Spelling mistake takes tourist 13,000km off-course

Sidney, Montana not Sydney, Australia

By John Leyden • Get more from this author

Posted in Financial News, 1st January 2007 14:41 GMT

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A typing mistake on an online booking form left a German tourist 13,000km off-course on a journey to meet his girlfriend.

Tobi Gutt left Germany in high hopes on Saturday, dressed in T-shirt and shorts for the Australian summer, but instead of heading towards Sydney, Australia the 21 year-old ended up en-route to Sidney, Montana. Initially Gutt reasoned that it was possible to fly to Australia via the United States and it was only as he boarded a commuter flight to Sidney, an oil town that's home to around 5,000 people, that the terrible truth dawned on him. Up to that point he'd flown to Portland, Oregon and on to Billings, Montana with mounting concern.

"I did wonder but I didn't want to say anything," Gutt told the German newspaper Bild. "I thought to myself, you can fly to Australia via the United States."

He was left in the stuck middle of nowhere with only a thin jacket to keep out the cold. Fortunately after three days his family and friends were able to send him the €600 he needed to book a new ticket to Australia. "I didn't notice the mistake as my son is usually good with computers," his mum, Sabine, told Reuters. ®

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