chp

As someone who has just received their first Gold card, I've a couple of questions that I hope someone on this forum may be able to help with.

I am booked on a UK Domestic flight in a few months time. As a GCH I am able to pre-select any seat on the aircraft, including the reserved first few rows.

The rest of my family is travelling on the same flight, but on a separate booking. The highest status in their party is BA Silver. This means that they can pre-select seats now, but are unable to choose the front few rows.

I understand that as a GCH I can call and have our two bookings linked and then submit a seating request to have my family members sit with me (the TCP process).

My question is: can I, via the TCP process, request that my family members are seated with me in the reserved front rows of the aircraft? They wouldn't normally have access to those rows so I'm not sure if such a request would be successful.

Also, there are three people in the second booking. As there will be a total of four of us, and the seating is three across, can I request seating for them such that one person is beside me with the remaining two placed in the row behind, or does the requested seating have to be contiguous with my own?

corporate-wage-slave

Yes they can go in the front row, and also behind you or across as you prefer. You may find it more natural to go 3+1 on the same row. You should be able to manipulate the booking online yourself after TCP.

chp

Many thanks!

chp

So, I called the Gold Line and they linked our bookings. They then told me that they couldn't submit the seating request I wanted as the front row is restricted solely to Gold Card holders, despite our bookings being linked. They also said that even if we had all been on the same booking I still wouldn't have been able to place non-GCHs in the front row. Is this really the case?

Also, despite the bookings having being linked, I can't see it in my MMB or manipulate it online. C-W-S's comment suggests that I should be able to do this?

corporate-wage-slave

Well maybe the latter will take a day or two, but I've been able to change the linked booking's seats in the usual way online. The first point definitely isn't true except in First, I've frequently put non BAEC members next to me. Hang up and call again? The exception is if the flight is within 24 hours of departure, the Service Centres can't do much then.

windowontheAside

I was only able to change Mr W's bookings in these circs when I made the original booking. When he made it, it never appeared in my MMB.

chp

Ah, perhaps I need to wait a few days after the bookings are linked. I was checking within 10 minutes of getting off the phone. With respect to moving my family to the front row, the flight isn't for a few months yet, so perhaps I'll give them another call tomorrow and see if I have more luck then...

FrancisA

Sorry, c-w-s, I find this a bit confusing. I haven't done a TCP for a while, but when I did it was definitely a manual process (with a seat request being sent to BA's Seating department for action) and the other PNR definitely did not show up in MMB for me to manipulate.

Is this a new thing? [I quite often comment on TCP matters so I would like to be giving the correct advice]

I must say the only time I have seen a PNR that I am not on show up in my MMB is when I have done an avios booking for some else. Not much you can do with that (you can't select seats based on your status for instance), but you can cancel it (which I suppose is why it shows up in MMB).

corporate-wage-slave

For my recent experiences, the initial seat selection was indeed done manually, along the lines suggested, other than that it was done immediately. Thereafter by manual insertion of the PNR into MMB further changes could be made, using the Travel Agent 24 hour option if necessary.

Globaliser

If by "MMB" you mean the list of your own bookings on the BAEC section of the website, I'd be surprised if someone else's booking appears in your list just because the bookings have been TCPd. The "link" is no more than a manually typed remark into each booking. It's not some sort of formal process that changes that booking. The value of the remark is that it's enough to get Seating to do something for the non-Golds.

Armed with the PNR locator/reference for the non-Golds' booking, you will always be able to get into that booking, just not via your bookings list.

KARFA

I did a tcp recently and I can confirm the other booking does not appear in your baec list of bookings.

blindy

Hi,

Slightly different TCP question. I will achieve BAEC Gold early next month. The wife and I are flying with MH from DPS to BKK on separate bookings. Can BAEC gold members request TCP on OW partner airlines and specifically MH? I am guessing not but I thought I will check with the collective wisdom here.

corporate-wage-slave

I don't think it extends to other airlines, and they all have different approaches to seat allocation anyway. I suspect that in your particular circumstances, with limitations on your powers of sight, that MH will assist with seat reservation for both of you.

chp

Just to update: I took c-w-s's advice and called the Gold Line again. The agent this time forwarded my seating request without complaint and by the following day my family had been moved to the front row beside me as I had requested.

Thanks for the help.

blindy

Thank you CWS. I have given MH a ring and they have sorted it all out for free.