Champion Australian footballer Sam Kerr isn’t the only passenger to endure a run-in with Jetstar, but the difference is she went straight to the front of the queue after voicing her complaints via social media.
The Matildas superstar tweeted her disgust at being refused boarding on a flight to Bali after the airline deemed her passport too damaged to travel.
Kerr’s photo of her passport showed just minor damage, but the airline said Indonesian authorities had ordered a crackdown on weathered passports and they were just enforcing regulations.
What a joke . @JetstarAirways won’t let me travel due to a damaged passport pic.twitter.com/oeiS4Z57Qu
— Sam Kerr (@samkerr1) November 27, 2019
The striker’s tweet to her 58,000 followers attracted support and sympathy in equal doses.
More importantly, it prompted publicity sensitive Jetstar into action.
Hi Sam, kindly send us a DM along with your booking reference and full name and we’ll look into this for you. Thanks - Yen
— Jetstar Airways (@JetstarAirways) November 27, 2019
And guess what? Suddenly Kerr’s passport was deemed fit for travel after all.
The next morning she posted a poolside photo from her Balinese villa.
It pays to know people in high places – and being one of Australia’s highest profile athletes doesn’t hurt, either.