually finished our pathetic evening meal just before midnight. Trying to get information about the time of our flight was just impossible. We were eventually shuttled back to the airport the following afternoon at 1.30pm only to be advised the flight would not leave until 7.30pm. This time changed several times. We eventually flew at 6.45pm, a total of 22 hours delay! The staff tried very hard to pacify the passengers, but most people were very unhappy by this time. We will not use flyglobespan again and would not recommend them. They need to learn some communication skills and realise that the passengers are paying their wages. What you save in flight costs you lose in extra meals, car parking and lost wages.

FlyGlobespan - by Brigid Mullin

30 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Knock, Ireland to JFK. We were stuck in Knock airport with a delay of 10hrs+, upon check-in we were notified that we would have a 6hr delay due to "technical difficulties" with the aircraft. We had to fight for any info from the staff at the airport who told us flyglobespan hadn't provided them with any info. There were elderly people and people with infants waiting in the airport for over 10hrs. We were provided with an 8euro voucher for food at the concession stand, which didn't even cover the price of a sandwich and soda. We have called the flyglobespan contact numbers all day and no one answers.

FlyGlobespan - by Michael Cresswell

30 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Glasgow to Stanford Orlando return. Neos plane and crew. Couldn't get premium economy tickets so had very low expectations. I was pleased with both flights, and consider them excellent value for money. Both left and arrived early. Service fine and food was ok. One or two minor grumbles - we were given 2 glasses of wine on the way out but were restricted to 1 on the way back. The queue through immigration control was long and slow in Orlando - but I've had worse experiences in other US airports. My main gripe was that I paid extra for an emergency exit seat on the way out but didn't get it. The money was refunded without problem however. Overall I was very pleasantly surprised by how well the flights went & the car hire included in the price proved a bargain too.

FlyGlobespan - by J Smyth

25 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

It is the worst airline we have used. I dont know how they have the sign "award winning airline". They dont have the planes to meet the demands. Late arriving in Hamilton with the usual unscheduled stop in Iceland for fuel hence delayed 2 hours. Leaving Hamilton to Toronto, flight delayed on runway and then evacuated to hotel - no rep available at hotel as usual. 4 planes departing at same time and line up right through the airport and down the street. 900 people all waiting in line. Only 2 check in desks. After getting into lounge ticket error and the asked us all to leave and do it again. Second day of waiting saw 3:30pm time go to 8:30pm go to 11:30pm . Eventually departed 27 hours late. They only get one star because it is the lowest available. The Globespan reps are like figments of your imagination you know what they look like but you never see them. Do yourself a favour and book with another airline and use Toronto Pearson.

FlyGlobespan - by S Sandland

25 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Manchester-Hamilton 3rd July, Premium Economy (originally Glasgow-Hamilton 30th), Hamilton-Glasgow 21st July, Premium Economy. My family's Globespan ordeal began before we had even set foot in an airport due to the terrorist attack at Glasgow, admittedly not Globespan's fault but their response in the wake of this event was shambolic - no answer on any of their many telephone numbers despite waiting on the line for over 20 mins, no staff being present at Glasgow Airport on the morning of the 1st, even though Zoom Airlines had resumed flights to Canada and no messages being relayed to the BAA staff who were forced to face the brunt of Globespan's queuing customers, many including myself with young children. I am frankly appalled that at their Hub airport, in the wake of a terrorist attack, they did not put one representative onto the ground to explain why they were not flying, despite many other Airlines doing so. After travelling to Manchester to fly three days later we were impressed with the service and felt we had misjudged Globespan (ex-Icelandair 757,lots of legroom, good cabin service). However on the return leg we realised our initial judgement was spot on. Our 19:30 flight was delayed by 6hrs 40mins. We were told by check in staff that these sorts of delays were commonplace with Globespan and they certainly appeared to be sick of it. I explained to the thoroughly helpful and understanding ground agent that this sort of delay spent in a tiny ill-equiped airport was not an option with two children, one who is only 1 and who both have medical conditions. He agreed and arranged for both my family and another to use the Hamilton Sheraton Hotel for the evening until our flight was ready to leave. We returned at 12:30 only to find that it was delayed until 03:45. We eventually boarded a 737 (not a plane intended for transatlantic flying) and were told by a thoroughly objectionable pilot that a stop in Iceland would be necessary in order to collect more fuel. He also lied to us that the delay was due to bad weather in the Toronto area. Not true as the weather had been great for a fortnight. We eventually arrived home at Glasgow at 18:15, almost 12hrs late, squashed like sardines in an aircraft intended for short-haul routes. The chief steward explained this was not acceptable in terms of delivering a premium and business class service, as 737s are designed in single class configurations. As Iain Wilson said in his account this airline is clearly stretched beyond it's means. Until they get their planes back form other airlines and start to concentrate less on profit and more on customer service I will not be flying with them again and certainly recommend any other people considering flying Globespan to give them a body swerve.

FlyGlobespan - by Mary Pounder

23 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Vancouver to Manchester. I was in Premiere seating, would not have thought so, service was terrible. Meal was just awful. The cabin staff could do to go on a course of customer service. Night flight, no pillows. Suggest you eat before you board and carry your own drinks. Fellow passengers complained when they pressed the bell, no action from the cabin crew.

FlyGlobespan - by C McGovern

23 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Round trip with Flyglobespan to Vancouver on Neos 767 with an Italian crew. Flights on time. We flew premium economy which was worth the extra, good legroom and meals comparable with other airlines. The crew were attentive and friendly and plane clean and tidy. We will use this airline again. Good value for money.

FlyGlobespan - by Karl Shuve

21 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Hamilton to Stansted premium economy and returned Gatwick to Hamilton economy. Both flights on time, courteous flight attendants. The planes were old IcelandAir 757s (3x3 configuration), so I would not describe the flights as luxurious, but they were reasonably comfortable. The meals were decent, and inflight entertainment consisted of two movies each way. The screens were a bit small, though. I would recommend shelling out a little extra for premium economy. You get an increase of 10kg for baggage allowance, free seat selection (which was honoured, in my case), a better meal, and unlimited drinks (both alcoholic and non). Many people have had disastrous experiences with Globespan, and although I hope they have turned a corner, there seem to be risks in booking with them (not getting one's chosen seat, massive delays, mechanical problems). If you find Globespan to be by far the cheapest option, do consider them. If it's a negligible difference in price, it's probably safest, for now, to go with a more reputable carrier.

FlyGlobespan - by Phil Hamerton

18 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

LGW to YVR return. Premium Economy. As much red wine as you wanted. Food was average airline meal. Service attentive. Earphones provided. Two feature films each way. Plenty of legroom, but not very much in Economy - pay the extra. Priority tags for luggage meant our cases were out at LGW in first dozen. This is a no-frills airline, and performed remarkably.

FlyGlobespan - by J Dale

10 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Edinburgh to Hamilton return. While it was clear that Toronto-Hamilton was the destination airport, it was hard to believe what an hopeless facility it was from the Flyglobespan website. It took an hour and a quarter for our bags to appear. There were still people from our flight coming through immigration at that time (the airport seemed to have hired students for the summer, they certainly didn't seem to be very well trained) and the baggage hall when we left was still at least half full with people becoming increasingly impatient, if not desperate! In contrast, when we arrived back at Edinburgh we cleared immigration, got our bags, and were home in less than an hour from touchdown. Inbound was just as bad. We arrived in good time, only to find that even the check-in queues were badly organised. On reaching the desk we were told that we were lucky our flight was going, the Glasgow flight had been delayed 12 hours (and counting). A one hour delay turned into three (though still showing as one hour on the indicators) as the ground staff simply could not handle three flights all at once. The departure hall was a misery, with just a duty free (the queue blocked the entrance from security at one point) and the ubiquitous Tim Horton kiosk. Only one announcement was made the entire duration of our wait, and that was to inform us that the plane was being 'catered'. The airline didn't do too much to redeem itself in the air, either. We found the flight attendants pleasant, but it was obviously a cheap set-up (old films, old planes) and there wasn't much they could do for us. The meals were miserable. I usually eat the food just to kill the time (or on occasion because I feel sorry for it) but what we were presented with was inedible. For all the convenience of flying direct from Edinburgh to Hamilton (which is much closer to our destination in south-western Ontario) I'll be back to a scheduled airline to Pearson next time I go.

FlyGlobespan - by L McCarrick

10 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

I had been warned, by someone who swore that nothing would induce him to fly Globespan again, but I was eventually swayed by the benefits of flying from my regional airport and the convenience of Business Class priority check-in. As I was travelling with my 77 yr old mother, I hoped we would at least be guaranteed our pre-booked seats and a speedy check-in. The queue at Newcastle was a "free for all" scrum(no ground staff available & no priority check-in). My supposedly allocated seats had been taken. Headphones & entertainment were not available. The 1 glass of wine I managed to get with my meal was in a cracked plastic cup and stained a white top. The chief attendant was wearily disinterested! The queue at Hamilton was even longer! Again no priority check-in. We boarded an hour late (without explanation) and sat on the tarmac for another hour (because of maintenance work? Why board us?). This time, there were headphones, but no periscope, to enable us to see the screen, which was round a corner and about 6" square! The legroom was adequate (considering what we'd paid for it) but, as sleep was impossible, I walked through to the back of the plane to stretch my legs. There I found passengers nursing small bottles of wine. Why not abandon the pretence of upgraded service of finer wine & give these to the Business passengers too? A rare vintage wine will still taste awful in a cracked plastic cup. The outgoing food & returning crew were rather good and they are the only reason for the 1*!

FlyGlobespan - by J Napier

9 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

We booked in March, YVR-MAN-YVR, and echoing many of the same issues as others have written about with regard to cancellations, losing seat allocation, etc. I cancelled in early May after their disastrous inaugural flights from Vancouver to Manchester and Glasgow. By then we were paid in full, but we did manage to get a full refund. Please read the terms and conditions. Note they say if they have to cancel, they will put you on the next suitable flight. I stress the word 'suitable'. That's how we managed to cancel without penalty. I told them the change was not SUITABLE to us. Play them at their own game. Good luck.

FlyGlobespan - by S Galloway

9 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Manchester to Hamilton 20th July 2007.(16 hour delay) Arrived in good time at Manchester because of added security only to find crowds of people in the check in area with no officials offering any idea of what was happening. Our flight was due to take off shortly after 11am on the Friday. We eventually departed at around 2am on the Saturday morning! It appears that for technical reasons a flight due to leave Birmingham never arrived so the poor passengers were bused up to stay in a hotel overnight to leave from Manchester the next morning (Friday 20th). They eventually left at mid afternoon (probably on the plane allocated for us?). The FlyGlobespan terms and conditions state that they will make every effort to contact their customers if there is any change to the original arrangements either by phone, email or posted on their web-site, none of which they did. We were due to land in Hamilton at 4pm on the Friday and have a relaxing evening with relatives, early bed ready for a planned trip to Wonderland, Toronto for which we had special discounted tickets for the Saturday. Because of the 16 Hour delay and now landing in Canada at 8am on the Saturday the last thing we wanted to do was spend a day in a theme park. So as not to disappoint the children we re booked at full cost for later in the week costing another £90.00. Had I known of the delay I could have taken one less days holiday from work instead of spending it at Manchester Airport and saved the added costs incurred. So much for no frills, low cost, no information flying. FlyGlobespan - at least do us the courtesy of keeping us informed. Courtesy costs nothing.

FlyGlobespan - by A Sabourin

9 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Hamilton, Ontario to Glasgow Premium Economy. Our family of eight just returned from Glasgow. We will not use Flyglobespan again. Although our delays were minimal - only two hours each way - the lack of upfront information is appalling. It would be better to post the correct flight information rather than wait until passengers have checked in, the documents should note via Iceland on return, the inflight entertainment is shared and the same both ways, you should be advised there is no milk for children on board and they stock limited supplies of soft drinks. If we had known our flight was late we could have avoided a massive traffic jam on the 403 to Highway 6 and the stress of thinking we would miss the checkin time for our flight. A little honesty would go a long way! When we boarded the outgoing flight our pilot said because of wind and weather conditions we may have to stop in Iceland to refuel and we were already two hours late. Since this did not happen we were supposed to be happy! We paid almost $900 each return which was not much of a bargain for a bargain basement airline. I suppose we were lucky compared to some of the other horror stories. Flyglobespan needs to take some lessons on customer service from Westjet. Hamilton Airport is another matter. Too small to handle three departing international flights, no protection from inclement weather for ground loading and very difficult for those with mobility problems.

FlyGlobespan - by M McConn

9 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Dublin to Toronto, left a lot to be desired. One gets what one pays for, fair enough - ie late take off, earphones that only half work, not at all on return flight. Two toilets to possibly 100 people. Night flight, my seat wouldnt recline. Guy in front of me, his seat wouldnt stay upright. Cant even get a drink of water without the stewardess raising eyes up to heaven in despair!.

FlyGlobespan - by W Peace

9 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Glasgow to Sanford business class and return premium economy. Operated on behalf of Flyglobespan by Neos Boeing 767 aircraft and crew. Comfortable seats in both cabins and cabin service/entertainment generally of good quality. Good value for money.

FlyGlobespan - by S Peterson

3 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Premium Class seats booked on Globespan direct Gatwick/Vancouver. Those in the organization behind Globespan appear to be the most unreliable, unresponsive, disorganized bunch one could ever have the misfortune to come across. While the administration hide behind unanswered telephone calls and unacknowledged e-mails, check-in staff and cabin crews are left to field hordes of furious travellers and to attempt to disentangle the chaos. You are unlikely to get a direct flight to anywhere and will probably undergo several changes of departure time prior to the date. There is a strong chance you will not to be in the seat (in some cases class) you believe you guaranteed over six months earlier and confirmed less than a week prior to departure date. It can be more than 2½ hours before you get a drink of water let alone anything else and it can be over 4½ hours into your flight before you are offered food, whether it be the Premium class set menu or packs for sale in Economy. If you have booked on Globespan already take a close look at the very faint small print on the back of your ticket and know that the negative impacts of the ‘terms and conditions’ will almost certainly apply to your flight! If you can cancel, think about it seriously. (see comments C. Trinder July 31st). Old movies and tired TV shows should be expected on a no-frills airline. Lack of organization and accountability should not and we will never fly with this airline again.

FlyGlobespan - by Margaret Smillie

3 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

I booked premium 2 seats from Glasgow to Boston in February 2007 for a family wedding in September. This was meant to be a direct flight. Seats and and meals were pre-booked and at the time we were delighted at the seemed efficiency of the operation. That soon dissolved as in June we received an e- mail cancelling the flight and re-scheduling us on a flight 2days later. The bill was paid in full. We now fly to Knock in Ireland to board passengers. We are missing the wedding, cost us for the car hire and hotel, and were given no apology just "if you are not happy, we will give you a full refund" In reflection we should have done that. Yesterday we were advised they had re-allocated seats to further up the plane with no allocation for the return flight. My husband and I support Scottish Industry and Enterprise, this is a disgrace.

FlyGlobespan - by J Bettis

3 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Like others I wish I had read this website before booking my flights with FlyGlobespan last December! Booked to travel from Liverpool to JFK. Flight times were altered and then 3 weeks before we were due to travel they cancelled the Friday flights between JFK and Liverpool. We came back a day later and had to pay $315 extra for car hire and accommodation. In addition I paid a total of £150 to reserve seats with extra leg room. We didn't get these as the plane used was different to the one on the website used for booking. The cabin crew on the way out were very nice and apologetic but the crew on our return were awful and just ignored us. The total cost wasn't that'cheap' at the end of the day but it was certainly 'no frills'. No headphones available for return journey as someone 'had forgotten to load them' and a horrible old jalopy of a plane previously used by Icelandair. Awful will not use them again.

FlyGlobespan - by B Griffin

2 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Have used this "cheap and cheerful" airline before for relatively short flights to Malaga and on all occasions have had the times changed after booking, "as per our terms and conditions"! Used them for longer trip to USA and had my worst ever flight. Take off time was delayed by almost two hours with no explanation given. Seat was cramped and was located at rear of plane where aisle narrowed and next to toilets. Directly above was the audible alert to cabin crew which seemed to go off constantly ie. no sleep. There was a language barrier between myself and crew as their English was not good. Was told to switch off my MP3 player but no explanation why. This was over an hour into flight, not on take off or landing, as would have been understandable. Other passengers around me were using their "players" without anything being said! Flight was not cheap, costing approx $860 one way, with no food or drink supplied. Neither cheap nor cheerful.

FlyGlobespan - by S Pearson

2 August 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Manchester to Hamilton return. We were upgraded to business class 2 days before our outbound flight was due and found the airline staff polite and attentive. The food was reasonable and as ordered. Hamilton airport is small and we had a bit of a wait to reclaim our bags but it was no problem really. The airport transfer to downtown Toronto was fine. The return flight was on time, though the staff at Hamilton seemed overwhelmed by the number of people arriving at the airport and as such check-in was slow. Were in economy class on the way back and though not as much leg room as business class the service was good. On both flights the food was fairly typical of most airline food, and entertainment provided was fine for a 6-7 hour flight.

FlyGlobespan - by C Trinder

31 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Cancelled before flight! Re J Swart's post: I cancelled a return trip Gatwick to Vancouver after reading appalling reviews of this airline and tracking my booking on the website. Within the space of two weeks, three stopovers were added to a supposedly direct flight and times were changed several times. I would advise you to check the (very!) small print on the back of your booking form, or on the website. Unless it has been changed very recently, if you cancel a booking 70 days or more before scheduled departure, you are entitled to a refund of your deposit, which I received. The Globespan rep on the phone at first declined a refund, but when my travel agent pointed out the clause, she just sighed and said that "not many people read the small print!" Good luck.

FlyGlobespan - by Richard Elson

31 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Just returned from a holiday in Toronto and Niagra Falls with Globespan. Plenty of leg room, staff at check-in and on flight very helpful. Meals about par for airline food, although we did not get the meal we ordered on return flight. Inflight entertainment average, but I prefer to read anyway. Hamilton airport on arrival was a bit dismal, but did not take too long to clear immigration. Transportation to hotels and back to airport fairly good, with one or two hiccups. Flight was early leaving for return. I would not hesitate to use Globespan again as you have to take into consideration what you pay for what you get and I felt Globespan were value for the money I paid.

FlyGlobespan - by J Swart

29 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

If only I'd known of this website before booking on this airline, I would have never booked on them. Now my plane has not even left the ground and I have a problem. When I checked the website regarding my flight from Johannesburg to Manchester return for December 2007, I found no mention of it. Only a Cape Town flight. So I logged in and checked my booking. It clearly stated my departure is Johannesburg, but for the life of me, according to the website of flyglobespan, there's no such flight. I duly send them an email, but as of yet had no reply. Now the big question, should I cancel and loose my deposit, or play the waiting game and see if they come forth with an answer? In any event I've learned my lesson and will rather fly SAA in December. To all other travelers, beware, pay a bit more and know you will get there, for reading all the comments here, this airline is a big no no.

FlyGlobespan - by Kathleen Edwards

29 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

We are a pensioner couple and just arrived back from Vancouver- Manchester, flying Globespan. We paid a small fortune for the added comfort as we only take this trip bi-annually, and we also had our seat numbers changed two days before we left. It had taken weeks of phone calls to get the seats allocated in the first place. The outward flight was 35 minutes late taking off with no explanation whatsoever. The flight was dreary with the seats only average in pitch and depth but the leg room was good, however I am only 5'2" so that is no compliment. The food was uneatable, a plate of greasy overcooked pasta which I could not touch. We were offered two drinks on the way out, I asked for a tomato juice which they did not have so I settled for a bitter lemon. The entertainment was Mrs. Doubtfire and a very old episode of Only Fools and Horses. Coming back the flight was 45 minutes late, again, no explanation, but we would not have been able to understand it anyway as it was purely 'Allo, Allo English, this would have been hilarious under different circumstances but the money we had shelled out was a huge amount for us. The meal was better this time but the last 'snack' again, was a hard bun with ham of some sort on it, looked good but it was stale. There were no pillows or blankets put out and no information on the required safety regulations was given. If you are considering this airline, please don't. Immediately we arrived in Canada we sent an e- mail of complaint to the company which was totally ignored. Had we known the reputation of this airline we would never have gone with them. The plane was clean and appeared new, but this should be expected in the first place. I see that some of your Canadian passengers give it approval, but Canadian fares are so much lower than British that they probably would tolerate the sloppy, amateur joke that it was to us. This was made worse by the fact that Globespan in the past had been a good firm to fly with, and we had used them several times, no longer. They are now an expensive joke. I felt even more sorry for the couple behind us who were crammed up against a bulkhead with little leg room and no window.

FlyGlobespan - by E Mills

29 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Glasgow to Hamilton Toronto. We had booked Premium upgrade and was very disappointed with it. After a 2hr 30 min delay we stopped in Iceland to refuel. The return from Hamilton was a nightmare, checked in at 5.30pm to be told we had a 7hr 45min delay. We enquired if we were once again refueling in Iceland and were told yes. We were given a $10 voucher to use in the cafe, which we later found out closed at 9pm. Around 10pm another hour delay was added to the time on the departure board. At no time was any Globespan representative on hand. An announcement was made at 1.30pm, it was unclear what was accually said but went along the lines of `we will get you`s off as soon as possible`. All airport facilities closed early. It was 4.50am before we left arriving in Glasgow just over 12hrs late. We were given a refreshment with our meal, several hours later they came round offering a cup of water. After we left Iceland they came back round with a choice of water or orange juice. Having travelled premium with other airlines we felt this service on Globespan was a joke. People sitting in business class had a constant queue at their elbow of people waiting to use the toilet. I wish I had seen this site before I booked the Toronto flight with them. I also have a flight to Florida booked with them in October, premium outbound, business class return. It is a holiday I am not now looking forward to.

FlyGlobespan - by E Togher

29 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Glasgow to Orlando Sanford return. The flights, although on their NEOS- wetleased planes, was good. The language barrier with the cabin crew was a little bit of an issue, but we got through it. Inflight entertainment wasn't spectacular considering this was a relatively long-haul flight, with only the communal screens to watch and headphones supplied at a fiver a pop. The flight back arrived 30mins early. Same NEOS-wetleased plane, with Italian crew, but good enough and with the same follies as above. Only niggle is that at the check-in desk in Sanford we were told we would not be able to be seated together unless we paid for extra legroom seats - Which we did, at a cost of 45USD per person. As soon as we boarded the plane we were seated and it was made blatantly clear we were not getting the extra legroom we had paid through the nose for. Having paid to be seated together, we ended up three of us sitting in the middle of the plane and two sitting towards the very front (But obviously not in business class!). Price is a big factor for us, but these little niggles make us think that paying the extra few quid for another airline would be well worth it. I don't know!

FlyGlobespan - by Gerald Brooks

27 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Booked premium class flights from new Doncaster/ Sheffield airport to Hamilton which is handy for London, Onterio. In the mean time our friends from Canada visited us in May and had terrible flghts both ways with Globespan, I tried to cancel our flights without success.Our flight from Doncaster was delayed with a " Problem with something underneath "for 3.5 hours. Aircraft was an old Iberia 757 operated by Icelandic Airways for Globespan and had seen much better days. he onward flight was good and service excellent. For our return flight at night, and after looking looking at this site, we paid for an upgrade to business class , and had an excellent flight - and arrived 30 mins early at Doncaster.

FlyGlobespan - by Iain Wilson

25 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

We booked in Feb 07, a direct return flight Glasgow-Hamilton - premium economy as we had used this service before and been impressed. The contrast on this occasion was stunning. Prior to flying we received an updated confirmation stating that depending on weather conditions, it might be necessary to stop in Iceland for fuel. (I suspected that a 737 was being used on the route due to the seating plan and this turned out to be the case.) This was clearly misleading, as when we arrived at the airport, the Keflavik stop was part of the itinerary on the flight information boards. Following some research on my return that even on a good day, this aircraft only has a range of 5,400km and the distance to Hamilton via Keflavik is 5,580. It’s so blatant it makes my teeth itch! When we arrived to fly, there was a 1 hour delay showing, which extended to 2.5 hours by the time we took off- the aircraft had come back via Manchester apparently. The ground staff at the airport were surprised at the length of the delay - apparently the standard was 3-4 hours on any given day. The short flight to Keflavik was uneventful - in that the service was slow and choice of drinks very limited. The aircraft was pretty full except for one row on either side at the front which we discovered was to separate economy from the business class - no other delineation was possible on this aircraft. It had no inflight entertainment - we were given little media player things - 1 between 2, which had a limited range of old TV programmes and no recent movies- my daughter watched all of the kids progs in an hour! On the ground in Keflavik, refuelling commenced and then the power went off! The ground power unit had been driven away while attached to the aircraft, bending the hinge on the door, meaning an extremely hot 3 hours on the tarmac in our seats while we were constantly misinformed and given numerous false starts. We were eventually offered some water after 2.5 hours! The flight schedules have clearly not been altered to take account of the stop in Iceland. Despite the 5.5 hour delay, we eventually landed at Hamilton 7 hours 10 minutes behind schedule. No Flyglobespan rep was present that was accessible to us. We had booked a bus transfer to Toronto which dropped off at a central point, but that should have been at about 4pm. When the bus eventually left and made it's seemingly unending way to Toronto, it was 0030 in the morning by the time we were being dropped off. I arranged to do a deal with the driver to drop us at our hotel, but this should have been taken care of by Globespan, not me. I have a 2 year old and a 12 year old daughter and it is totally unacceptable that the delays encountered in this should not have been taken into account by the airline who sold us the bus package also. When we arrived at Hamilton for the return leg of our journey, as we checked in, the flight was showing a 6hr 40 minute delay. We complained to the ground agent, a very helpful and gracious man who had been with Flyglobespan only 2 weeks; he must have wondered why he had bothered. He arranged for ourselves and another family with young children to be taken to the Downtown Hamilton Sheraton to wait and arranged for us to have dinner and transport as well as the use of a room and the other facilities on site during the wait. We returned at 12.30am to find the flight had been further delayed until 3.45 am. It finally took off at 4.35am, 9hrs 5 minutes behind schedule. We arrived back in Glasgow, having been unable to take the direct route home (via Keflavik for fuel again) at 6.15pm, 11hrs 15min late. This airline, and I use the word loosely, are clearly stretched way beyond their meagre means. The aircraft which should be on this route are leased to Air India for the foreseeable future. Staff at Hamilton and the chief steward on our flight agreed that the situation was woeful and that aircraft were being used on a route they were inadequate for - because of this, the delay was being compounded every time a flight took off because the extra time taken to go via Keflavik has not be factored into this flight schedule. The steward also pointed out that the cabin crew could not provide the expected service because the aircraft could not support this, in terms of facility and space. He also commented that the cabin staff were "sick of it" as they bore the brunt of the dissatisfaction from customers. I will never fly this airline again and I suggest that you do likewise. You have been warned!

FlyGlobespan - by Mary Banks

25 July 2007  Customer Trip Rating :

Travelled on 18th July from Hamilton, Canada. supposedly direct to Manchester, we went to JFK New York What a nightmare! Had to collect our luggage & recheck it in after going through that passport control, fingerprints & photos - they are not the most welcoming of people, what a fiasco it was to recheck our luggage. We got back on the plane to discover some of us had different seats and to be told sit down quickly or you'll be looking for a hotel for the night - Nice!! Don't put medication in you checked in bags, I'm still waiting for mine today. What a pity - Hamilton was so convenient.