Originally Posted by
f4freeJunior
How is this new IATA procedure working? What are the differences between the old and procedures? Is there already a relevant thread on FT somewhere?
I couldn't find any recent thread concerning this topic.
The IATA website offers some information:
The new term: Flex Fares
IATA must change its previous way of calculating these fares: "Flex Fares are new multilateral interline fares derived from published carrier fares. The concept is simple: for a given market, a base fare is calculated using available carrier fares in the market, and an interline premium is added which reflects the flexibility in an IATA fare."
The block exemption for tariff agreements:
- within EU ended in December 2006
- between EU-USA and between EU-Australia ended in June 2007
- between EU and the rest of the world will end in October 2007 though that date may be reviewed
I interpret the decision of LH as a one-way solution: Obviously they have enough passengers on routes where LH is their first choice and the pax are willing to pay an even higher amount than for IATA (so the fare is still transferable to all the other airlines). You can call that self-confident or "taking what the lucrative market is offering and renounce the rest".