A deep dive on mixed-cabin awards with Mark Nasr
Aug 31, 2023, 8:13 am
#121
Join Date: Oct 2022
Programs: Aeroplan SE; Marriott Bonvoy Ambassador
Posts: 1,553
Aug 31, 2023, 1:12 pm
#124
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: YYZ
Programs: AC 50K, Marriott Lifetime Platinum
Posts: 1,551
Sep 16, 2023, 7:29 am
#125
Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 34
Upgrading mixed-cabin awards
- If your whole one-way bound is booked entirely on partner metal, the old rules still apply to upgrading mixed-cabin awards: if I-space opens up, an Aeroplan phone agent can move you up to business. As before, there may be additional taxes and fees; for example, a flight out of LHR or CDG is taxed based on cabin class, so upgrading those segments will likely cost you extra taxes, but on fixed-price, all-partner awards, no additional points will be charged. If the one-way bound includes any AC metal, and therefore has pro-rated pricing, then upgrading a partner segment *may* re-price the whole bound.
- Any mixed-cabin segment on AC metal is eligible for eUpgrade just like an Economy or PE flight booked as an award on its own. I asked if there are specific rules about which exact fare type mixed-cabin awards will book into, and it sounds like they won’t set long-term policy on that until they have more data on "booking volumes and behaviours”, so for now mixed-class segments are assigned fare classes (and presumably priced) based on availability in each case.
- If you book a mixed-class award, you will no longer be waitlisted for upgrade at the gate on the mixed segment. Unless you eUpgrade, the class on your boarding pass is the class you’ll sit in.
- If your whole one-way bound is booked entirely on partner metal, the old rules still apply to upgrading mixed-cabin awards: if I-space opens up, an Aeroplan phone agent can move you up to business. As before, there may be additional taxes and fees; for example, a flight out of LHR or CDG is taxed based on cabin class, so upgrading those segments will likely cost you extra taxes, but on fixed-price, all-partner awards, no additional points will be charged. If the one-way bound includes any AC metal, and therefore has pro-rated pricing, then upgrading a partner segment *may* re-price the whole bound.
- Any mixed-cabin segment on AC metal is eligible for eUpgrade just like an Economy or PE flight booked as an award on its own. I asked if there are specific rules about which exact fare type mixed-cabin awards will book into, and it sounds like they won’t set long-term policy on that until they have more data on "booking volumes and behaviours”, so for now mixed-class segments are assigned fare classes (and presumably priced) based on availability in each case.
- If you book a mixed-class award, you will no longer be waitlisted for upgrade at the gate on the mixed segment. Unless you eUpgrade, the class on your boarding pass is the class you’ll sit in.
Wondering if anyone can answer my question about upgrading mixed cabin awards and specifically about repricing "bounds". If I book a stop-over, are the segments before and after a stop-over considered separate bounds? Or is the entire booking considered one bound? So if I change a flight before the stopover, it won't reprice the flights after the stopover?
Specifically, I am wondering if anyone can advise/confirm on this situation:
I've booked the following Business Class - Flexible Reward because it's hard to find J Award space on both segments of the trip I want to do, so I ended up booking mixed cabin with the hopes of swapping the Y portions for J if something becomes available. For context, the flights are as follows:
BKK-SIN - SQ Economy Class (X)
SIN-LHR - SQ Economy Class (X)
Stopover in LHR
LHR-YUL - AC Business Class (I)
YUL-YOW - AC Economy Class (Y)
If J award space shows up for the BKK-LHR leg, can I call AC to swap for no cost? My main concern is whether changing the BKK-LHR leg would reprice the LHR-YOW leg. The LHR-YUL leg is I-Class, so I assume it wouldn't reprice? But not sure about the YUL-YOW leg and whether that would impact pricing if changes are made to the BKK-LHR leg.
Thanks!
Sep 16, 2023, 4:02 pm
#126
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Canada
Programs: AC*SE
Posts: 1,924
Just as a point of frustration, seeing "mixed" awards where the percentage in J is under 10% is a little silly. That's all it's a lot of clicking to find out for a meh reward that it wouldn't make sense to book.
Sep 16, 2023, 5:29 pm
#127
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: YOW
Programs: AC SE, FOTSG Platinum
Posts: 5,734
This is covered in the first post in the thread. Personally I'd argue that threshold is considerably higher than 10%.
Sep 17, 2023, 1:12 am
#128
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Canada
Programs: AC*SE
Posts: 1,924
I know, I understand the how/why (as much as anyone can), it's just an annoying thing they are doing. Threshold wise I'd agree completely. I'm not sure what exactly is reasonable, but it's not 10%.
Sep 21, 2023, 8:18 am
#129
Join Date: Aug 2019
Posts: 74
Aeroplan Award Upgrade due to Upgauge Aircraft
I have booked a USA-YYZ-Europe AP saver award in business (I) where the initial USA-YYZ was a single cabin CRJ-200. Just got an alert that the aircraft has been up-gauged to a CRJ-900 now with a business-class cabin. Are we eligible for an upgrade to the business class cabin without paying additional miles? If it matters, the USA-YYZ economy is booked into (Y)-class.
Sep 21, 2023, 9:57 am
#130
Suspended
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: YYZ
Programs: AC SE 100K MM; Marriott Lifetime Titanium, Avis Presidents Club
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I have booked a USA-YYZ-Europe AP saver award in business (I) where the initial USA-YYZ was a single cabin CRJ-200. Just got an alert that the aircraft has been up-gauged to a CRJ-900 now with a business-class cabin. Are we eligible for an upgrade to the business class cabin without paying additional miles? If it matters, the USA-YYZ economy is booked into (Y)-class.
Sep 21, 2023, 10:21 am
#131
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Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: SFO
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No, you booked what you booked. If you want to make a change, you can call and pay the fare difference, or throw eUpgrades at it.
Sep 21, 2023, 10:52 am
#132
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: YXU
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Posts: 971
BTW, they did something similar to us with an ACV booking. The Q400 on YXU-YYZ segment was replaced with a CR9 for a month. Just in time for our outbound vacation flight. I called in and ACV plainly refused to rebook us to J. Got upgraded anyway, but that's a different story.
Sep 21, 2023, 10:59 am
#133
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These two sentences are contradictory. The former doesn't really make sense, given this clearly involves AC metal and is therefore priced dynamically - zone and distance don't really matter, because AC charges whatever it wants to charge. But yes, changing this booking to be in J would trigger re-pricing, which might be terrible, or it might not.
Sep 21, 2023, 11:11 am
#134
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These two sentences are contradictory. The former doesn't really make sense, given this clearly involves AC metal and is therefore priced dynamically - zone and distance don't really matter, because AC charges whatever it wants to charge. But yes, changing this booking to be in J would trigger re-pricing, which might be terrible, or it might not.
Sep 21, 2023, 12:09 pm
#135
Moderator, Air Canada; FlyerTalk Evangelist
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Or you might just be able to call-in and have the seating changed as a result of the equipment change, explaining that you booked a Business Class that from A to B to C that didn't have a Business Class cabin initially from A to B. I have done it successfully before with no fee or re-pricing of the ticket...definitely worth a try!