From: Calgary, AB (YYC-Calgary Intl.)
To: Frankfurt, Germany (FRA-All Airports)
(and return)
Fare Basis Code: K0MSLXGT

V FARE BASIS BK FARE TRAVEL-TICKET AP MINMAX RTG
1 K0MSLXGT K R 695.00 T10SE -/3 SU/12M AT01
PASSENGER TYPE-ADT AUTO PRICE-YES
FROM-YYC TO-FRA CXR-AC TVL-25DEC07 RULE-NBMT IPRAI/101
FARE BASIS-K0MSLXGT SPECIAL FARE DIS-E VENDOR-ATP
FARE TYPE-XPX RT-INSTANT PURCHASE FARE
CAD 695.00 0301 E27JUL07 D-INFINITY FC-K0MSLXGT FN-D
SYSTEM DATES - CREATED 26JUL07/1619 EXPIRES INFINITY



This is from Expedia.ca I believe the fare code is "V" (if I am reading this right) and then would be eligible for Status Miles. The total price is about $960.00

If I try and book this flight on ac.com the price is $930.00 and in fare booking class K, meaning no miles.

Am I reading the expedia fare correctly? Does the expedia.ca fare acummulate status miles? It seems like to get status miles on ac.com with this routing will costs one about $3500!

The V you are looking at is just column header, I have almost confused that before also. The booking code is:

Fare Basis Code: K0MSLXGT
1 K0MSLXGT K R 695.00 T10SE -/3 SU/12M AT01

So it is K class.

K fares do not earn miles. What's worse,, if you cancel you seem to lose the whole value of the ticket. So K fares might not work for many people.

The problem is that these websites always give the cheapest available. You could call in to buy it, but they'll charge you a booking fee.

Well, no. There is an L fare for a few hundred more, but the website isn't showing it.

In this case you can apply Zorn's Transformation (that I just invented and will be publishing in Nature) to get the lowest fare that earns status miles.

It turns out the lowest status miles earning fare is L. It also turns out that fare is upgradeable using a SSWU. So, using AC.com, select the "Display only fares eligible for upgrade" option. It will prompt you for the certificate code. Enter the SSWU code, which is:

4000002

Then the lowest fare will be the L fare you desire.

The catch is that if it turns out YYC-YYZ-FRA is cheaper, you will be encountered with a big selection of every possible way of getting to YYZ before going on to FRA, pushing the non-stop YYC-FRA out of the picture.

'A' class, when it exists, is lower than L and also earns status miles.

The tricky part is that I think there may still be some routes where A fare exists and earns 100% status miles, but is not upgradable and therefore would escape detection via Zorn's Transformation. I know A is definitely upgradable on France/UK, but I'm not sure if this is also the case with Germany, which doesn't have the branded fare classes (Leisure, Latitude, &c) yet.

I may simply be imagining this last part, so don't go by what I've said until someone more authoritative corroborates it !

thanks for the info.

I can't stand the ac.com web-site.... I have SSWU but seems like will only permit upgrades on the domestic portions unless I want to pay yet a few hundred more for a Q fare.

I think I may be better off flying NW/KLM via MSP/DTW/AMS for about $950 and credit miles to WP!

I have been on this site for a while now and I have yet to earn my Bachelor's degree in deciphering Air Canada's fares and/or web-site. Maybe I need a Masters!

Ooh...harsh.

Harsh perhaps, but true at least for some of us.

I was shopping for flights to Europe this fall for 4 of my family members. The AC all in price was appr. $1020 CDN ( YQR - CDG ) and the NW all in price was $960 US. Almost exactly the same.

But the NW flight came with full flight miles ( plus some of the usual NW bonuses). And I didn't need the Air Canada Masters degree to decipher which fare class on flights to what country earn miles.

I am sure that Air Canada has much smarter people than me crunching the numbers about fare classes and mileage accumulation. But I am sure that its not just me and wannagoexplore that are considering other airline options because of the confusing AC / AP rules for collecting miles.

We don't fly much, Europe once a year or twice if we are lucky, and the occasional trip to Mexico, Asia, or South America. But earning miles is still a significant part of the decision making process for myself and my family when purchasing airline tickets.

I hear you and completely agree. I was checking from Christmas flights out of YVR and YYC to FRA and I can fly AC/LH either direct, through YYZ or YUL, and total costs was about $1895 a/i for K fares, meaning no miles/status. If I wanted miles/status I was looking at $2173, a $278 difference. I realize for some $278 is not much for some people and there are those that would pay this to remain loyal and dedicated to AP/AC, but that difference will most likley cover one of my nights in a decent hotel in Europe. I'd rather spend my money on that.

OTOH, if I booked NW/KLM from YVR and YYC the price was $949 and $954 respectively in Q class, which earns 100% miles and status in WP or AS. Total $1903, being a difference of $8.00 more than the AC "K" fares.

It's pretty easy arithmetic for me...."welcome aboard, Mr. H, says the NW gate agent"!

I had considered that as a theoretical possibility. However, in order for the A fare thing to be a problem, it would have to be a route on which A is offered, and it is not upgradable, and there are non-miles earning fares offered at all. For the routes with A non-upgradeable it tends to be the lowest possible fare anyway. I could be wrong.

And of course I wouldn't have published both methods in the same paper. I would have kept the extra result for another paper.

Apology not accepted. Size=4, italics, and Dark Orchid.

You are clearly a seasoned academic.

Yes but That messes The spaciing Up.I have My limits.Being a Mere peasant And Not of Royal blood.

I am trying to use Zorn's Transformation to price a miles earning fare on AC from Canada to Europe for the Spring of 2008.

When I enter the SSWU code 4000002 mentioned earlier in this thread it gives me an error message " The certificate number you have entered is not valid for the travel dates you have selected ". I assume that this is because that SSWU code is only valid through the end of 2007 ?

Could someone kindly provide me with an upgrade certificate code that is valid in 2008 ?

Thanks very much in advance.

My contact very high up at AC just gave me the information. (Or I may have looked on the AP website.)

2008 Upgrade Certificate Codes

NAU - 7000003
SWU - 8000001
SSWU - 9000006

I wonder how much I could get in an eBay auction for "AC Upgrade Certificate Codes"

Nah. Keep coming back and you'll be fine.

Stay here long enough and you may be piled higher and deeper (PhD)