Hawkerhunt
Oct 20, 09, 2:47 pm
I consider myself fairly experienced in all things FB, and all their quirks, but this one beats me, ever since the new 'paid for" preferred seating came in. I'm interested if anyone can explain how to do it. Let me use me recent flights as examples.
Booking
I discovered, by booking H class or above, I can prebook the preferred seating (bulkhead,upstairs) on a 747, but book H class on an airbus 340 and you can't prebook anything except down the back.
Phoning FB/AF sales/Web support at an early stage
Mixed results, from no change to disaster. Mostly, they can't help. One tried to, but managed to lose my prebooked window seat at the back of the plane, and said "sorry, I can't book you into another seat, you'll need to sort it out at the airport check-in", So I went from a bad window seat to no seat, so I've never risked that again.
30 hr check-in
747- the preferred seats are shown, but they want 50Euro, no option for PE to just book. Phoned FB, they said, "no problem, just ignore and ask for seat at airport check-in, they are all available, so you will have no problem." Of course I get there and they are all allocated.
Airbus 340-The bulkheads don't even show in the seat selection map. Phone Web support "yes we can see the rows, can't you? There are only 3 seats taken so lots free. You can't see them to book them? We can't book them for you. So sorry. Sort it out at the Airport check-in, bye"
(postscript to the above - get to airport check-in, manage to get a bulkhead seat, on-board it's me,a PE, and all the rest are obviously non-revs).
But mostly, I can't reserve seats, the answer is always "sort it out at the airport", and it generally is a shouting match at the airport with mixed results.
So, from my eyes, elites are actually completely disadvantaged in the new arrangements, and I just can't see how we can get to these "preferred" seats.
Unless of course, someone know differently..........
Booking
I discovered, by booking H class or above, I can prebook the preferred seating (bulkhead,upstairs) on a 747, but book H class on an airbus 340 and you can't prebook anything except down the back.
Phoning FB/AF sales/Web support at an early stage
Mixed results, from no change to disaster. Mostly, they can't help. One tried to, but managed to lose my prebooked window seat at the back of the plane, and said "sorry, I can't book you into another seat, you'll need to sort it out at the airport check-in", So I went from a bad window seat to no seat, so I've never risked that again.
30 hr check-in
747- the preferred seats are shown, but they want 50Euro, no option for PE to just book. Phoned FB, they said, "no problem, just ignore and ask for seat at airport check-in, they are all available, so you will have no problem." Of course I get there and they are all allocated.
Airbus 340-The bulkheads don't even show in the seat selection map. Phone Web support "yes we can see the rows, can't you? There are only 3 seats taken so lots free. You can't see them to book them? We can't book them for you. So sorry. Sort it out at the Airport check-in, bye"
(postscript to the above - get to airport check-in, manage to get a bulkhead seat, on-board it's me,a PE, and all the rest are obviously non-revs).
But mostly, I can't reserve seats, the answer is always "sort it out at the airport", and it generally is a shouting match at the airport with mixed results.
So, from my eyes, elites are actually completely disadvantaged in the new arrangements, and I just can't see how we can get to these "preferred" seats.
Unless of course, someone know differently..........