This was revealed in a commentary by disability-rights advocate Peter Gabriel Tan, which was published by The Borneo Post yesterday.
Tan shared how Bellew met with him and other disability-rights advocates to discuss the plight of the disabled when it comes to taking flights, especially on Malaysia Airlines.
Following the meeting, Bellew wrote an email to his staff, outlining his plans, some to be achieved within the next four months, for the benefit of the disabled. It also included the need to learn from two airlines recommended by the advocates as the best in the business in handling people with disabilities.
It all started with Tan’s open letter to Malaysia Airlines CEO, published in The Borneo Post on Feb 5.
The letter had an immediate impact with Bellew responding with an email the next day apologising for what Tan had experienced during a flight to Bangkok on Feb 1. The CEO also promised to meet up with Tan and get more feedback on the needs of the disabled.
That meeting finally took place on Feb 18, with Bellew bringing along his chief operations officer Captain Izham Ismail and head of customer experience assurance Anneliza Zainal.
Tan and his wife were accompanied by Wang Siew Ming and Rafidah Rafizah Ahmad.
Tan said the meeting started with Bellew apologising again for the predicament Tan had suffered on Feb 1.
“I accepted the apology and we both agreed to move forward from there. The discussion was cordial, frank and open. He was interested to learn about challenges disabled people face when flying with the airline other than what I had recounted in the open letter.
“I highlighted areas where I faced difficulties, from booking flights and checking-in to in-flight facilities and support services. He listened and then suggested solutions for each problem. He was forthright and realistic about what the airline can do to resolve the problems we faced,” Tan recounted about the meeting.
‘Acknowledge weaknesses’
But it was an email from Bellew to his staff that gave Tan a lot of hope for the future of the airline.
“He showed a lot of humility and his readiness to acknowledge weaknesses and the willingness to learn will certainly help Malaysia Airlines bounce back faster and stronger,” Tan, who is in his early 50s, said.
In the email, the contents of which Tan had been allowed to share, Bellew outlined his plans moving forward with a specific timeline.
“I listened to Peter (Tan) and his friends, who highlighted the many difficulties they face when dealing with Malaysia Airlines, Firefly and MASWings as they try to travel with us. The problems are many and varied and will require new procedures, processes and some investment. Communication is the biggest challenge followed by a lack of training.
“Our Golden Rule for the future must be to ‘Treat other people as we wish to be treated ourselves.’ The change needs to start today for Peter and others who have mobility challenges,” Bellew told his staff, adding that his first task was to create new senior managerial and executive positions in Customer Care.
“They will be given resources and authority to deal with Priority Guests comprising customers who are mobility impaired, blind, deaf, pregnant, infirm, have a fear of flying, unaccompanied minors and senior citizens requiring support.”
Referring to Tan and Rafidah’s recommendation that Japan Airline and UK’s Easyjet had the best practices when it comes to services for the disabled, Bellew took his commitment a step further.
“During my meeting with the group they identified training resources that we will start to use. Their experience is that JAL – Japan Airlines and Easyjet (UK) have excellent customer service for Priority Guests and I have today contacted the CEOs of both airlines asking for their assistance and advice,” Bellew wrote in his email to Malaysia Airlines staff.
Lofty goals
According to Tan, Bellew’s email had also set the end of June 2017 as the target to accomplish six goals, namely hiring the right people, setting up a team in the airline’s call centre to handle calls to the Priority Guest telephone line, increase luggage limit for mobility devices, review handling and training at all airports, commence a new training programme in handling Priority Guests and form an advisory group on improving services for Priority Guests.
“That was not all he said he would do. He had set two more very lofty goals to undertake within this time frame,” Tan said, referring to Bellew stating in his email that access in Malaysia Airlines offices throughout the country, as well as at airports and retail units will be reviewed in order to support the airline’s staff who may be physically impaired.
“Our goal is by June 2018, to offer a customer service for Priority Guests that obeys the Golden Rule and will be better than JAL and Easyjet airlines,” Bellew said in his email, according to Tan.
Tan said Bellew had himself suggested a follow up meeting in one month so as to update the disability-rights advocates on what has been implemented and what is going to be done further to that.
“I was surprised and delighted the outcome of this meeting turned out better than I had anticipated because I did not expect to cover so many other issues,” he said, acknowledging too, how his bad experience has created a greater awareness of problems faced by disabled passengers which in turn will lead to improvement in services and facilities.
We’re sorry your journey was terrible, Bellew tells passenger