In a shocking incident, Qantas Airways mistakenly sold hundreds of first-class flight tickets at a huge discount due to a coding error, as per a report in the Independent. They are now planning to offer refunds or downgrade the passengers.
On Thursday, the airline posted flights from Australia to the US on its website, however, due to an error, the flights seemed to be up to 85 per cent less expensive than the regular first-class rates. The cost of a return flight was listed at less than $5,000 (Rs 4 lakh), roughly $15,000 (Rs 12 lakh) cheaper than usual. The exceptionally low costs were on offer for around eight hours, during which time over 300 customers were able to reserve the return flights between Australia and the US.
Notably, the first-class tickets include access to airport lounges, champagne, a large seat and bedding, a chance to "peruse a pillow menu" and other amenities.
However, the cheap first-class tickets ended up being a mistake. According to Qantas' terms and conditions on its website, they are entitled to cancel a booking, issue a refund, or issue a new ticket at the proper fare price if mistakes are made and wrong fares are presented that are "reasonably obvious."
Qantas stated that they would still allow passengers to choose a higher class, but not the first-class experience. According to the airline, a business class passenger would still receive a ticket that is 65 per cent less expensive than usual.
A spokesperson for the Australian airline said, "Unfortunately, this is a case where the fare was actually too good to be true." "As a gesture of goodwill, we're rebooking customers in business class at no additional cost. Customers also have the option of a full refund," they added.
