Padd

Hi

I booked a EU departure AMS-LHR-BKK-LHR-AMS in CW. For my first positioning flight, it's all sorted as I'm in AMS on business the day before. On the return, the LHR-AMS arrives at 21:05 and I've booked the return flight (AMS-LHR) in coach on the Same plane which departs at 22:00 as I need to be in London that evening.

My questions:
- clearly, I can't collect bags at AMS and check them in again. Will the BA agent at BKK check the, all the way thru if I ask nicely ?
- if not, will BA combine the two journeys so the bags are checked through to London?
- will BA think it's weird that I get off the flight and basically get back on again?
- what would happen if I "forgot" to pick my bags up at AMS in the mistaken belief that they had been checked thru? Would BA get them to LHR the next day? I'm passing LHR on the M4 so could pick them up.

Sorry for all the questions and very grateful for any advice.

Thanks!

BA6501

1) they may check them only to London (BKK-LHR only) if you ask nicely. Easier if you have an overnight or a (very) long connection. You can then store them at Excess Baggage at T5 and pick them up on your way back from AMS. They are cracking down on this, however.

2) Not a chance, LHR can't appear on the baggage tag twice (BKK-LHR-AMS-LHR), nor do BA through-check on separate tickets anymore, even BA-BA.

3) The airline won't care, the crew might do a double-take but nothing they haven't seen before.

4) I really, really wouldn't try this.

windowontheAside

BA can't - and won't - though check your bags for all your sectors. The system won't allow the same airport twice, and BA policy is not to check bags across different bookings.

Nor can different PNRs be combined.

As for getting the bag back to you, I can't see how this would work. They would have delivered your bag to your 'final' destination on one booking, and you would have no checked bag on the other, so they'd have fulfilled their obligations on both bookings.

For a back to back like this your only real option is to go hand baggage only. Otherwise you are looking at sending your bag back by courier or changing your last flight to allow picking up and rechecking.

LondonElite

Your first three questions are 'no'. They don't interline on separate tickets anymore, and in any case the same airport cannot appear on the routing twice. Your final proposition is a really bad idea. You will probably find yourself without your luggage for a very long time.

NWIFlyer

BA won't through check on a separate PNR, but in this case they couldn't do so anyway because a bag can't pass through the same airport twice on a baggage tag. That rules out your first two options.

No-one will bat an eyelid at you getting back on, although if the crew look at both the outbound and return manifests prior to the LHR-AMS flight and spot it they conceivably might ask you to ensure it's not a mistake - I've had that happen just once, on a back to back at BGO.

If you fail to pick the bags up at AMS, you're probably on sketchy ground. BA wouldn't actually have an obligation to get them back to you, given you didn't check them in for your AMS-LHR flight so wouldn't be able to produce a baggage tag, so I imagine it might get messy when you start to rely on goodwill. It's not inconceivable that the luggage would be stored at AMS when it wasn't claimed, given as far as anyone was concerned it had completed its journey, and then sold at auction if you didn't make arrangements to retrieve it yourself within whatever the timescale was (which might involve a collection by courier at your cost rather than having to physically visit the airport). I just wouldn't fancy relying on anything that remotely involves BA going the extra mile these days, so as a risk strategy it's high in my view.

scottishpoet

At best if you forget your bags then you will have a very expensive courrier bill to get them back to you. At worst bags from bkk left alone in ams, hmmm airport security and customs may get suspicious

BA6501

As it stands, a same day BKK-LHR-AMS (assuming this is end of October onwards) will not allow you enough time to collect your bags, store them in Excess Luggage and go back airside - and will seem very suspicious to the check-in agent in BKK. 1h20 is simply not enough, I'm afraid your options are either go HBO or change your AMS flight to the next day, preferably from LGW or LCY if you want to collect your bag in London, or LHR if you want to leave your bag at Excess Baggage.

orbitmic

Basically:

1) No
2) No
3) No
4) No

With your trip, your only realistic choice is travel hand luggage only and hope for the best (or change your ticket to make it officially end in London which may not cost much more). If you do need luggage, send it separately.

There are lots of threads discussing those exact questions if you want to read more accounts of people's experiences and tips.

:D!

For everyone claiming that it is impossible for "the system" to have the same airport twice on a baggage tag (I also used to claim this), it is in fact possible as evidenced by this data point:


However in any case BA can't or won't do it, and even if they could, it wouldn't work as there isn't enough time in AMS for a bag to be unloaded, processed and sent back to the same plane.

I agree with all the other comments from everyone.


The best option with ex-AMS (and an LHR longhaul) is to always book the return to AMS originating from LGW. Depending on the longhaul arrival time it is usually possible to book it for the next morning too. Departing from LGW not only saves about £10 in LHR fees but guarantees your bags can only go to LHR.

This also allows you the option of easily skipping the final leg to AMS, as long as you are aware of the debate surrounding this practice.

Padd

Thank you everyone....good info...

Sorry, but I have one final question...

1. Let's say BA agree to check the bags to LHR. What would happen if I skipped the last leg LHR-AMS? Would BA reroute and recalculate the fare, which would be a disaster as I saved big by using the AMS departure.

2. What if the flight from BKK-LHR is delayed and I miss the connection to AMS (it's the last flight of the day and only 60min connection time at LHR). Can I "refuse" to fly the next day because I'd already planned to be back in the U.K.?

Thanks all!

BA6501

1. technically they can but there hasn't been any reports of this I believe. Sore subject on this board. But again with a 60min connection I really don't see how they would be willing to short-check your bag.

2. Yes, however you most likely would not get a refund for your AMS-LHR.

Guy Betsy

You may try that but generally BA will not short check your bag if your connection is within an hour.. But best if you pay a change fee (after you have flown the first segments) to change the last segment to a flight the next day or just end in LHR (though it may cost you a bit more though not as much as you think). Then you can check your bags only to LHR that day.. since BKK -LHR is a day flight. I've booked flights originating elsewhere as it's cheaper but I've always ended in LHR and the total cost is still cheaper overall... eg AMS-x/LHR-SIN-LHR or my last trip .. ZRH-x/LHR-KUL-LHR

LondonElite

Not to re-open this can of worms, but I don't think there is anything they can do to the individual traveller, given that there is no provision in the CoC. Travel agents are a different story.

Fitch

I know this one has been done to desth, but strictly speaking there is a provison in the BA CoC as follows:

"4a4) If you want to change either your itinerary or your dates of travel, this may increase the fare."

BA would have to successfully argue that not flying the final leg is a change to your itinerary, but the provision is there should they choose to do so...

Padd

After a bit of back and forth, the check in agent tagged my bags to LHR. Which turned out to be a good move because the BKK - LHR flight was delayed and there was only 10mins to get from T5c to T5a to get the LHR-AMS flight. I probably would have missed it. So I picked up my bags and went home.