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What happens to NZ? Very hard to get business class award seat nowadays!

What happens to NZ? Very hard to get business class award seat nowadays!

Old May 3, 2014, 11:08 pm
  #31  
 
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Agreed that NZ is pretty much impossible now to get any J award space on (barring PVG and NRT routes), and that *A really should have some rules that member airlines have to play by for ensuring reasonable award availability. The current situation is laughable.

Re the debate on whether NZ was ever generous, they did used to consistently offer at least a few award seats on all flights at the 330ish day mark. However one other thing that made them very award friendly was to release additional award seats very close to the date of travel (within 21 days or so), if the loads weren't so high, so you could often find J award space between North America and NZ at the last minute. Short haul J was genuinely easy to find. However, over the last 2-3 years that has steadily dropped away.

Every now and then some award space will open up for a few weeks on the shorthaul (Tasman and Pacific Island routes) and then just as suddenly go again. It's intensely irritating!
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Old Apr 6, 2015, 10:50 am
  #32  
 
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My last 12 flights from AKL to the islands ( PPT, NOU, NAN ) the only available award seats were in Y. Only once did one seat in C pop up, but I needed two and that one seat was gone within 24 hrs. At least one can purchase exit seats after booking for a reasonable price. Still able to find decent C availability ex NRT, thank goodness.
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Old Apr 6, 2015, 4:01 pm
  #33  
 
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Originally Posted by EXLEFTSEAT
My last 12 flights from AKL to the islands ( PPT, NOU, NAN ) the only available award seats were in Y. Only once did one seat in C pop up, but I needed two and that one seat was gone within 24 hrs. At least one can purchase exit seats after booking for a reasonable price. Still able to find decent C availability ex NRT, thank goodness.
Your inability to find anything other than Y seats on AKL-NOU might have something to do with the fact that NZ operates Y-only A320s to NOU (rather than any of their wide bodies)

Similarly, half of all AKL-NAN flights are on Y-only A320s.

AKL-PPT is only three flights a week, which also limits the number of available seats on that route.

The small number of seats, coupled with NZ's own Airpoints program (which puts their own customers at the front of the queue for upgrades right up until boarding) makes it pretty difficult to find good availablility in anything other than Y.
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Old Apr 6, 2015, 4:41 pm
  #34  
 
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Originally Posted by DomesticGoddess
Your inability to find anything other than Y seats on AKL-NOU might have something to do with the fact that NZ operates Y-only A320s to NOU (rather than any of their wide bodies)

Similarly, half of all AKL-NAN flights are on Y-only A320s.

AKL-PPT is only three flights a week, which also limits the number of available seats on that route.

The small number of seats, coupled with NZ's own Airpoints program (which puts their own customers at the front of the queue for upgrades right up until boarding) makes it pretty difficult to find good availablility in anything other than Y.
Thanks, makes sense then. Thankfully those flights are relatively short, except the PPT run.
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Old Apr 9, 2015, 3:35 am
  #35  
 
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Originally Posted by EXLEFTSEAT
Thanks, makes sense then. Thankfully those flights are relatively short, except the PPT run.
To be honest you're not missing much; sadly the J product on the 767 (which does the PPT route) is woeful - much worse than their excellent Business Premier lie-flat beds.
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Old Feb 8, 2016, 12:51 pm
  #36  
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UA forum http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unite...nited-com.html

Originally Posted by luckypierre
One of the aspirational uses of UA miles has been restored.
Over on the NZ website, someone asked about how to obtain seating after obtaining a business class award thru UA.
Startling change from the recent past, but I just checked.
For instance, Monday April 4 shows business saver availability (80K OW, $30) on NZ1.
Didnt go past the initial page to see if it has phantom aspects
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Old Aug 17, 2017, 8:29 pm
  #37  
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Does NZ release all award space at T-330 (I know UA can't access until T330 but that's due to UA rules) or do they release earlier and make it available if other partners (e.g., SQ) allow earlier booking the way QF does
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