Yes:

[KVS Availability Tool 2.8.0/Platinum - ZUJ: YTO-ZRH/AC/U0M0SW/1715 USD]

J vs. C on AC YVR to LHR
 

Hello all,

I am trying to book two business class tickets to London for late April and I am confused by the (apparent) difference between J and C fares.

I have read the entire thread, but nothing seems to address my question.

The "Executive First" heading on the AC website says no restrictions; however, the C class definition says:
- Discounted Executive Class fare with some restrictions.
- Change fees and/or cancellation penalties may apply.

When I try to book the ticket, I get fare code C30MSHCA, the fine print seems to say: 30 day advance and $400 cancellation/change fee.

Am I missing something?

I would prefer to fly *Alliance, but a $400 change fee seems pretty steep 30 days before departure.

Any alternate ideas (ie booking through UA or Lufthansa with stop) would be appreciated.

Thanks!

That change fee/adv. purchase combination is actually pretty standard for discounted Business-class fares on that route, and the AC fare you mentioned appears to be the lowest published one that would be applicable to your travel dates:

[KVS Availability Tool 2.8.0/Platinum - Sabre: Fares/ZUJ/AU-USD]

I would look into booking with Lufthansa, they are having a 3-day fare sale-
http://www.lufthansa.com/online/port...nodeid=1899321

I am looking at booking YYZ-LHR.
Choice is booking L class with AC or booking T class with BMI. This is BMI flt. no. (BD4856/BD4859) but AC matal). BMI cost is approx. $140 cheaper. Question is does BMI "T" class give me 100% Aeroplan status miles ?.

Does AC actually offer a "C" class fare between YVR and YYZ? I've gone out as near (tomorrow) and far (next Feb) as I can, and the prices are identical. +/- $50. Which I'm assuming is J fare Or is a "C" class only for special promotions, etc...

[KVS Availability Tool 2.8.1/Platinum - Sabre: Fares/DotRes/CA/CAD]
Usually it's the C fare for sale.

But see Wednesday, April 11, for an example of a day when both C and J are for sale.

The 4987 is a theoretical J fare only. Airlines are required to publish these fares to maintain the critical amount of dark matter in the universe.

I'm trying to avoid buying N fares on a LHR-YHZ itinerary, yet that's all the AC website wants to sell me. Maddeningly, every time I select a routing that prices up into Q, the inbound falls back into N, which earns 0 miles in bmi diamond club.

Is there an obvious workaround...maybe a res centre that would have access to Q inventory, for a fee?

Thanks, from an AC newbie :)

You can definitely call AC res and ask to book a ticket in booking class Q--there's one listed (but which may not be available, depending on your travel dates) for basis Q0MSKX2L at GBP 430 return. With taxes, fees, etc. I think it'll be in the GBP 550 range.

There is definitely inventory available in other classes, so thank you :) According to Expertflyer, A is the cheapest earning class - but it is not available on my dates, so Q it is.

If I am booking a return flight LHR-YYZ is it possible to book a Tourist (N) fare on the outbound and then a Leisure (A) fare on the return? Both are available but I only need around 3.5k status miles to retain BD gold and I have a ton of destination miles so wouldn't mind saving £50 by forgoing the miles in one direction.

Yes, entirely possible - if you can't force the website to do it (try searching by schedule, rather than fare) than the call centre can but its costs CAD 20, which is a bargain as offline fees go.

In the end I gave up and booked LHR-YHZ rather than EDI-LHR-YHZ because the website was playing sillyb*ggers on the through-ticket. All-AC itineraries are much easer to construct and price.

Thanks. I could argue that I should not be charged $20 as I cannot book the flight online as I want to force a long connection in YUL which then prevents me from booking anything but the lowest available fare online which is a combination of N and K class.

Anyhow are you no taking a bit of a chance there with bmi's refusal to thru-check you on seperate tickets?

Not really. BD's policy is entirely fair: if I want to transfer the risk onto the airlines, I can cough up for the through-fares on either BD or AC websites. If I want to take my own risk in order to save £50 by booking the tickets separately with each carrier, I can do so.

My issue was not with the through fares themselves but with the fact that the AC website was changing its offer of Q, H or N depending on how I selected the fares. I could see Q routings on the outbound, but only with N on the inbound. As soon as I selected 'search by schedule', the exact same routings priced out in H - an extra £200. Can't be bothered with that. AC call centre was very helpful and £9 for an offline fee is a relative bargain in my book.

Corresponding booking class - OZ vs AC
 

I'm travelling YVR-ICN on a ticket issued by OZ but on AC metal. The OZ booking class (and also the fare basis) is C (fully refundable, changeable, etc.). Does that translate to C or J on AC? I.e., will I get the 25% COS bonus or no?