I have a hyphenated surname which is run together without the hyphen on airline tickets.
This has never caused problems before, but recently I’ve been harassed at airports by Etihad Airways staff who have threatened to deny boarding because the name on the ticket does not match the hyphenated version on my passport.
I’m a frequent flyer and a gold card member, but have been told to pay almost $100 to get my name changed on one of my existing multiflyer tickets.
The fact is, the system does not recognise hyphens at the time of booking!
NB-S, Abu Dhabi, UAE
It’s a curious fact that the programmers who decree the format of airline booking systems do not recognise hyphens or apostrophes. Indeed, some won’t tolerate unusually long or unusually short names.
Most security officials will overlook this tiny anomaly between ticket and passport but some hyphenated name bearers have reported being detained at check-in because of it. Etihad confirms its system does not allow hyphens, so the demand that you amend yours to match your passport was an error.
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