Dear Customer,We understand the frustration and disappointment this situation caused you and your group.Had there not been an airline strike that was stranding thousands of passengers in Germany,you would have enjoyed your 10 day tour in the Holy Lands.However, circumstances allowed you to cancel...
the tour at the last minute and receive a fullrefund from Lufthansa on typically non-refundable tickets. Their approval of this cancellation iswhat we were waiting for, because we would not recommend you cancel if Lufthansa did notagree to a full refund, At the last minutes prior to your boarding your plane, per youraccount the word came from Lufthansa that due to the enormous number of passengersstranded in Germany, they would allow groups to cancel with a full refund. This offer waspresented to the Tour Host, and he discussed it with his passengers and decided to cancel theirtour and travel at a later date.Our ability to rebook the group was dependent on receiving the refund from Lufthansa. Inconversations in early December, the group selected a date in early January. Upon discussionwith our Airline Consolidator, they had not received the refund from Lufthansa yet and theirability to purchase tickets for a new tour date was on hold until the monies were received. Notonly were we waiting on the refund, but once we would’ve received the refund, we were upagainst finding enough seats for the entire group on a flight that would be departing during ahigh travel season, with less than a month’s time.We attempted multiple times to contact Lufthansa directly, however we were informed thatinformation would only be provided to the ticketing agency that the airline tickets werepurchased from, and we were to contact them for details.We were not getting information from our agent at Mill Run Tours, so we contacted their headoffice for details towards the end of December. They informed us that Said K[redacted] no longerworked for Mill Run, but was an independent agent booking air with Mill Run Tours. Beadvised that we had been working with Mill Run Tours for the past 30÷ years, and were toldto work directly with Said K[redacted] by Mill Run. We were never informed that he was anindependent agent and always were led to believe that he was an employee of Mill Run.Email correspondence between Said and our company states that he is a BusinessDevelopment & Account Executive of Mill Run Tours.Our Tour Host informed us that one of his passengers had a friend who worked for United, andshe was told that Lufthansa had refunded the Airline Consolidator in early December. As wehad attempted to contact Lufthansa and was given the run around, we were able to contact theAirline Reporting Corporation (ARC), who confirmed that the Airline Consolidator had beenDear Customer,We understand the frustration and disappointment this situation caused you and your group.Had there not been an airline strike that was stranding thousands of passengers in Germany,you would have enjoyed your 10 day tour in the Holy Lands.However, circumstances allowed you to cancel the tour at the last minute and receive a fullrefund from Lufthansa on typically non-refundable tickets. Their approval of this cancellation iswhat we were waiting for, because we would not recommend you cancel if Lufthansa did notagree to a full refund, At the last minutes prior to your boarding your plane, per youraccount the word came from Lufthansa that due to the enormous number of passengersstranded in Germany, they would allow groups to cancel with a full refund. This offer waspresented to the Tour Host, and he discussed it with his passengers and decided to cancel theirtour and travel at a later date.Our ability to rebook the group was dependent on receiving the refund from Lufthansa. Inconversations in early December, the group selected a date in early January. Upon discussionwith our Airline Consolidator, they had not received the refund from Lufthansa yet and theirability to purchase tickets for a new tour date was on hold until the monies were received. Notonly were we waiting on the refund, but once we would’ve received the refund, we were upagainst finding enough seats for the entire group on a flight that would be departing during ahigh travel season, with less than a month’s time.We attempted multiple times to contact Lufthansa directly, however we were informed thatinformation would only be provided to the ticketing agency that the airline tickets werepurchased from, and we were to contact them for details.We were not getting information from our agent at Mill Run Tours, so we contacted their headoffice for details towards the end of December. They informed us that Said K[redacted] no longerworked for Mill Run, but was an independent agent booking air with Mill Run Tours. Beadvised that we had been working with Mill Run Tours for the past 30+ years, and were toldto work directly with Said K[redacted] by Mill Run. We were never informed that he was anindependent agent and always were led to believe that he was an employee of Mill Run.Email correspondence between Said and our company states that he is a BusinessDevelopment & Account Executive of Mill Run Tours.Our Tour Host informed us that one of his passengers had a friend who worked for United, andshe was told that Lufthansa had refunded the Airline Consolidator in early December. As wehad attempted to contact Lufthansa and was given the run around, we were able to contact theAirline Reporting Corporation (ARC), who confirmed that the Airline Consolidator had beenbefore departure. In addition, all passengers had our personal cell numbers, and emailaddresses, and many had been in contact with our office.“We were booked on Lufthansa who went on strike over Thanksgiving week-pilots still flying.”Explained above, The Lufthansa strike started the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, andcontinued. We kept checking to make sure that your group would have no issues. Lufthansathen made a statement that they would not be notifying passengers of cancellation until 24hours before their scheduled departure time. That is why we were informed prior to boardhigthat your group could cancel their booking and receive a full refund.“Monday at while arriving at the airport we were stopped from boarding the plane by DanielMalka of GST on the phone with our pastor. Daniel told us we had 10 minutes to cancel ourflight for full ticket refund- we would be stuck in Frankfurt for 5 days with no food or hotel dueto strike.”We were informed by various agents and airline representatives that hotels were full inGermany and passengers were stuck in airports with no other options. Lufthansa was willing toprovide a full refund [to non-refundable tickets] if our passengers decided to cancel. With thisinformation, we recommended to your Tour Host that you cancel your flights and travel toIsrael after the strike had ended, This recommendation was made for three reasons:1. Lufthansa had guaranteed a full refund of the airline tickets.2. Costs in Germany were an unknown, connections to Israel were unknown, and the totallayover time was unknown.3. The return tickets from Israel to the USA were scheduled, so the group would have to returnto the USA in 10 days, missing days from their Holy Land Tour due to their layover in Germany.Your Tour Host decided to cancel the tour at this time. You had your e-tickets, though, andcould have boarded the plane if that was the decision of the group.“Long story short, we agreed to three different dates to go landing on Jan 4th... When I calledUnited to check ourflight our group was not even reserved.”Our discussions with your tour host regarding rescheduling the tour began about a week afterthe original departure date. The January date the group requested was dependent on receivingthe refund from Lufthansa and, as per the texts between our office and airline consolidatorwhich your tour host received, the refund was not received and the date was never confirmedby our office. Typically, travel around New Years Eve is always difficult and costs are at apremium, so groups rarely travel in the first week of January because of this.“Further research showed Sky Bird wos trying to cancel our tickets purchased through Unitedover Thanksgiving week ‘due to non-payment’. Denied.”This information was never received from the ARC, and your group had the eTicket numbers atthis time. No eTicket numbers [i.e. tickets] would have been given if full payment was notreceived by the airline.“I then contacted the hotels in Israel ond found none had been paid”We wire the land arrangement funds to our correspondent in Israel, and he makes paymentsaccordingly. In this way, we are able to avoid multiple international fees. Our agent paid for thetour bus, the entrance fee tickets, and the tour guide. As for the hotels, it was a verbal contractwhereby we have to reschedule or pay cancellation fees.“They have refused to refund our money or any portion of our money with the exception of thetotal of $2500 which would have been their profit’1As stated above, we offered the requested March 2017 departure date for the group, whichthey decided against. Refunds for the tour will be based on actual monies we are able torecover. Per our tour conditions, no refund would normally be offered for tourcancellations within 14 days of the tour departure date. Documents outlining the offers wemade to your Tour Host confirm the above.“They have continuallystoted that they have alreadyspent the trip money in Israel so we haveto use those room etc to complete the trip — no refund. That is a lie.”As stated above, their cancellation of the tour was their decision. A full tour package wasavailable to the group in March or November 2017. We are currently working with the FBI andlocal police to procure whatever refunds we can, and we will return these to the tour groupwhen and if they are received.FINAL OFFER: If your Tour Group decides to reconsider our offers to travel to Israel, we willrebook your airline tickets and provide the tour package you purchased, In lieu of this, we willrefund you what monies we are able to recover from your tour cancellation.Sincerely,Good Shepherd Tours
Dear Customer,We understand the frustration and disappointment this situation caused you and your group.Had there not been an airline strike that was stranding thousands of passengers in Germany,you would have enjoyed your 10 day tour in the Holy Lands.However, circumstances allowed you to cancel...
the tour at the last minute and receive a fullrefund from Lufthansa on typically non-refundable tickets. Their approval of this cancellation iswhat we were waiting for, because we would not recommend you cancel if Lufthansa did notagree to a full refund, At the last minutes prior to your boarding your plane, per youraccount the word came from Lufthansa that due to the enormous number of passengersstranded in Germany, they would allow groups to cancel with a full refund. This offer waspresented to the Tour Host, and he discussed it with his passengers and decided to cancel theirtour and travel at a later date.Our ability to rebook the group was dependent on receiving the refund from Lufthansa. Inconversations in early December, the group selected a date in early January. Upon discussionwith our Airline Consolidator, they had not received the refund from Lufthansa yet and theirability to purchase tickets for a new tour date was on hold until the monies were received. Notonly were we waiting on the refund, but once we would’ve received the refund, we were upagainst finding enough seats for the entire group on a flight that would be departing during ahigh travel season, with less than a month’s time.We attempted multiple times to contact Lufthansa directly, however we were informed thatinformation would only be provided to the ticketing agency that the airline tickets werepurchased from, and we were to contact them for details.We were not getting information from our agent at Mill Run Tours, so we contacted their headoffice for details towards the end of December. They informed us that Said K[redacted] no longerworked for Mill Run, but was an independent agent booking air with Mill Run Tours. Beadvised that we had been working with Mill Run Tours for the past 30÷ years, and were toldto work directly with Said K[redacted] by Mill Run. We were never informed that he was anindependent agent and always were led to believe that he was an employee of Mill Run.Email correspondence between Said and our company states that he is a BusinessDevelopment & Account Executive of Mill Run Tours.Our Tour Host informed us that one of his passengers had a friend who worked for United, andshe was told that Lufthansa had refunded the Airline Consolidator in early December. As wehad attempted to contact Lufthansa and was given the run around, we were able to contact theAirline Reporting Corporation (ARC), who confirmed that the Airline Consolidator had beenDear Customer,We understand the frustration and disappointment this situation caused you and your group.Had there not been an airline strike that was stranding thousands of passengers in Germany,you would have enjoyed your 10 day tour in the Holy Lands.However, circumstances allowed you to cancel the tour at the last minute and receive a fullrefund from Lufthansa on typically non-refundable tickets. Their approval of this cancellation iswhat we were waiting for, because we would not recommend you cancel if Lufthansa did notagree to a full refund, At the last minutes prior to your boarding your plane, per youraccount the word came from Lufthansa that due to the enormous number of passengersstranded in Germany, they would allow groups to cancel with a full refund. This offer waspresented to the Tour Host, and he discussed it with his passengers and decided to cancel theirtour and travel at a later date.Our ability to rebook the group was dependent on receiving the refund from Lufthansa. Inconversations in early December, the group selected a date in early January. Upon discussionwith our Airline Consolidator, they had not received the refund from Lufthansa yet and theirability to purchase tickets for a new tour date was on hold until the monies were received. Notonly were we waiting on the refund, but once we would’ve received the refund, we were upagainst finding enough seats for the entire group on a flight that would be departing during ahigh travel season, with less than a month’s time.We attempted multiple times to contact Lufthansa directly, however we were informed thatinformation would only be provided to the ticketing agency that the airline tickets werepurchased from, and we were to contact them for details.We were not getting information from our agent at Mill Run Tours, so we contacted their headoffice for details towards the end of December. They informed us that Said K[redacted] no longerworked for Mill Run, but was an independent agent booking air with Mill Run Tours. Beadvised that we had been working with Mill Run Tours for the past 30+ years, and were toldto work directly with Said K[redacted] by Mill Run. We were never informed that he was anindependent agent and always were led to believe that he was an employee of Mill Run.Email correspondence between Said and our company states that he is a BusinessDevelopment & Account Executive of Mill Run Tours.Our Tour Host informed us that one of his passengers had a friend who worked for United, andshe was told that Lufthansa had refunded the Airline Consolidator in early December. As wehad attempted to contact Lufthansa and was given the run around, we were able to contact theAirline Reporting Corporation (ARC), who confirmed that the Airline Consolidator had beenbefore departure. In addition, all passengers had our personal cell numbers, and emailaddresses, and many had been in contact with our office.“We were booked on Lufthansa who went on strike over Thanksgiving week-pilots still flying.”Explained above, The Lufthansa strike started the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, andcontinued. We kept checking to make sure that your group would have no issues. Lufthansathen made a statement that they would not be notifying passengers of cancellation until 24hours before their scheduled departure time. That is why we were informed prior to boardhigthat your group could cancel their booking and receive a full refund.“Monday at while arriving at the airport we were stopped from boarding the plane by DanielMalka of GST on the phone with our pastor. Daniel told us we had 10 minutes to cancel ourflight for full ticket refund- we would be stuck in Frankfurt for 5 days with no food or hotel dueto strike.”We were informed by various agents and airline representatives that hotels were full inGermany and passengers were stuck in airports with no other options. Lufthansa was willing toprovide a full refund [to non-refundable tickets] if our passengers decided to cancel. With thisinformation, we recommended to your Tour Host that you cancel your flights and travel toIsrael after the strike had ended, This recommendation was made for three reasons:1. Lufthansa had guaranteed a full refund of the airline tickets.2. Costs in Germany were an unknown, connections to Israel were unknown, and the totallayover time was unknown.3. The return tickets from Israel to the USA were scheduled, so the group would have to returnto the USA in 10 days, missing days from their Holy Land Tour due to their layover in Germany.Your Tour Host decided to cancel the tour at this time. You had your e-tickets, though, andcould have boarded the plane if that was the decision of the group.“Long story short, we agreed to three different dates to go landing on Jan 4th... When I calledUnited to check ourflight our group was not even reserved.”Our discussions with your tour host regarding rescheduling the tour began about a week afterthe original departure date. The January date the group requested was dependent on receivingthe refund from Lufthansa and, as per the texts between our office and airline consolidatorwhich your tour host received, the refund was not received and the date was never confirmedby our office. Typically, travel around New Years Eve is always difficult and costs are at apremium, so groups rarely travel in the first week of January because of this.“Further research showed Sky Bird wos trying to cancel our tickets purchased through Unitedover Thanksgiving week ‘due to non-payment’. Denied.”This information was never received from the ARC, and your group had the eTicket numbers atthis time. No eTicket numbers [i.e. tickets] would have been given if full payment was notreceived by the airline.“I then contacted the hotels in Israel ond found none had been paid”We wire the land arrangement funds to our correspondent in Israel, and he makes paymentsaccordingly. In this way, we are able to avoid multiple international fees. Our agent paid for thetour bus, the entrance fee tickets, and the tour guide. As for the hotels, it was a verbal contractwhereby we have to reschedule or pay cancellation fees.“They have refused to refund our money or any portion of our money with the exception of thetotal of $2500 which would have been their profit’1As stated above, we offered the requested March 2017 departure date for the group, whichthey decided against. Refunds for the tour will be based on actual monies we are able torecover. Per our tour conditions, no refund would normally be offered for tourcancellations within 14 days of the tour departure date. Documents outlining the offers wemade to your Tour Host confirm the above.“They have continuallystoted that they have alreadyspent the trip money in Israel so we haveto use those room etc to complete the trip — no refund. That is a lie.”As stated above, their cancellation of the tour was their decision. A full tour package wasavailable to the group in March or November 2017. We are currently working with the FBI andlocal police to procure whatever refunds we can, and we will return these to the tour groupwhen and if they are received.FINAL OFFER: If your Tour Group decides to reconsider our offers to travel to Israel, we willrebook your airline tickets and provide the tour package you purchased, In lieu of this, we willrefund you what monies we are able to recover from your tour cancellation.Sincerely,Good Shepherd Tours