Guernsey Press

Unprepared for personal nature of attacks... and what about airport car park?

I FULLY appreciate that when one writes to the Press, especially if the subject matter is in any way of a controversial nature, one is sticking one's head above the parapet, as it were, and must be prepared to be shot at – but what I was totally unprepared for was to be personally attacked and ridiculed by contributors to the Your Shout website regarding my Aurigny complaint. So for the information of the particularly offensive anonymous 'Beano', I think I can safely say that in no way could I justifiably be described as a self-important, whingeing, incompetent businessman expecting special treatment.

Published

I am in fact a quite unimportant 80-year-old more or less retired accountant who has retained a handful of clients in Alderney and who has used that island's air links provided by Aurigny and its predecessor(s) for approaching 55 years, and I can categorically state that during that period, involving in excess of 200 flights, and there were odd occasions when I was a little late checking in, I never ever received anything approaching the shabby treatment meted out to me on 7 December.

To recap briefly, I was four minutes late checking in for an Alderney flight with only hand baggage. I was issued with a boarding card and the departure gate was notified that I was on my way.

I was then intercepted in the security area and humiliatingly publicly advised not to proceed further as I was not to be allowed to board the aircraft. And what was Aurigny's astonishing response to my complaint? The flight had been closed before I checked in.

However, enough about that – I would like to discuss the matter of the airport parking facilities. The principal cause of my lateness was driving around the crowded main car park looking for a space. No easy task given the maze-like layout of the parking area; I eventually found one in the farthest south-west corner, but at my age I'm afraid my running days are over. Of course with hindsight I should have used the overflow car-park, which I did the following morning, but has the airport management ever considered installing equipment which would notify approaching motorists of the availability of spaces?

RODNEY COLLENETTE,

Vale Pond House.

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