AF selling business seats on a one-class flight?
 

I booked a flight AMS-MRS, MRS-CDG-AMS and paid for a business fare that booked into a C fare.

Now, when selecting my seat AMS-MRS, it is a Y-only cabin. how is this even possible?

Not only that, 90% of the seats are actually blocked. EF shows open seats up front and essentially everything behind row 5 is blocked but the AF site only showed 2 seats open - 10A and 10F.

Is this normal practice for AF?

What flight and date?

If you have been downgraded, then you can claim compensation pursuant to EU261.

AF 1821 on April 24th.

Here is the AF seatmap:
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e4...ps9gg4shx6.jpg

Here is the EF seatmap:
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e4...psei1pulwk.jpg

Lots of bugs going regarding seat maps on AF medium hault. This segment is Y only, there's no J service or separated class.

I booked a AMS-MRS in Y for may and I was able to seat on row 1.

Interesting as they are obviously selling J fares... and now the Y fare is so expensive that there is no point in trying to change. Glad I paid 800 euros for my business fare.

Wish I had known as I would have taken another route/airline. First and last time I am flying AF intra europe.

This must be a mistake for the AMS/MRS. Only domestic flights have no C cabin (such as MRS/CDG)

For the seat assignment, try KLM website.

If it does not work, it will be possible when you OLCI, but it should work.

AFAIK all domestic AF flights are one class, coach only. If your destination is anywhere in France other than Paris, you need to take a flight from AMS and not connect through Paris.

I suspect that a business class AF ticket, even if domestic with no business class cabin, gets you lounge access. It worked that way for me a long time ago on some Air Europa flight that was one class but sold/ticketed as business class without warning.

That is what the OP did:

- AMS/MRS : direct European flight (not domestic) so should have C.

- MRS/CDG/AMS : he will be in Y on the domestic segment and C on CDG/AMS.

P.S. You do not "need" to take a direct flight from AMS. You CAN (when they exist), as there is not always a direct flights from every French city to AMS. Many times, you HAVE to fly through CDG (or even worse ORY).

2015 I took a leg from LHR-CDG in business. Except not business class like your map shows. There were two of us. We got seat A and C. B was left empty. I guess that was our business class.

Your guess is correct. This is the standard configuration on European flights, whichever the airline with 3-3 seat plan : the middle seat is blocked and service on board is better than behind the curtain (there is usually a curtain separating C and Y cabins).

If 2-2 (like E190), there there is no blocked seat.

To the OP avi8tir : did you try KLM website? Are you making any progress? It is OK to come here to complain and ask for advice, but some feedback would be nice. :)

I spoke with Air France again and they were zero help.

I kept asking the question, "How can you sell a business class C fare on a flight that is coach only??"

The response was negligible. KL site was no different than the AF site... same issue.

I'll likely cancel and just go Alitalia through FCO --- I can deal with Y, but it's a matter of principal at this point.

Sorry but I do not get it.

What is a "negligible" answer"?

Does this flight have a biz class cabin or not?

Is the issue with the flight itself (i.e. no C class cabin) or with the plane map?:confused:

Me too. And AMS-MRS does have C class.

On AF and KL, as is the norm for European airlines, there is only one type of seat. A movable curtain separates busines from economy; its location changes from flight to flight, as demand requires.
There is no separate, fixed-size business cabin with differentiated seating as on US carriers.

As you have a business ticket, you are restricted to choosing a seat in the front of the cabin, which is where all business class customers are seated. You cannot sit in an economy row, which at this time and for your flight means row 6 and back.

You will be restricted to the front of the cabin in the same manner as on AF or KL.

Can you explain what AF told you?

There is a C cabin on your AF flight, so which issue are you facing that AF cannot solve?