Two prices for Classic Award NYC-BOM?
Feb 20, 2013, 11:56 am
#1
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Join Date: Nov 2005
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Two prices for Classic Award NYC-BOM?
According to the Miles Finder a Classic one-way Economy Class award ticket between New York and Bombay should be 40000 miles.
According to the booking engine (using klm.com) every economy seat I have found across a wide variety of dates is showing up for 50000 miles. The FB helpdesk tells me there are now two booking classes for Economy Classic Awards, a first one for 40k and a second one for 50k tickets. Premium Economy Classic Awards are also 50k.
Can anybody confirm that there are indeed two booking classes for Classic Awards?
Thanks.
According to the booking engine (using klm.com) every economy seat I have found across a wide variety of dates is showing up for 50000 miles. The FB helpdesk tells me there are now two booking classes for Economy Classic Awards, a first one for 40k and a second one for 50k tickets. Premium Economy Classic Awards are also 50k.
Can anybody confirm that there are indeed two booking classes for Classic Awards?
Thanks.
Feb 20, 2013, 1:10 pm
#3
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Join Date: Nov 2005
Programs: BA, AA, FB
Posts: 556
Clearly not the same ones as you!
Thanks for checking. Good to know that the tickets are out there at that price, sadly not for my dates yet (end of 2013). Do you know how long this dual pricing has been around? It looks like the lower priced tickets are only available for the next 90 days. After that I think it's only the 50k ones that are showing up.
Thanks for checking. Good to know that the tickets are out there at that price, sadly not for my dates yet (end of 2013). Do you know how long this dual pricing has been around? It looks like the lower priced tickets are only available for the next 90 days. After that I think it's only the 50k ones that are showing up.
Feb 20, 2013, 1:36 pm
#4
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I don't see any dates with 50k availablility.
At the end of the year, I'm only seeing 46k availability (see below). This is the "Elite Award" as explained here which gives Elites extra availability at the rate of 115% of the normal classic award rate.
I assume you are not Elite, and that this is not what you are seeing. But I don't know what this 50k rate you are seeing is. Can you post a screenshot? Or even just tell us the routing and airlines involved?
At the end of the year, I'm only seeing 46k availability (see below). This is the "Elite Award" as explained here which gives Elites extra availability at the rate of 115% of the normal classic award rate.
I assume you are not Elite, and that this is not what you are seeing. But I don't know what this 50k rate you are seeing is. Can you post a screenshot? Or even just tell us the routing and airlines involved?
Feb 20, 2013, 3:15 pm
#5
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Thanks a lot for looking into this. I can't save a screen print to a photo site to link to just now, but I am quite sure that the difference in price is definitely because of my Ivory level.
Just as an FYI - for the period 18/11 to 22/12 I am seeing four days (21/11, 26/11, 9/12, and 10/12) with an option at 50k, all the other days are 80k. Maybe some of the extra seats are also available to Ivory members at 125%. The flights on most of these days are for AF023 or AF007 connecting to AF218 in CDG.
Just as an FYI - for the period 18/11 to 22/12 I am seeing four days (21/11, 26/11, 9/12, and 10/12) with an option at 50k, all the other days are 80k. Maybe some of the extra seats are also available to Ivory members at 125%. The flights on most of these days are for AF023 or AF007 connecting to AF218 in CDG.
Feb 20, 2013, 6:21 pm
#6
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According to the booking engine (using klm.com) every economy seat I have found across a wide variety of dates is showing up for 50000 miles. The FB helpdesk tells me there are now two booking classes for Economy Classic Awards, a first one for 40k and a second one for 50k tickets. Premium Economy Classic Awards are also 50k.
Can anybody confirm that there are indeed two booking classes for Classic Awards?
Can anybody confirm that there are indeed two booking classes for Classic Awards?
http://Help.KVSTool.com/#AF
http://Help.KVSTool.com/#AwardTypes
[KVS Availability Tool 7.1.6/Diamond - Amadeus: Awards/SkyTeam/FR-AF]
Code:
NYC New York Metro NY US = JFK LGA BOM Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji IN [VABB] THU 21 Nov 2013 | 1 Seat Carrier Flight From Depart To Arrive St Availability --------- ------ ---- -------- ---- -------- --- -- ------------- AF 23 JFK 16:45 CDG 06:00 +1 CX6 WA9 YX9 -> AF 218 CDG 10:40 +1 BOM 23:55 +1 AF 7 JFK 19:10 CDG 08:25 +1 CX0 WA9 YX9 -> AF 218 CDG 10:40 +1 BOM 23:55 +1 DL 184 JFK 19:10 CDG 08:35 +1 CS1 WS/ YS0 -> AF 218 CDG 10:40 +1 BOM 23:55 +1
Code:
NYC New York Metro NY US = JFK LGA BOM Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji IN [VABB] THU 21 Nov 2013 | 1 Seat Carrier Flight From Depart To Arrive St Information --------- ------ ---- -------- ---- -------- --- -- --------------------------------------------- AF 23 JFK 16:45 CDG 06:00 +1 Dur: 20:40 | FB: 80K+342/100K+229/50K+229 EUR -> AF 218 CDG 10:40 +1 BOM 23:55 +1 AF 7 JFK 19:10 CDG 08:25 +1 Dur: 18:15 | FB: NA/100K+229/50K+229 EUR -> AF 218 CDG 10:40 +1 BOM 23:55 +1 DL 184 JFK 19:10 CDG 08:35 +1 Dur: 18:15 | FB: 80K+46/NA/NA EUR -> AF 218 CDG 10:40 +1 BOM 23:55 +1
Feb 21, 2013, 3:05 am
#7
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It seems, for whatever reason, that KLM/Delta availability on this route (ie connecting in AMS to the Delta flight to BOM) has not been loaded for the latter half of the year - so your only current option is to go AF via CDG.
AF recently opened up extra Classic Award Availability in an extended range of booking classes on long haul for a surcharge of 25% extra, and these are the only options you are currently being presented with.
I don't wish to advise because I have no way of knowing what will happen, but I suspect that the alternate KLM/Delta option via Amsterdam may become available in the future at the lower 40k rate for the later months of the year where it currently doesn't exist as an option. If you book this 50k ticket now, and keep checking availability sporadically, you can cancel the existing ticket for a fee of €45. Be warned, though, that the refund of the 50k miles may not be automatic, so you may have to wait a while before being able to book a new ticket at the lower 40k rate...and there is always the danger that the date you want sells out before you can then rebook on that date. (It may be possible to avoid this delay if you call an agent and ask them to cancel, refund, and rebook all in one go, but I have no direct experience of this).
AF recently opened up extra Classic Award Availability in an extended range of booking classes on long haul for a surcharge of 25% extra, and these are the only options you are currently being presented with.
I don't wish to advise because I have no way of knowing what will happen, but I suspect that the alternate KLM/Delta option via Amsterdam may become available in the future at the lower 40k rate for the later months of the year where it currently doesn't exist as an option. If you book this 50k ticket now, and keep checking availability sporadically, you can cancel the existing ticket for a fee of €45. Be warned, though, that the refund of the 50k miles may not be automatic, so you may have to wait a while before being able to book a new ticket at the lower 40k rate...and there is always the danger that the date you want sells out before you can then rebook on that date. (It may be possible to avoid this delay if you call an agent and ask them to cancel, refund, and rebook all in one go, but I have no direct experience of this).
Feb 21, 2013, 9:00 am
#8
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Posts: 556
It seems, for whatever reason, that KLM/Delta availability on this route (ie connecting in AMS to the Delta flight to BOM) has not been loaded for the latter half of the year - so your only current option is to go AF via CDG.
AF recently opened up extra Classic Award Availability in an extended range of booking classes on long haul for a surcharge of 25% extra, and these are the only options you are currently being presented with.
AF recently opened up extra Classic Award Availability in an extended range of booking classes on long haul for a surcharge of 25% extra, and these are the only options you are currently being presented with.
Given that I need three tickets, I'm definitely hoping for availability on Delta, either through AMS or CDG. For the difference in fees I can buy a couple of tablets and some movies to make up for the lack of AVOD!
Feb 21, 2013, 10:15 am
#9
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Promo Awards (50% for longhaul; 75% for shorthaul)
Elite Awards (115%)
Air France Extra Availability (125%)
As such, there is no real need to list them all separately - and they don't already list the Promo and Elite awards in the Miles Finder.
Feb 22, 2013, 3:30 am
#10
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I wonder whether this is an indication of what we feared when the introduced the "additional" booking class at 125%.
Maybe they are starting to open very few seats at 100% and you have to pay either 115% if elite or 125% if not elite. A disguised way of raising award redemption levels.
Maybe they are starting to open very few seats at 100% and you have to pay either 115% if elite or 125% if not elite. A disguised way of raising award redemption levels.