Using Flight Passes
 

Hi Everyone,

Just wondering what experiences you've had purchasing and using Flight Passes. I'm thinking of buying the Latitude Oil Regional as I have quite a few upcoming YYC-YYZ flights.

Has anyone had trouble using their credits for flights/dates they want? I checked all my upcoming dates and they currently show availability on all of them.

With Latitude, are you generally able to obtain the complimentary Business Upgrade?

Also with Latitude, are the changes/cancellations truly complimentary? Or are there hidden fees?

How short notice can you book a flight? Or cancel a flight?

Thanks so much for any information or experience you have with Flight Passes. I searched the Archives but didn't really find any comprehensive information. I've looked at the T+C on AC website as well.

~5Miles

Nope.

Odds are fairly good. If you have status though, it's easy to eUpgrade in advance and then switch to comp up when the window opens.

Yes to the first. Only fee is if you no-show the flight, I believe.

Very short. The T&Cs should spell it out, but maybe yyznomad could share more perspective.

If you value the flexibility, and frequently need to book or change plans at the last minute, and if it's otherwise difficult for you to get in to J, the FP may work well for you, but do take a look at what it usually costs for last-minute bookings and whether it does truly deliver goor value.

I have pretty much the same answers as Adam. With a Latitude FP, you're booking into Y, so you'd have the same availability as anyone buying an economy class ticket.

I don't think there are fees for no-showing on limited-credit passes. You just forfeit the credit.

You can book flights up to 2 hours before departure. I think TECHNICALLY the terms say 2 hours for changing/canceling, but I've successfully done both MUCH closer to departure.

I find they tend to deliver good value if you you're booking flights within a month of departure and you can definitely use all the credits.

I'm probably going to buy another transcon Y pass, because it's about the same price per segment as a P fare with a 15% code, but it lets me book last minute and change my flights (I had a... "discussion" with family over our Thanksgiving plans, as they wanted to have dinner on a different day after I bought P fares per a June discussion with them).

In the past month I've purchased 3 Y passes, and booked about half the credits with full intention of flying all of them by the end of January.

FPs are amazing.

Latitude passes are quite good, especially if you are SE with Concierge access (same day change anyone?). The only fees you will encounter are if you miss a flight, or don't use all the credits on time (extension fee, or just expiring credits).

Availability is mostly based on fare class. Sometimes there are issues with the flight pass system not showing availability that should be there...usually this is solved by calling reservations who will sometimes need to talk to the "resource desk." Personally I find that annoying because it can take as long as 30 mins to resolve.

I will just weigh in with applause for the Flex FP also. If your route has multiple flights a day, most of the year it is quite feasible to simply book the flight after the upgrade window opens (select the flight with R space) and upgrade for eUp credits. With status, but not SE, that's the best value for eUps for me.

If you are looking at YYZ-YYC would the East-West connector not be better value? This is my usual FP of choice for this route with the odd trip to YVR.

I have used a load of Flex FP on this route and never sat in the back, but I have flexibility on timings and only book when I can confirm the UG.

East-West Connector is better value for someone based in the Rapidair triangle, but makes less sense for someone traveling eastbound from YYC.

But yeah, Latitude FPs are worth every penny if your travel justifies it. I use them without status and always get upgraded on transcons, even on Sun/Mon/Thu/Fri, which are the days I do all my transcon flying. I just don't get upgraded on YYZ-YHZ, lol.

I've used various Latitude passes within NA and I can literally book/cancel last minute if needed, even if it'snot published in the T&Cs. YYZ concierge is helpful and I have had them put me on a flight a few minutes before it boards.

Thanks to everyone for all of your responses. All very helpful and appreciated.

I have a question about requesting an upgrade. Adam Smith mentioned you could use your Eups then change to the complimentary once that window opens. As 50k flying Latitude, it seems I can request my Eup upon booking since the window is 'anytime' for that fare class. Then the complimentary upgrade window is 2 days; so would I cancel the regular Eup then and make the complimentary request? Does one have precedence over the other? I'll be using all of the 10 flight credits by the end of 2019 and have enough Eups for about half of those credits so would like to make best use of the 2 upgrade options.

Also, if I can't upgrade, are Preferred Seats complimentary for the Latitude Pass?

Thanks again!

I can comment on Flex FP. I needed to travel at Christmas and March Break. The Florida + FP in Flex reduced the fare from $1,500 per person to $750. Great value. Books into M so reduced eUp credits.

Preferred Seats are complimentary for all Latitude fares, including FPs.

But it's extremely unlikely you won't be able to upgrade a Y pass unless you're booking last minute and completely inflexible to schedule.

Yes, you can eUp at time of booking.

Yes, you would cancel the eUp two days out to use the comp up. Or you can just cancel the booking altogether, make a new one, and do a comp up on the new booking.

Neither has precedence, but the comp up can be done with inventory in J booking class (the highest one), whereas eUps require R space. So, if you want to make sure you will sit in J but preserve eUps, you can eUp in advance, then cancel and use the comp up at two days out. Of J=0 two days out, you simply leave the eUp in place.

Most of the time, especially if you're flying routes like YYC-YYZ, you should be able to do the comp up and save the eUps.

You NEED Y space to do this. In theory, J0 will go to J1 when you downgrade, but it's obviously a risk. But certainly possible with J0 Y1, though not J9 Y0.

Flight passes are so good that I won’t post more publicly here. ‘Nuff said? ;)