I’m finding that for MAD-ORD and a lot of transatlantic routes, the cutoff for booking is 26 Oct 2024, after which the flight numbers switch formats from four to three digits, and the “unable to create PNR” message is generated prior to payment.

I was able to snag ORD-MAD in business on 24 Oct 2024 just before the change, but now I’m stuck in limbo waiting for the return flight to become available. What’s worrying me, though, is that business availability seems to be drying up in early November, even though I, everyone here, and even Iberia agents seem unable to book the route. Is there some way to book these tickets that we’re missing, perhaps?