HK Airlines' sentiments dip as users complain about 2-hour wait online for free tickets

Hong Kong Airlines has seen a dip in brand sentiments after Hongkongers complained about having to wait for more than two hours to access the ticket giveaway site. 

This comes as the airline company is offering about 7,500 free round-trip tickets to 13 destinations om Asia for select economy class seats. The promotion starts from 10am on Tuesday until next Monday on its website.  

The promotion includes flights from Hong Kong to Bangkok, Taipei, Taichung, Bali, Da Nang, Osaka, Tokyo, Fukuoka, Okinawa, Chongqing, Haikou, Sanya, and Beijing (Capital/ Daxing). Tickets are limited to one per person. 

All tickets are sponsored by Hong Kong International Airport, and include a 20 kg checked baggage allowance and a 7 kg hand carry allowance but not inclusive of taxes and surcharges, said the airline.  

However, visitors to the airline’s website claimed there were long queues in the first hour of logging in, with some saying they were told to wait for at least two hours to get into the payment site, a check by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE saw on Facebook. Tickets to Okinawa, Tokyo, Fukuoka and Bali were sold out by noon on 6 August. 

Meanwhile, media intelligence firm CARMA observed over 1,300 media mentions specifically related to Hong Kong Airlines’ free flight promotion. Of these, 8.2% were positive, while 20.9% were negative. 

It's worth noting that before this campaign, Hong Kong Airlines had a positive sentiment of 26.2% and a negative sentiment of 11.5%. After the campaign, there was a slight decrease in positive sentiment to 22.3% and a slight increase in negative sentiment to 14.1%, said CARMA’s HK GM Charles Cheung.  

On Hong Kong Airlines’ official Facebook page, users frequently commented on the lengthy wait times. In contrast, comments on other social media platforms were more moderate, said Cheung. 

“Notably, most LIHKG posts consisted of netizens updating ticket availability, with many remarking that they are accustomed to long waits since similar promotions began in Hong Kong,” he said. 

“Some noted that the original prices weren't significantly different, and the timing was more convenient, so they chose not to participate. A few netizens expressed that such campaigns are unnecessary due to the high demand for flights, as people in Hong Kong travel frequently anyway,” he added. 

The latest promotion follows a series of discounted air tickets from Cathay Pacific Airways’ budget airline HK Express, and Greater Bay Airlines, offering passengers cheap return tickets from Hong Kong to Tokyo.  

MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to HK Airlines for a statement. 

Don't miss: 'High traffic issues' on ticket giveaway site: How can Hong Kong Airlines improve user experience?

This isn't the first time the airline cops flak for its "high traffic issues" on its ticket giveaway site. Back in August 2023, Hong Kong Airlines defended itself after consumers expressed their dissatisfaction of having to experience another round of an "endless" wait on its ticket giveaway website, of which the airline aimed to distribute 9,800 free flight tickets to seven Asian destinations including Seoul and Bangkok.

In a conversation with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE previously, a spokesperson from HK Airlines explained that due to the overwhelming response from customers, the website experienced high traffic issues initially on the campaign webpage.

Related articles:

Hong Kong Airlines offers free tickets to P6 students following viral clip
Hong Kong Airlines and Airport Authority HK promote educational travel with ticket giveaway