My family and I were meant to fly on the morning of June 26 from AMS to DUB (flight 603) and then DUB to SFO (flight 61). The afternoon before our morning flight I was notified by Expedia, through which I booked the flights, that our flights had been cancelled. Calls to Expedia and Aer Lingus told me that Aer Lingus pilots were on strike and therefore there were no other flights to get booked onto. My wife and I were scrambling to get home and managed to find a morning flight with KLM. As it was a last-minute purchase, unlike our Aer Lingus flight that we originally purchased six months in advance, the flight cost $5,800 for four people. What a shock!
We returned home on Wednesday, June 26th and have been trying to get a refund ever since! I uploaded my Aer Lingus and KLM invoices to the Aer Lingus website and have had a case number set up, but every time I call AL, I get the same story: "Our compensation team is overwhelmed. You should get an email in ten days." After ten days and another call, "We're overwhelmed. Call back in another ten days." Are they hoping that I'll just give up? I am out a ton of money for no fault of my own and my 5-6 calls to Aer Lingus have gotten me nowhere. What will it take to get refunded? We are disgusted by Aer Lingus and their dismal customer service. My advice? Do not book a flight with Aer Lingus!!!