Disappointing Experience with Check-in Staff at OR Tambo

I am extremely disappointed with the service we received from Flight Safair during our connection from OR Tambo International Airport to Durban on Tuesday, 06 January 2026, on the 19:00 flight.

We were five travellers returning from Kigali. To avoid any issues, we checked in the day before, selected our seats in advance, and ensured that my wife and I were seated together while our friends were seated together. Everything was properly arranged ahead of time.

At the check-in counter at OR Tambo, the staff member assisting us had a poor attitude from the beginning. After checking in my luggage, she refused to push my checked-in bag onto the processing belt behind the counter, despite me asking her politely multiple times. I was repeatedly ignored.

As we were about to leave the counter, I asked again why my bag had still not been processed. I was told it “would be done,” but nothing happened. I then made it clear that I was uncomfortable leaving without seeing my luggage processed and that I needed it done immediately. Only then did she comply.

Shortly after this interaction, I discovered that I had been removed from my pre-selected seat next to my wife and reassigned to a middle seat between two big-bodied passengers. This is not meant as body-shaming, but rather to explain the discomfort of the situation. While seat changes can sometimes be necessary, no explanation was given, and it felt retaliatory rather than operational.

What made this worse was the fact that once the flight took off, it was clear that the aircraft was not even full, making the seat change completely unnecessary.

This experience left me feeling disrespected and unfairly treated for simply asking for proper service. Customer service staff should act professionally, communicate clearly, and never appear to punish passengers for raising legitimate concerns.

This was a very disappointing end to an otherwise well-planned trip. I hope Flight Safair takes this feedback seriously, reviews the conduct of the staff member involved, and improves customer service standards at OR Tambo. My family, friends and colleagues are never flying with this airline