A funny computer glitch at Brussels Airlines

[sn26567]

Bad news makes the front page easier than good news. But I also want to report when things work fine.

Yesterday I went for a day business trip from BRU(ssels) to MAN(chester) and back on Brussels Airlines in b.light. Everything worked out fine (reservation, online check-in, boarding, flight, service with a smile, on-time performance, etc.), with one funny exception.

When checking in on Internet the day before the flight (on an Avro RJ85)the computer had assigned me seat 18F. Since I did not have Flash Player 7 to change seats, I accepted and printed the boarding pass. During boarding, the gate agent first accepted my pass, then called me back and said there was a change of seats. He re-assigned me to seat 16A. I was lucky: row 16 is the last full row in the Avro 85. Row 17 has only seats A and C, and there is now row 18! I could have ended up standing for the whole flight

The load factor was around 50%, which means there was no problem to get me a free seat, and even a whole free row.

[jan_olieslagers]

the computer had assigned me seat 18F.

Well if the computer system assigned you that seat, it can only mean it had been given the information that such a seat exists. I am aware it is a squibble on words, but I think in all fairness you cannot call this a computer glitch - rather someone human mistaken in defining the plane's layout in the database. Machines do make mistakes sometimes, but certainly humans make many more!

The essential point is of course thtat you had a good trip, it is nice to see things and people can work ok!

[EBBR]

My guess is that originally you had to fly on a RJ100 where 18F exists, the day after flight planning must have rescheduled that RJ100 on another route with higher loads so they gave you a RJ85 where 18F doesn't exist I shouldn't worry too much about this problem

[sn26567]

My guess is that originally you had to fly on a RJ100 where 18F exists

I don't think so. Every time I looked on Amadeus or elsewhere the flight was mentioned as flown by an RJ85.