Akshay thought he’d found a great deal on a Thanksgiving weekend flight from San Francisco to Mumbai — $554 for a round trip — and booked it excitedly at ba.com, getting a confirmation number.

A week later came an email from British Airways saying the deal was an error, his flight was canceled and he’d have to settle for a $300 voucher. Here’s that email:

Earlier this week you were informed about an error in our fares between the US and India that resulted in the cancellation of your booking. We are sorry for any inconvenience that our actions may have caused you.

As a gesture of goodwill, we would like to offer you $300 off any retail World Traveller fare from the US to India when you book between now and November 12, 2009*. This offer will be valid for travel between now and September 30, 2010. Please note this offer is non-transferable and only valid to customers who were originally booked using the incorrect fare.

To take advantage of this offer, please call us at 1-800-247-9297. Please have your original flight details available for our team to assist you with your booking.

Once again, we sincerely regret this error and any inconvenience it may have caused you. We hope to see you on board again soon.

Akshay believes what British Airways did isn’t legal because it entered into a contract with him. He doesn’t want to sue British Airways, but is wondering if there’s anything else he can do to get the price he feels he was entitled to. Any advice?

(Photo: zonaphoto)

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