Air China 中国国际航空公司 Zhōngguó Guójì Hángkōng Gōngsī Reviews 

I had a disappointing experience with Air China’s baggage claims process.

After my flight CA463 to Brussels, one of the wheels of my large checked suitcase was completely broken off. I reported the damage immediately at the airport and received a damage report.

Before travelling, I even paid extra to have my suitcase professionally wrapped and marked “Handle With Care” to reduce the risk of damage. Despite these precautions, my suitcase was returned with severe damage and is no longer repairable because the wheel mounting area was destroyed.

Air China acknowledged the damage and offered EUR 30 in compensation. I politely explained why this amount was not sufficient and asked them to reconsider. After several respectful follow-up emails, they stopped responding altogether.

I remained polite throughout the process and simply wanted a fair resolution. Unfortunately, the lack of communication after my request for reconsideration has been very disappointing.

My Air China flight was delayed due to bad weather in Shanghai, causing me to miss my pre-booked train in Italy. I understand weather is beyond the airline’s control. However, an Air China staff member told me to submit a claim for my train tickets. After waiting for days and providing all the documents, my claim was rejected because of the bad weather. I am disappointed that I was given hope instead of being told from the start that reimbursement was not possible. Better communication and consistent customer service are needed.

I'm still to actually fly with this mob, but so far the experience is disappointing.

Their website is atrocious. Seems everytime you go from one screen to another you have to pass a security check. The puzzles are weird with some being more confusing than others. Then there's trying to find one's booking. Most times it can't find them. Each time I try to find it I end up with around 5 different screens open.

I still haven't been able to check in online because their system can't find the booking even if I plug in the booking ID, ticket numbers, dates, flight information etc. This is ridiculous.

I can't access anything via the app because the tool to scan my passport says my information does not match. The same thing occurs for my wife who has a passport from another country.

I've tried contacting them via email for a number of reasons. If I do get a reply it's in Chinese. Yes, I realise it's a Chinese airline but besides not catering to the language of people in countries they fly from the email itself doesn't even look corporate.

I'm hoping that the experience in the airport is going to be much better.

If they can't make the experience before the flight easy and professional I'm truly fearful about the flight experience.

Update as of July 11.

The flights to Russia via Beijing were acceptable. The aircraft are well maintained but seem to be more noisy than what I'm used to.

I've taken 1 star ⭐ away despite that as I had to return home earlier for an emergency. I went to the airport and spoke to a nice guy at the check-in counter who was unable to help, but gave me an email address to contact. On top of my email I was constantly messaging them via the app with no response. They still haven't. The phone number listed on their website must be in China because it doesn't work. I had no choice but to get to another airport at considerable cost and pay for an Emirates flight.

They still say my name is incorrect on my passport and won't verify it so I can have better flexibility. Despite this they will let me buy tickets from them and have let me on two flights. Even though I've passed security twice that obviously means they have confirmed my identity they refuse to sort it out. Their emails are still as unprofessional as before.

Very disappointing experience with Air China.

My return flight CA930 from Tokyo to Frankfurt was cancelled at short notice. As a result, I was forced to purchase replacement flights in order to get back to Germany.

The disruption caused additional expenses of more than €1,300, including replacement flights, baggage fees, and other travel-related costs.

When I contacted Air China, I was simply told to request a refund for the unused flight segment. My claim regarding the additional costs caused by the cancellation was rejected without any meaningful explanation.

What disappointed me most was the lack of customer care after the cancellation. In such situations, passengers expect support, transparent communication, and a clear explanation of their rights and available options.

Unfortunately, my experience with Air China was the exact opposite.

The worst part of my Air China experience was the staff at Jakarta Airport. They were unhelpful, dismissive, and showed little interest in assisting passengers. To make matters worse, I was charged extra for luggage even though my bag was within the allowed weight and size limits. The process felt unfair and poorly explained, and staff showed no willingness to help or provide a reasonable explanation. Customer service should make travel easier, not more stressful. Based on this experience, I would not recommend Air China and would avoid flying with them again.

I bought a set Air China tickets which because of the change of aircraft, the original purchased premium econ class has to be downgraded to econ. I am ok with it. However, when it comes to the refund and compensation. I was told for the refund, the class difference has no price difference and so there's no refund. And for the £30 compensation, They need me to have a china local bank acc and debit card to be able to get the refund. With the 10+ communications with Trip.com and Air China, they insisted that's the only way to go and nothing they can do. I do not know whether it's trip.com or Air china is the one to blame. But that 10+ communications only added on my extra wasted time and hassle. I gave up the refund and the compensation. And turned to leaving a review here and to stop thinking about how ridiculous the whole thing is. Naturally, I won't fly Air China again. extra note: i tried to check-in online, i spent more than 30 mins on the website and filled in tons of info and no success...

Terrible company! Never again. First of all, the site does not work for check in. Second, they forced me to get an ETA even though I live in the UK. I showed them all the documents, it did not work. A lot of money lost for a fast track visa that I do not need! Finally, the service onboard is very bad. To be avoided!

VERY BAD, they dont have any kind of support.

It is impossible to make a normal online checking, basically it does not work. Terrible customer service, basically they dont have.

We have buy a flight on air china to go back from Hanoi to Geneva for yesterday (!), one connection between shanghai and beijing was deleted, air china doesn’t give any assistance ju st said to see withe the seller... they plan an ither flight same way today, but we re not registred on!? So we pay, no ticket, no assistance ( even Montreal convention), 2 day losts for work.. what next we want go back home !

Due to a delay from another airline meaning that I would miss my connecting flight at heathrow I booked flights with this airline CA855 from Beijing to London Heathrow 19th Dec 2025 on the Airbus A350

On board the plane after take off the passengers sitting in the row in front of me totally reclined their seats fully back to the extent of me not being able to get my leg underneath the fully reclined seat and to mine which meant I had to sit in a twisted posistion for the majority of the 10 1/2 hr flight - luckily the middle seat was empty and thats the only place my feet and legs could go.
During the flight i had words with numerous members of the cabin crew who tried to get the passengers to move their seats more upright so I could get comfortably seated - this was totally ignored by the passengers in front of me.
I emailed customer services at china air and their reply is pasted below.

"Dear passenger,
Passengers have the right to lay down their seats except during takeoff and landing. Our cabin crew also has the right to determine whether you have a reasonable reason to change your seat. Obviously, your request has not reached a reasonable level. Because if you are injured or you are tall, you can request an upgrade or purchase an extra leg room seat from us before the flight. If you don't want to pay for this, you can also ask the check-in counter at the airport if they can arrange a seat suitable for you for free.
Therefore, sorry, your complaint cannot be accepted."

This is totally discriminatory and unacceptable on any level of customer service.

There were no extra legroom seats available at time of booking and there were no extra seats on the flight available to allow the cabin staff to move me to another seat.

I am 6ft tall and the seats are badly designed and positioned in the plane - for air china to be telling me that I should have booked extra legroom seats they must be aware of a space issue regarding the seats on the aircraft.

The seats are uncomfortable and leg room is at a minimum but if the passengers in front of you totally recline their seats you will not be able to sit properly in your seat or in comfort.

I have a bruised left knee and have still a very stiff back a few days after the flight in question.

The cabin crew do not seem to have adequate training in dealing with ignorant and inconsiderate passengers who because of their selfish actions caused distress and discomfort to other passengers - despite both me and the person sitting in the same row on the aisle seat both having words on numerous occasions to cabin crew members regarding this ongoing issue it was not taken further up the cabin crew chain of command as when I told the chef purser on board the aircraft on departure what had been going on on the flight she had no idea.

I am still trying to get this resolved with air china after receiving such a discriminatory reply to my original email I have had to email another formal complaint.
Beware if you have an issue with this airline customer service is not helpful

Worst airline ever — I will never fly with Air China again.

I booked three tickets in April for a trip to China in October. Our outbound flight was with Lufthansa from Amsterdam to Chengdu via Frankfurt, and the return flight was with Air China. In the meantime, Air China completely changed our flights. On both the outbound and return legs, we couldn’t sit together. Online check-in was impossible because their website simply didn’t work.

The 10-hour flight was very uncomfortable. When we returned to the Netherlands, two out of our three suitcases were delayed — fortunately, they were delivered to our home later that evening. If this had happened on the outbound flight, it would have been a huge problem, as we were traveling on to Zhangjiajie and Chongqing right after arrival. Without our luggage, it would have been a disaster.

I’ve never experienced anything like this before. I will never fly with Air China again, and I strongly advise others to avoid this airline.

A big shout out to Vignesh at Gatwick North Terminal. I was concerned that I would have a probl m next July as I put the wrong month on my son's DOB. He assured me it wouldn't be a problem they would just change the month when the passport is scanned.

Customer service so unhelpful, they are trying to keep my money when they shouldn't. It's so inhuman. BTW IF YOU WANT A MANAGER THEY ONLY SPEAK MANDARIN, so please everyone else that don't speak mandarin don't book this airline, they are so unhelpful. Booking with this airline was one of the worse decisions I made in life

Worst airlines I have ever taken!!! Luggage was delayed for 2 days and damaged, only willing to compensate 300RMB for delay and 300RMB for damaged luggage. WHAT A JOKE! JUST AVOID! You will end up lose more!!!

I missed my flight and when I tried to change just the Narita to Beijing leg, they told me that my entire round trip would be cancelled, including the connecting flights and return flights. They quoted me 170,000 yen for rebooking. When I searched for the same route again, it was only $612, plus I had to wait 30 minutes on their customer service line. I don't think I'll ever use them again. I asked the travel agency to cancel the booking.

Really terrible. I paid extra fees for “extra leg room seats”, and selected the first row seats, closed to the aisle. They changed them to the last row, in the middle without any notifications. When I called the customer service, they refused to offer any help.

I've been trying to add an extra piece of baggage to my booking for over three weeks now. I can't log in via the Air China website. Verification via the Air China app has been pending for three weeks. The Air China hotline is unavailable. Emails to Air China remain unanswered. Air China's service is an absolute nightmare!

WARNING: DO NOT BOOK WITH TRAVELUP OR AIR CHINA! 🚨

I had an absolutely terrible experience with TravelUp and Air China, which resulted in me being wrongfully denied boarding, stranded at the airport, and offered NO proper support.

🔴 TravelUp’s Total Failure in Customer Service

I booked a round-trip flight (LON → BKK → LON) with TravelUp, expecting to use both segments. However, after missing my outbound flight in December 2024, I was NEVER notified that my return flight was automatically canceled.

Neither TravelUp nor Air China informed me in advance about this, and I only discovered it at the airport when I was denied check-in.

When I contacted TravelUp, their response was dismissive, unhelpful, and unacceptable.

Instead of assisting me, they offered a pathetic £11.87 refund, which is an insult considering the financial loss and distress I suffered.

Their customer service is beyond appalling—they refuse to take responsibility and simply hide behind “policy” without acknowledging their failure to communicate.

🔴 Air China’s Disgraceful Airport Handling

When I arrived at Bangkok Airport, I tried to understand why I was denied boarding.

Instead of helping me, the Air China check-in staff called airport security on me just for asking questions! This was an absolutely humiliating and unnecessary response to a passenger simply seeking clarification.

Air China has completely ignored my complaints and refuses to provide any answers.

🚨 I HAVE TAKEN LEGAL ACTION 🚨

Since neither TravelUp nor Air China has taken responsibility, I have officially filed complaints with:

✅ UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) – Currently investigating TravelUp and Air China’s failure to notify passengers properly.
✅ Small Claims Court – Seeking full compensation for financial loss, distress, and disruption.
✅ Chargeback Dispute with my bank – Filing for “service not provided” since I paid for a return flight that was denied to me.
✅ Ongoing public exposure – I am continuing to expose this case across Trustpilot, Google Reviews, Reddit, Twitter/X, and consumer rights forums.

🔴 FINAL VERDICT: AVOID TRAVELUP & AIR CHINA AT ALL COSTS!

❌ ZERO accountability
❌ NO proper communication
❌ DISMISSIVE customer service
❌ WILL NOT protect passengers from unfair cancellations
❌ DO NOT expect a refund or fair resolution

If you book with TravelUp or Air China, be prepared to fight for your money and your rights because they will not take care of you!

I highly recommend that NO ONE books with TravelUp again. If you’ve had a similar experience, FILE A COMPLAINT and REPORT THEM. Companies like this should not be allowed to continue scamming customers.

I love China and I love flying to China. But not with Air China. This is one of the worst airlines I have ever experienced.
Especially their customer service. If you want to make any changes to your ticket, you better have time and be very very patient. There’s actually no such thing as customer service. 3 emails to two different recipients have never been answered. Ticket change online was impossible. The airline office at the airport was incompetent. The business lounge in Beijing is crappy, overcrowded and the furniture are old and used. The food has low canteen level. The airplane is just as worn out and old. This airline is a disgrace to a great nation.

I strongly advise people against using Air China. My journey ended up taking almost 36 hours due to a severe delay on the route from Tokyo to Beijing, which caused me to miss my connecting flight to Copenhagen. This experience has been deeply frustrating and reveals how Air China failed to meet the most basic expectations for service during delays.
In Tokyo, I stood in line for almost eight hours without any information or offers of food and drink. When I finally got through the line, I received 10,000 yen, of which only 2,000 yen (about 13 USD) was intended for food and drink. This amount was completely inadequate to cover basic needs for the total wait time.
When I arrived in Beijing in the middle of the night, I was given a leaflet promising a hotel stay due to the long wait. Unfortunately, this hotel stay became impossible because airport staff could not agree on visa regulations. Air China had no representative to assist us with this confusion, even though many passengers needed overnight accommodation.
It is important to note that Air China did not adhere to its own policy under section 8.2.3, which states that passengers are entitled to meals and, if necessary, accommodation during long delays caused by airline-related issues. This requirement was clearly not met in my case. Furthermore, it could be argued that Air China also failed to fulfill section 8.2.2 of its guidelines, which specifies that passengers should be kept informed during delays. Despite the extensive waiting times, I still have not been informed of the reason for the delay.
Customer service communication has further been extremely confusing and inconsistent. I received an earlier email offering 300 CNY compensation for the missed hotel stay, but in later responses, this was omitted, and Air China claimed that the 10,000 yen from Tokyo should cover everything. This seems unreasonable and unacceptable, especially given the lack of support and information provided.
I hope this message will encourage Air China to reflect on their treatment of passengers during extreme delays and consider improvements to their service. Based on this experience, I unfortunately cannot recommend Air China to other travelers.