Skipping / Dropping a Segment
Jan 25, 2019 | 11:45 am
#1
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Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: YVR
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Skipping / Dropping a Segment
Flying YXC > YVR > YCD return.
Wanted to just cut the YVR > YCD leg on the way there to hangout in Vancouver for a night or 2 and then ferry / float plane over to YCD, essentially making it an open jaw itinerary.
I know this has been asked (and answered) before (I couldn't find it with some searching) but what happens if I just don't show up for that YVR > YCD flight? Does it invalidate / cancel the return as well? Any ways around this other than a formal change?
Just trying to avoid paying $100 change fee + fare difference for simply cutting a segment of the journey out.
Thanks for any help in advance!
Wanted to just cut the YVR > YCD leg on the way there to hangout in Vancouver for a night or 2 and then ferry / float plane over to YCD, essentially making it an open jaw itinerary.
I know this has been asked (and answered) before (I couldn't find it with some searching) but what happens if I just don't show up for that YVR > YCD flight? Does it invalidate / cancel the return as well? Any ways around this other than a formal change?
Just trying to avoid paying $100 change fee + fare difference for simply cutting a segment of the journey out.
Thanks for any help in advance!
Last edited by CanadianMike; Jan 25, 2019 at 11:53 am
Jan 25, 2019 | 11:59 am
#2
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If you no show for any segment, that segment and any onward or return segments will be cancelled and retain whatever value they may have under the ticket's fare rules. That is likely nothing. The COC provision is designed to make exactly what you propose to do unfeasible.
Jan 25, 2019 | 12:09 pm
#3
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Thanks for the reply.
No way around this I presume?
Seems like a bit of an odd rule as it wouldn't really affect them in any way other than open up a seat on that YVR > YCD flight, but maybe I'm not thinking from their point of view enough.
No way around this I presume?
Seems like a bit of an odd rule as it wouldn't really affect them in any way other than open up a seat on that YVR > YCD flight, but maybe I'm not thinking from their point of view enough.
Jan 25, 2019 | 12:15 pm
#4
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It is far from odd. I don't know any carrier which does not include this in its COC other than on departures from Germany, were German law requires that the carrier offer a ticket without the requirement. Those tickets tend to be vastly more expensive. Spain is leaning that way too, but it won't likely be cheap.
Bottom line is that if you choose to purchase a discounted ticket with a penalty for changes and you make a change, you then pay the change fee and pay any fare difference for the new ticket.
Bottom line is that if you choose to purchase a discounted ticket with a penalty for changes and you make a change, you then pay the change fee and pay any fare difference for the new ticket.
Jan 25, 2019 | 12:20 pm
#5
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Jan 25, 2019 | 12:32 pm
#6
Join Date: Mar 2013
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I can say with certainty it can be done...
Last year I was scheduled to fly YYC-YVR-SEA-YVR-YYC
for reasons too long to explain I wanted to drop the YVR-SEA segment.
I called to ask they said no because it would cancel the remaining segments.
I asked a gate agent at YYC they said the same thing.
I asked customer service at YYC they said the same.
I got got to YVR and asked a customer service agent and they were able to do it after not an insignificant amount of groveling.
I told my partner (the reason behind the change...) that if I was one segment short I was going to make her pay for my mileage run...I was in fact one short and she did pay for me to be the only passenger on a YYC-Red Deer flight!
also fun story...crossing the border in a rental vehicle when you were scheduled to fly across made for an interesting conversation in the nexus lane with the nice border officer...
Last year I was scheduled to fly YYC-YVR-SEA-YVR-YYC
for reasons too long to explain I wanted to drop the YVR-SEA segment.
I called to ask they said no because it would cancel the remaining segments.
I asked a gate agent at YYC they said the same thing.
I asked customer service at YYC they said the same.
I got got to YVR and asked a customer service agent and they were able to do it after not an insignificant amount of groveling.
I told my partner (the reason behind the change...) that if I was one segment short I was going to make her pay for my mileage run...I was in fact one short and she did pay for me to be the only passenger on a YYC-Red Deer flight!
also fun story...crossing the border in a rental vehicle when you were scheduled to fly across made for an interesting conversation in the nexus lane with the nice border officer...
Last edited by RLPYYC; Jan 25, 2019 at 12:52 pm
Jan 25, 2019 | 1:16 pm
#7
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: YVR
Programs: SE 100K
Posts: 1,122
Some. Care to elaborate?
Also care to explain how you pulled this off? Or just a lot of persistence haha?
I can say with certainty it can be done...
Last year I was scheduled to fly YYC-YVR-SEA-YVR-YYC
for reasons too long to explain I wanted to drop the YVR-SEA segment.
I called to ask they said no because it would cancel the remaining segments.
I asked a gate agent at YYC they said the same thing.
I asked customer service at YYC they said the same.
I got got to YVR and asked a customer service agent and they were able to do it after not an insignificant amount of groveling.
Last year I was scheduled to fly YYC-YVR-SEA-YVR-YYC
for reasons too long to explain I wanted to drop the YVR-SEA segment.
I called to ask they said no because it would cancel the remaining segments.
I asked a gate agent at YYC they said the same thing.
I asked customer service at YYC they said the same.
I got got to YVR and asked a customer service agent and they were able to do it after not an insignificant amount of groveling.
Jan 25, 2019 | 4:26 pm
#9
Moderator, Air Canada; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2015
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I don't know what you paid for your trip, but sometimes onward connections are cheaper than direct flights - in this case, that would mean YXC-YVR-YCD was cheaper than YXC-YVR. It's actually not uncommon for this to happen. Some people choose to take advantage of this - hidden-city ticketing.
If AC were to allow everyone to drop segments whenever they liked, it would effectively make hidden-city ticketing both permissible and quite easy.
Internationally, round trips are also frequently cheaper than one-way tickets, so if you let people drop the returns, it would erode the huge premium they currently make.
Anyway, none of this may be applicable to your particular case since it sounds like your plans have simply changed, but that's part of why those rules exist.
Jan 25, 2019 | 10:55 pm
#10
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Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: YVR
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Remember that they don't price by segment, they price origin to destination. If they charged by segment, i.e. the price for YXC-YVR-YCD = YXC-YVR price + YVR-YCD price, yes, it would be odd. But your YXC-YVR-YCD was priced as YXC-YCD.
I don't know what you paid for your trip, but sometimes onward connections are cheaper than direct flights - in this case, that would mean YXC-YVR-YCD was cheaper than YXC-YVR. It's actually not uncommon for this to happen. Some people choose to take advantage of this - hidden-city ticketing.
If AC were to allow everyone to drop segments whenever they liked, it would effectively make hidden-city ticketing both permissible and quite easy.
Internationally, round trips are also frequently cheaper than one-way tickets, so if you let people drop the returns, it would erode the huge premium they currently make.
Anyway, none of this may be applicable to your particular case since it sounds like your plans have simply changed, but that's part of why those rules exist.
I don't know what you paid for your trip, but sometimes onward connections are cheaper than direct flights - in this case, that would mean YXC-YVR-YCD was cheaper than YXC-YVR. It's actually not uncommon for this to happen. Some people choose to take advantage of this - hidden-city ticketing.
If AC were to allow everyone to drop segments whenever they liked, it would effectively make hidden-city ticketing both permissible and quite easy.
Internationally, round trips are also frequently cheaper than one-way tickets, so if you let people drop the returns, it would erode the huge premium they currently make.
Anyway, none of this may be applicable to your particular case since it sounds like your plans have simply changed, but that's part of why those rules exist.
Yeah, re: the hidden city ticketing tricks I understand that and does make sense.
Is there any way to split the booking into 2x separate PNR's such that if I skip the YVR > YCD leg that's the "last segment" of my one booking and the YCD > YVR > YXC is separate? Or is this a wishful thinking kind of loophole...
Jan 25, 2019 | 11:37 pm
#11
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Toronto
Programs: UA 1K, AC 35K, SPG GOLD
Posts: 264
Cannot split a return ticket into 2 one ways.
I worked for the airline before and the only way to drop a leg like you want is to reprice the ticket and pay the change fee plus fare difference.
if you don't show up for a leg, you forfeit the rest of the ticket if it's not full fare ticket or business class fare ticket.
I worked for the airline before and the only way to drop a leg like you want is to reprice the ticket and pay the change fee plus fare difference.
if you don't show up for a leg, you forfeit the rest of the ticket if it's not full fare ticket or business class fare ticket.
Jan 26, 2019 | 12:03 am
#12
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 3,359
It is far from odd. I don't know any carrier which does not include this in its COC other than on departures from Germany, were German law requires that the carrier offer a ticket without the requirement. Those tickets tend to be vastly more expensive. Spain is leaning that way too, but it won't likely be cheap.
Bottom line is that if you choose to purchase a discounted ticket with a penalty for changes and you make a change, you then pay the change fee and pay any fare difference for the new ticket.
Bottom line is that if you choose to purchase a discounted ticket with a penalty for changes and you make a change, you then pay the change fee and pay any fare difference for the new ticket.
I told my partner (the reason behind the change...) that if I was one segment short I was going to make her pay for my mileage run...I was in fact one short and she did pay for me to be the only passenger on a YYC-Red Deer flight!
also fun story...crossing the border in a rental vehicle when you were scheduled to fly across made for an interesting conversation in the nexus lane with the nice border officer...
also fun story...crossing the border in a rental vehicle when you were scheduled to fly across made for an interesting conversation in the nexus lane with the nice border officer...
Most people I talk to IRL who are not avgeeks or lurkers of the forum always give me odd looks when I explain to them the itineraries I put together. "Wait, so you're flying to SIN via YYZ, ORD, NRT instead of just taking the non-stop from LHR to SIN! Why would you ever want to do that?!" When I explain how the fare was cheaper, resulted in substantially higher BIS and access to the NH lounge at NRT their eyes glaze over like an Apple Fritter at Tim Horton's during a Toronto sunrise.-James