KUALA LUMPUR: Atieqah Azri was on a dream family vacation in Turkiye, which quickly turned into a nightmare when they had to fork out more than RM8,000 just to get back home to Malaysia.
On March 2, Atieqah, her husband Nik Ikrami Omar and their six-month-old son had finished their vacation and went to check into their flight at the Istanbul Airport to fly home.
She said they arrived at the airport three hours before the 8.20pm departure time for their Qatar Airways flight, a codeshare flight with Malaysia Airlines, whom they bought their tickets directly from.
However, they soon encountered a problem. Their baby's ticket, which was bought directly from the counter at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), could not be checked in.
"They told us that based on Qatar Airways' system, there were no details of the particular ticket," she said.
Atieqa said she rang the Malaysia Airlines helpline for assistance, which took a long time to respond.
"After spending about RM1,000 on international roaming charges, we eventually got help. The person on the other end of the line said they would email another ticket over.
"However, that ticket also couldn't be used," she said in a Facebook post.
Pressed for time, she again rang the Malaysia Airlines helpline and got another person.
"This time, we passed the phone to a Qatar Airways personnel so that they could sort out the issue.
"In the end they couldn't and the flight took off without us," she said.
Atieqa said they had no choice but to seek accommodation for the night, which meant extra cost.
The next day, engaging a third party, they tried to secure a replacement flight back to KL.
"We were told by the airline that we would have to buy new tickets as we were deemed as "no shows". Apparently there was no proof that we had checked in," she claimed.
The family then had to fork out RM8,000 to buy new flight tickets to Kuala Lumpur.
"There was nothing else we could do. Our baby was living out of a stroller. We had to go home any which way," she said.
This flight, however, included a lengthy seven-hour layover in Doha, Qatar, which further drained them.
Upon arrival in Kuala Lumpur, they lodged a report on the Malaysia Airlines website and also filed a formal complaint at the airlines' office in Nu Sentral.
Atieqah claimed they were told to wait two weeks for a reply. When two weeks passed, she enquired again and was told to wait another fortnight.
"Until today, this has yet to be resolved. We need the compensation to settle the debts we've racked up.
"Is there anyone out there who can help us escalate this matter to the airline?
Atieqah's posting drew a flurry of comments, with many tagging Transport Minister Anthony Loke to seek his help to resolve the issue.
Some also urged the couple to lodge a complaint with the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom).
The New Straits Times is reaching out to Malaysia Airlines for a response.