Exasperating experience: Seat assignment for AA award travel on Air Berlin!
Jul 22, 2014, 4:34 pm
#31
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Austin, TX
Programs: AA ExPlat, UA Silver, Marriott Lifetime Gold
Posts: 715
Jul 22, 2014, 7:03 pm
#32
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: NYC
Programs: AA 2MM, Bonvoy LTT, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 14,635
Im stuck here right now. I booked an award ticket with DM in business and I'm flying tomorrow and I can't check in, let alone select seats.
I called AB here in Germany and the EXTREMELY RUDE agent told me "well, there's nothing I can do, it's an IT issue and you have to accept that. Have a good day" and hung up on me! I mean, I know customer service is pretty bad here but not that bad...
I called AB here in Germany and the EXTREMELY RUDE agent told me "well, there's nothing I can do, it's an IT issue and you have to accept that. Have a good day" and hung up on me! I mean, I know customer service is pretty bad here but not that bad...
Oct 7, 2014, 7:46 pm
#33
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Ann Arbor
Programs: HHonors Gold , National Emerald Exec, Hertz Presidents, Delta Gold
Posts: 2,604
Just checked with AA agent about recently booked Y AA award tickets to Europe. She claimed the airberlin seat map was greyed out. I'm not paying the 25 euros per seat for 5 seats over the Atlantic and then 10 euros per seat for connecting flights.
Guess we will see whether my wife and I will sit with the kids....
Guess we will see whether my wife and I will sit with the kids....
Nov 11, 2014, 9:05 pm
#34
Join Date: May 2001
Location: topeka, ks usa
Posts: 392
AB website is saying "just fly" cannot select seat using web checkin. Is AA award coach just fly class? When would you get assignment? Also, they say e15 fee to do airport checkin. Could someone with AA coach award experience explain what is really happening? GOT TXL ORD. x class on AB website. no status.
Last edited by mmthomas44; Nov 12, 2014 at 1:15 pm
Nov 19, 2014, 12:55 pm
#35
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: DCA
Posts: 7,769
Putting this here because I'm too ashamed to start ANOTHER thread on partner award seat selection...
Booked two awards involving AB, both with partner points. One is KRK-TXL using BA Avios and then the other is TXL-JFK-DCA using AAdvantage miles. For both of these trips I used the Qatar Airways website to select seats. I have reason to believe that these seat selections have stuck somewhat legitimately because I can see them back through on the respective partners websites. So if I pull up the BA PNR on BA.com and the AA PNR on AA.com it shows me in the AB seats I picked on Qatar. That said, is there any means by which to actually get this to show on the AB website? When I put in the PNRs there, I get no information on seating showing up on the "my booking" tab. For the KRK flight the "more flight options" or whatever tab is available; it will let me buy a seat apparently but doesn't show me in one. For the JFK flight that button is greyed out altogether.
Is there any way to validate this with AB?
Booked two awards involving AB, both with partner points. One is KRK-TXL using BA Avios and then the other is TXL-JFK-DCA using AAdvantage miles. For both of these trips I used the Qatar Airways website to select seats. I have reason to believe that these seat selections have stuck somewhat legitimately because I can see them back through on the respective partners websites. So if I pull up the BA PNR on BA.com and the AA PNR on AA.com it shows me in the AB seats I picked on Qatar. That said, is there any means by which to actually get this to show on the AB website? When I put in the PNRs there, I get no information on seating showing up on the "my booking" tab. For the KRK flight the "more flight options" or whatever tab is available; it will let me buy a seat apparently but doesn't show me in one. For the JFK flight that button is greyed out altogether.
Is there any way to validate this with AB?
Nov 19, 2014, 4:28 pm
#36
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: NYC
Programs: AA 2MM, Bonvoy LTT, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 14,635
Putting this here because I'm too ashamed to start ANOTHER thread on partner award seat selection...
Booked two awards involving AB, both with partner points. One is KRK-TXL using BA Avios and then the other is TXL-JFK-DCA using AAdvantage miles. For both of these trips I used the Qatar Airways website to select seats. I have reason to believe that these seat selections have stuck somewhat legitimately because I can see them back through on the respective partners websites. So if I pull up the BA PNR on BA.com and the AA PNR on AA.com it shows me in the AB seats I picked on Qatar. That said, is there any means by which to actually get this to show on the AB website? When I put in the PNRs there, I get no information on seating showing up on the "my booking" tab. For the KRK flight the "more flight options" or whatever tab is available; it will let me buy a seat apparently but doesn't show me in one. For the JFK flight that button is greyed out altogether.
Is there any way to validate this with AB?
Booked two awards involving AB, both with partner points. One is KRK-TXL using BA Avios and then the other is TXL-JFK-DCA using AAdvantage miles. For both of these trips I used the Qatar Airways website to select seats. I have reason to believe that these seat selections have stuck somewhat legitimately because I can see them back through on the respective partners websites. So if I pull up the BA PNR on BA.com and the AA PNR on AA.com it shows me in the AB seats I picked on Qatar. That said, is there any means by which to actually get this to show on the AB website? When I put in the PNRs there, I get no information on seating showing up on the "my booking" tab. For the KRK flight the "more flight options" or whatever tab is available; it will let me buy a seat apparently but doesn't show me in one. For the JFK flight that button is greyed out altogether.
Is there any way to validate this with AB?
Nov 20, 2014, 9:25 am
#39
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: San Diego
Programs: AA lifetime Gold March 2010
Posts: 86
Nov 20, 2014, 9:39 am
#40
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: DCA
Posts: 7,769
Where on checkmytrip are you seeing seat assignments? I don't even see a placeholder or data field for them.
But where on the AB site can you see them? The main "my booking" page doesn't list them.
But where on the AB site can you see them? The main "my booking" page doesn't list them.
Nov 20, 2014, 11:34 am
#41
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Wedged somewhere between BTS and VIE ✈
Programs: Star Alliance Gold (A3 Gold), Oneworld Emerald (BA Gold), Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,338
The airberlin 'manage booking' page does not show seat numbers. You would only see a seat selection page if seats hadn't already been allocated.
Qatar seems to have the best page for viewing seat numbers.
Last edited by headingwest; Nov 20, 2014 at 11:45 am
Nov 20, 2014, 12:50 pm
#42
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: DCA
Posts: 7,769
Ok, so looking back through and trying this again...
Apparently, the Qatar website is not a true workaround for non-status pax to assign seats on AB, or they updated it to remove this functionality. Because even though Qatar emailed me at the time saying I had selected seats on the KRK-TXL flight (and these seats were visible on the site of the issuing carrier, BA), going back to Qatar it shows me as having no seat assignments, and wouldn't let me select them. This is apparently why CMT was not displaying any seat info.
However, when I used Qatar to switch the FF # on the reservation from my no-status BA # which I had used to book the trip to my AA FF# - which is AA PLT / OW Sapphire - it would let me book a seat for myself but not my companion, even though they're on the same PNR. Is this just the policy - should I call and try to get a seat assignment explaining that this was booked out of the account of a OW Sapphire, or is the seat selection only for the OW elite and not other people on the PNR?
For the TXL-JFK flight seat assignments show in CMT and Qatar; we're in biz and it looks like the seats stuck and we are all set...I think?
But why on earth does the AB site not have the functionality to see your seats on their own airline?
Apparently, the Qatar website is not a true workaround for non-status pax to assign seats on AB, or they updated it to remove this functionality. Because even though Qatar emailed me at the time saying I had selected seats on the KRK-TXL flight (and these seats were visible on the site of the issuing carrier, BA), going back to Qatar it shows me as having no seat assignments, and wouldn't let me select them. This is apparently why CMT was not displaying any seat info.
However, when I used Qatar to switch the FF # on the reservation from my no-status BA # which I had used to book the trip to my AA FF# - which is AA PLT / OW Sapphire - it would let me book a seat for myself but not my companion, even though they're on the same PNR. Is this just the policy - should I call and try to get a seat assignment explaining that this was booked out of the account of a OW Sapphire, or is the seat selection only for the OW elite and not other people on the PNR?
For the TXL-JFK flight seat assignments show in CMT and Qatar; we're in biz and it looks like the seats stuck and we are all set...I think?
But why on earth does the AB site not have the functionality to see your seats on their own airline?
Nov 20, 2014, 1:00 pm
#43
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: San Diego
Programs: AA lifetime Gold March 2010
Posts: 86
I lied - the seats are indicated on my AA and US Air reservation page.
My itin is: PHX/ORD via US ORD/TXL via AB.
I did receive the seat #s when AB sent me the original confirm email, after I called them the next day after resv. to get seat assignments. Yes I was on hold quite a while, hung up and redialed, presseing the xt for Spanish, the rep was very helpful.
CT
Nov 20, 2014, 3:28 pm
#44
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: NYC
Programs: AA 2MM, Bonvoy LTT, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 14,635
Nov 20, 2014, 4:19 pm
#45
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: DCA
Posts: 7,769
I lied - the seats are indicated on my AA and US Air reservation page.
My itin is: PHX/ORD via US ORD/TXL via AB.
I did receive the seat #s when AB sent me the original confirm email, after I called them the next day after resv. to get seat assignments. Yes I was on hold quite a while, hung up and redialed, presseing the xt for Spanish, the rep was very helpful.
CT
When I tried later (after my post about CMT not having seat records) with my TXL-JFK flight it did show in the expanded details section.