nyc6035

Had a painful 2.5hr booking and ticketing experience the other night.

I had been holding 3 seats as follows:

EWR-NRT (I) CO
NRT-AKL (I) NZ
AKL-BNE (I) NZ
openjaw
SYD-AKL (I) NZ
AKL-YVR (I) NZ
YVR-LAX (X) UA
LAX-JFK (O) UA

This was from the original reservation agent 110K per ticket.

wanted to modify it to the following:

JFK-LAX (O) UA
LAX-AKL (I) NZ
AKL-SYD (I) NZ
openjaw
BNE-AKL (I) NZ
AKL-YVR (I) NZ
YVR-LAX (X) UA
LAX-JFK (O) UA

They first insisted I couldn't do it because the time between JFK-LAX; LAX-AKL was over 4 hours. Since it's an international gateway the rule is 24 hours.
I Challenged that and won.

Then they came back and said couldn't do the JFK-LAX//LAX-JFK segments in O for the business class rate of 110K. I pointed out to them that this is a domestic segment and that if it was on their metal they would also book in O.
No budge.

Since I was at the end of my 72 hour hold period and the AKL-YVR flight no longer had I seats for sale (and I didn't want to risk having no availability back as I saw no alternative routings), I felt stuck.
So I had them book this:

EWR-NRT (I) CO
NRT-AKL (I) NZ
AKL-SYD (I) NZ
openjaw
BNE-AKL (I) NZ
AKL-YVR (I) NZ
YVR-PHX (O) US
PHX-CLT (O) US
CLT-LGA (O) US

She then tried to get that approved and said she'd been told that I couldn't do an overnight in YVR - that I needed to connect in 4 hours. I reminded her that YVR is an international gateway and as a result the rule is less than 24 hours for a connect.
Got past that one.

She then came back and said I had to book YVR-PHX in I class. I said you don't sell C on that segment it's just not possible.
She finally went to ticketing as shown above.

This was complicated since there were 3 PNRs as the miles were coming out of multiple accounts.

My learnings here (for those of you who don't want to endure this pain) were as follows:

1) If you book it and you like it - ticket it on the same call if possible - less opportunity for reinterpretation of the rules later (we've heard that before I know)

2) Calling near the end of the 3 day hold gives you limited options if you get a challenging rep on the phone

3) Even with a good call rep, they seem powerless to do much. Every segment requested seemed to require a place on hold and a discussion with an unseen supervisor. I think it's not so much a bad rep as it is the supervisor in the background that makes a difference. My call was late (started at 10pm est)...perhaps things would have gone smoother with the day shift.

4) Know the rules...be willing to challenge.

5) Have alternatives at the ready! Or at least KVS or Expertflyer available on your screen.

Not sure if this O class on the 3 class UA flights is a new thing or a one off. I would say it warrants some monitoring to see if this is a new trend. Those PS flights are great positioning flights from JFK to the pacific. O class space is 'relatively' easy to come by - particularly inside of 30 days prior to departure. It would be a shame if you can't use those seats to construct business class awards moving forward.