eponymous_coward

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Null_hypothesis

―\_(ツ)_/―

ArlingtonTraveler

Thanks for the suggestion to use the Quantas site. Like I said, the Alaska agent did not see ANY availability on the HKG to SIN flights even though BA showed multiple seats on each flight. May end up doing two tickets to get around lack of availability.

MasterGeek

Why aren't more people doing searches using JL ? It's the most accurate one and there is no seat blocking because JL doesn't sell its frequent flyer miles.

jamienbaker

Possibly because it doesn't show close-in availability.

Voldoo

Hi Everyone,

Need some advice......GF wants to fly Cathay F when we go to Hong Kong in November. Currently have her confirmed booked 11-19 in F from ORD. Problem is we live in Orange County, CA. There is no availability in F from LAX, SFO, or YVR, all of which would obviously be preferred to ORD.

My question is two-fold:

• What strategies should I use to try and fly availability from SFO or LAX? Basically just check BA website to see if anything opens up?
• Is there anyway I can consolidate this reservation to include a flight from either LAX/SNA to ORD flying AA?

She needs to depart either the evening of 11/18 or anytime 11/19.



Thanks everyone

CDKing

You cannot combine AA and another partner. Some have been lucky enough to get an agent to allow AS metal to ORD but its rare and you will probably have to beg and likely be denied but it never hurts. Might have better chances if it were just SEA-ORD but LAX-SEA-ORD would be pushing it.

dkerr

Best strategy to find a seat is awardnexus.com and purchase their "trip pass" to set up a daily automated search selecting QF and JL as methods. Once within ~10 days of flight time supplement that with occasional manual searches (daily timed not to coincide with when you asked awardnexus to search).

DAK

Voldoo

Yeah, I wouldn't want to add another stopover by connecting through SEA anyways. I can use the few AA or UA miles to get her a direct flight to ORD that morning. The UA flight will arrive in ORD 1.5 hours before the CX flight to HKG. Do you think that is pushing it? The AA flight gets in sooner, but she would have to leave at 5am.

TY CDKing.

Voldoo

Hello DAK. I had never heard of awardnexus and have been looking through their site.

EDIT: I purchased the required membership and got my alerts all set up. Thank you so much for this recommendation!

eponymous_coward

Up to you, but UA has no duty to rebook if their delay makes your girlfriend miss the CX flight. Neither does CX- as far as they are concerned you no-showed the flight. Separate tickets means no protection if something goes wrong.

I wouldn't do a 90 minute connection into ORD for a once a day flight that required a terminal switch AND reclearing TSA, but everyone has different tolerance for risk. Any checked luggage might not make it (she will need to recheck, UA will not interline to CX on a separate ticket), so hopefully she is carry on only. Official minimum connection time domestic to international terminal is 75 minutes (so she is cutting it close anyway, even before accounting for the fact she is not actually connecting on the same ticket but is traveling on separate tickets).

Is your girlfriend an experienced traveler? If she is not, this proposed itinerary is extremely inadvisable. I usually try to give myself multiple hours buffer at least, ideally 24 on separate tickets as an experienced traveler... and I am mostly in carryons, have TSA Prcheck, Global Entry, etc. so I have tricks at my disposal.

Voldoo

Thank you for all that. She is fairly experienced but neither of us fly through ORD that often (certainly not for international flights) so I wasn't sure if 90 minutes was unreasonable. Sounds to me like it is.

I think I will have her to take the AA flight (which unfortunately leaves LAX at 5am) or even a red-eye/day-before flight and have her hang out at the airport a few extra hours. She has pre-check/Global Entry and will be traveling with all carry-on.

Happy

That would be what I choose. Or stay at ORD airport hotel for the night before the CX departure.

It does not have much to do with experience. The problem is, should there is any delay, you are completely SOL meaning you would be at the complete mercy on AS/CX to rebook you on the next available flight.

Do you feel lucky enough to gamble this, i.e. absolutely no delay whatsoever to connect at ORD?

Give it to me if it is a connection between a long haul and a short haul, ON SEPARATE TICKETS, I ALWAYS give it an overnight to allow for any possible hiccup. Sure, it involves extra time and money but it is a good way to protect the trip. YMMV.

dkerr

Looking at the loads in F on 11/18 and 11/19 LAX and SFO to HKG there are still several flights showing F5. What this means is that 5 first class seats are available for sale. The cabin has 6 seats, so one is occupied... likely someone that got in early with an award redemption. If first class remains F5 as you get towards approx one week before flight time then CX is highly likely to release additional award seat. LAX more likely than SFO I think (as two of the three daily SFO flights do not have a first class cabin, while all three LAX flights have first class).

That is a long winded way of saying don't buy a non-refundable flight to ORD because if LAX opens up then you want to move to that at minimal cost.

DAK

Voldoo

Thanks for checking that DAK! You guys are all so helpful.

littlewinglet

Just ran into same problem, booking 21 days out, don't feel like paying AA close booking fee but AS sees nothing. On the positive note, they can book E+ for 35k. That's tempting, as I'll need a morning departure from LAX...can't really sleep anyway, only have 1hr layover in HKG so can't really use the lounge. Makes me question the point of booking business.