Jan 2, 2013, 4:02 am
Last edit by: Prospero
Air Tahiti Nui (TN) is a non-oneworld airline partner of AA. AAdvantage members may use AA miles for awards on TN; members earn miles on TN only if flying TN as an AA marketed / codeshare. AA and TN have expanded codesharing to include CDG, AKL. It is also possible to earn AA miles flying as a Qantas codeshare due to an exclusion from the normal oneworld rule of earning on a oneworld codeshare only if operated by another oneworld airline.
You can now search for TN award availability on aa.com. But you may have to call AA due to some aa.com anomalous behavior. You may also use tools such as ExpertFlyer to find availability, or use Qantas as described in The High Life here.
NOTE: Air Tahiti Nui is “skipping” the USA with the exception of 4-5 flights weekly as of mid-March 2020 and initially through 7 April due to the novel Coronavirus and flying PPT-CDG without stopping at LAX. Link to TN travel policy page.
For AAdvantage awards, remember there must be an unconstructed fare offered by TN - as the most significant carrier - from one's origin - it may not be so likely you'll find an unconstructed fare from FAR or JAX to PPT, more likely from DFW. Otherwise, you may need to get yourself to an OK origin airport with a separate award or paid ticket.
See mercruiser's TN Business award booking process here.
NOTE: AA Agents may have difficulty finding the award space themselves, but:
See the aa.com page on award redemption charts, including the South Pacific, here. From March 22, 2016 on, here.
See post #1 for information on the TN 787 and illustrations, including seat chartand post #2 for information on the A340-343s retiring in 2019.
TN does not belong to any alliance at this time, though they do offer some codeshares and accept awards booked by a number of airlines (including AA). TN offers a "QF3826" PPT-AKL, but as pointed out by JonNYC elsewhere, though ExpertFlyer displays it as a prime flight, it's a codeshare operated by TN and not available for an award. (N.B. ExpertFlyer will show TN award seats accurately.)
- Exit and Bulkhead seats can only be assigned at the airport.
- On the A340 a Business seat or pair may be reserved for the pilot not flying.
- TN, 2019 (Note TN easily gives away predilect seats to “friends and family”, so if you lose your exit row or other favored seat don’t be surprised.)
You can not upgrade TN flights with AA miles, but they offer paid counter upgrades (availability based, Feb 2016 $1,000 Y to J, first come first served, so arrive early at check-in, and they may decline to upgrade paid codeshare flights). See http://borabora.airtahitinui-usa.com...es-charges.asp.
We don’t know if an upgrade from Moana Coach can be purchased to Premium Economy (on the 787-9) as yet.
Link to summary information about PPT Airport.
Link to Papeete Faa’a / PPT very useful page at SleepingInAirports.net.
Air Tahiti Nui was established on 31 October 1996 and commenced flight operations on 20 November 1998. The government of French Polynesia is the major shareholder (84.4%) along with other local investors. (Wikipedia)
Fleet
Seat selection and On Line Check In:
But:
Note: Flights within French Polynesia, e.g. to Bora Bora / BOB, are operated by Air Tahiti / VT (not oneworld nor AA partner) can be acquired with TYP, Barclays etc. travelcard points, but not with AA miles.
Other airline services to PPT include LA via SCL-IPC and AF. HA also offers once a week flights (Saturdays at this time) to PPT via HNL. AA flyers to SYD and AKL; this offers other award opportunities via AA and TN. LA flys SCL-IPC-PPT as well.
Websites: www.airtahitinui.com and www.airtahitinui-usa.com
Link to Archive if 2014-2017 posts from this thread.
You can now search for TN award availability on aa.com. But you may have to call AA due to some aa.com anomalous behavior. You may also use tools such as ExpertFlyer to find availability, or use Qantas as described in The High Life here.
NOTE: Air Tahiti Nui is “skipping” the USA with the exception of 4-5 flights weekly as of mid-March 2020 and initially through 7 April due to the novel Coronavirus and flying PPT-CDG without stopping at LAX. Link to TN travel policy page.
For AAdvantage awards, remember there must be an unconstructed fare offered by TN - as the most significant carrier - from one's origin - it may not be so likely you'll find an unconstructed fare from FAR or JAX to PPT, more likely from DFW. Otherwise, you may need to get yourself to an OK origin airport with a separate award or paid ticket.
Award classes you are looking for on TN (updated Dec 2017 by dkc192) are:
See FleyeSkyHigh’s post #599
- TN awards on AA need to have an "AP" or Another Partner award code.
- NOTE: ]F is J award
- U is Y award
- Z has been J upgrade
- There is no longer First Class on TN
- Moana Premium Economy is not available as an award booking yet
See FleyeSkyHigh’s post #599
First, the basics. The should search for available inventory with the following criteria:
Promo Box- leave empty
Carrier Code Box- TN
Inventory Box- ADV
That's pretty much true for all award searches so if the rep didn't know how to find the carrier code of TN your best bet is going to be to HUCA. Assuming you get that far the next gotcha is the way the type of award code that is used. Often times the agent will simply search for a American or OneWorld award code. That will not work. They need to search using an "AP" award code which basically means "Another Partner Award Code."
...Air Tahiti Nui decided to change their business class award booking codes from I to F back in July of 2017. Much of AA's documentation has not been updated. I think they may have changed the letter codes of Economy awards also...they now come from bucket code U. It's helpful to remind the AA agents of the inventory code you are looking to book. I can tell you they are searching for I or U for business or X or T for economy they have not got the right "AP" award code for the search.
Lastly, I have found it helpful to ask them to go to their other screen and try a "direct access" search for the F or U award inventory directly with TN. This last step in my experience has set off the light bulb for most agents to get it done. I used to have a 10% success rate booking TN awards with AA but once I followed all the steps about I am at 80% plus (meaning I only have to HUCA 1 out of every 5 times).
Promo Box- leave empty
Carrier Code Box- TN
Inventory Box- ADV
That's pretty much true for all award searches so if the rep didn't know how to find the carrier code of TN your best bet is going to be to HUCA. Assuming you get that far the next gotcha is the way the type of award code that is used. Often times the agent will simply search for a American or OneWorld award code. That will not work. They need to search using an "AP" award code which basically means "Another Partner Award Code."
...Air Tahiti Nui decided to change their business class award booking codes from I to F back in July of 2017. Much of AA's documentation has not been updated. I think they may have changed the letter codes of Economy awards also...they now come from bucket code U. It's helpful to remind the AA agents of the inventory code you are looking to book. I can tell you they are searching for I or U for business or X or T for economy they have not got the right "AP" award code for the search.
Lastly, I have found it helpful to ask them to go to their other screen and try a "direct access" search for the F or U award inventory directly with TN. This last step in my experience has set off the light bulb for most agents to get it done. I used to have a 10% success rate booking TN awards with AA but once I followed all the steps about I am at 80% plus (meaning I only have to HUCA 1 out of every 5 times).
NOTE: AA Agents may have difficulty finding the award space themselves, but:
See the aa.com page on award redemption charts, including the South Pacific, here. From March 22, 2016 on, here.
See post #1 for information on the TN 787 and illustrations, including seat chartand post #2 for information on the A340-343s retiring in 2019.
TN does not belong to any alliance at this time, though they do offer some codeshares and accept awards booked by a number of airlines (including AA). TN offers a "QF3826" PPT-AKL, but as pointed out by JonNYC elsewhere, though ExpertFlyer displays it as a prime flight, it's a codeshare operated by TN and not available for an award. (N.B. ExpertFlyer will show TN award seats accurately.)
Since TN introduced 'seat à la carte' on 1 Sept 2019, you can do seat selection online under the condition your booking was ticketed. You need the TN reservation code (PNR):
- Go to manage booking, enter your details (PNR - last name), open reservation
- Go to manage booking, modify traveler details. ENTER CONTACT INFORMATION. THIS IS THE KEY TO BEING ABLE TO SEE SERVICES/SEAT SELECTION. Then select 'continue'.
- Go to Additional Services with the meals sign
- Go to the Seating and pick your seats (free for business, preference or extra comfort seats in Economy at a fee)
”To request seat assignments, please contact our Air Tahiti Nui reservation office at least 72 hours prior to departure. However, we recommend requesting your seat assignments as soon as you confirm and ticket your reservations, so that more seat options will be available. Please be advised, exit and bulkhead rows can only be assigned at the airport.
Air Tahiti Nui aims to honor advance-seating requests. However, we cannot guarantee any particular seat even if the booking is confirmed. Air Tahiti Nui reserves the right to reassign seats at any time, even after boarding of the aircraft, for operational, safety or security reasons. Please accept our apologies if your preferred seat is not available at departure.”
Air Tahiti Nui aims to honor advance-seating requests. However, we cannot guarantee any particular seat even if the booking is confirmed. Air Tahiti Nui reserves the right to reassign seats at any time, even after boarding of the aircraft, for operational, safety or security reasons. Please accept our apologies if your preferred seat is not available at departure.”
- On the A340 a Business seat or pair may be reserved for the pilot not flying.
- TN, 2019 (Note TN easily gives away predilect seats to “friends and family”, so if you lose your exit row or other favored seat don’t be surprised.)
You can not upgrade TN flights with AA miles, but they offer paid counter upgrades (availability based, Feb 2016 $1,000 Y to J, first come first served, so arrive early at check-in, and they may decline to upgrade paid codeshare flights). See http://borabora.airtahitinui-usa.com...es-charges.asp.
We don’t know if an upgrade from Moana Coach can be purchased to Premium Economy (on the 787-9) as yet.
Link to summary information about PPT Airport.
Link to Papeete Faa’a / PPT very useful page at SleepingInAirports.net.
Air Tahiti Nui was established on 31 October 1996 and commenced flight operations on 20 November 1998. The government of French Polynesia is the major shareholder (84.4%) along with other local investors. (Wikipedia)
Fleet
NOTE: TN began flying their Boeing 787-9 “Tahitian Dreamliner” (with GE engines, two purchased, two leased) LAX-PPT etc.18 November, 2018. See Air Tahiti Nui / TN to launch 787-9 Dreamliner 7 November 2018 for more information, including a link to the PDF seat chart. ALL five A340-343s will be replaced by four 787-9s by October 2019.
Boeing 787-9 “Tahitian Dreamliner “ (4 to be in fleet, all by October 2019) link to,TN 787-9 page.
These 787-9s have 30J - 32W - 232Y in a three class configuration . They also offer Panasonic Ku band internet connectivity via WiFi and eX3 IFE.
Boeing 787-9 “Tahitian Dreamliner” seating
C30 (Poerava Business) 2-2-2 Rockwell Collins (née B/E Aerospace) Parallel Diamond (similar to J in the AA A321T or J on QR 777-200LR)
W32 (Moana Premium) 2-3-2 Zodiac Aerospace Z535 Premium Economy class seats.
Y232 (Moana Economy) 3-3-3 in two cabins, with Zodiac Aerospace Z300 Economy class seats
for a total of 294 seats
See post #1 for a current 789 seat chart or SeatGuru here.
Seats in Poerava First are AB, DE, KL
Seats in Moana Premium are AB, DEF, KL
Seats in Moana Premium are ABC, DEF, JKL
“Woven together our fleet names have a hidden meaning: The warrior (TOA) going forward (MUA) in the great (NUI) canoe (VAA)!” The 787-9s will be / are:
F-OMUA “Fakarava”
F-ONUI “Tupaia “
F-OVAA “Bora Bora”
F-OTOA “Tetiaroa”
These 787-9s have 30J - 32W - 232Y in a three class configuration . They also offer Panasonic Ku band internet connectivity via WiFi and eX3 IFE.
Boeing 787-9 “Tahitian Dreamliner” seating
C30 (Poerava Business) 2-2-2 Rockwell Collins (née B/E Aerospace) Parallel Diamond (similar to J in the AA A321T or J on QR 777-200LR)
W32 (Moana Premium) 2-3-2 Zodiac Aerospace Z535 Premium Economy class seats.
Y232 (Moana Economy) 3-3-3 in two cabins, with Zodiac Aerospace Z300 Economy class seats
for a total of 294 seats
See post #1 for a current 789 seat chart or SeatGuru here.
Seats in Poerava First are AB, DE, KL
Seats in Moana Premium are AB, DEF, KL
Seats in Moana Premium are ABC, DEF, JKL
“Woven together our fleet names have a hidden meaning: The warrior (TOA) going forward (MUA) in the great (NUI) canoe (VAA)!” The 787-9s will be / are:
F-OMUA “Fakarava”
F-ONUI “Tupaia “
F-OVAA “Bora Bora”
F-OTOA “Tetiaroa”
Airbus A340-343 (four of five remain in service 1/1/2019; the remainder will be phased out by October 2019)
Four A340s have undergone a CIP (Cabin Improvement Program), one (F-OJTN "Bora Bora") has, and will, not be refurbished. Though "Bora Bora" is more likely to be used on South Pacific - Asia flights, it still visits LAX periodically. Perhaps it will be the first A340 to be retired?
TN have eliminated Poerava First and only offer Poerava Business and Moana Economy classes on the A340, and have added Moana Premium (Premium Economy) on the 789. (See below.) A thread on selecting seats with AA awards and codeshares can be read here. The A340 Poerava Business seats are shell angled lie flat seats; Moana Economy seats presumably have 33” seat pitch, but feels tighter; bulkhead and exit row seating can only be assigned at airport check-in.
As seat charts are the same for all five A340s, it's difficult to know which configuration you will be on.
Link to seat chart.
Four A340s have undergone a CIP (Cabin Improvement Program), one (F-OJTN "Bora Bora") has, and will, not be refurbished. Though "Bora Bora" is more likely to be used on South Pacific - Asia flights, it still visits LAX periodically. Perhaps it will be the first A340 to be retired?
TN have eliminated Poerava First and only offer Poerava Business and Moana Economy classes on the A340, and have added Moana Premium (Premium Economy) on the 789. (See below.) A thread on selecting seats with AA awards and codeshares can be read here. The A340 Poerava Business seats are shell angled lie flat seats; Moana Economy seats presumably have 33” seat pitch, but feels tighter; bulkhead and exit row seating can only be assigned at airport check-in.
As seat charts are the same for all five A340s, it's difficult to know which configuration you will be on.
Link to seat chart.
At this time, online check-in and online seat selection are not available.
To request seat assignments, please contact our Air Tahiti Nui Reservations Office at least 72 hours prior to departure at (877) 824-4846. However, we recommend requesting your seat assignments as soon as you confirm and ticket your reservations, so that more seat options will be available. Please be advised, exit and bulkhead rows can only be assigned at the airport.
Air Tahiti Nui aims to honor advance-seating requests. However, we cannot guarantee any particular seat even if the booking is confirmed. Air Tahiti Nui reserves the right to reassign seats at any time, even after boarding of the aircraft, for operational, safety or security reasons. Please accept our apologies if your preferred seat is not available at departure.
To request seat assignments, please contact our Air Tahiti Nui Reservations Office at least 72 hours prior to departure at (877) 824-4846. However, we recommend requesting your seat assignments as soon as you confirm and ticket your reservations, so that more seat options will be available. Please be advised, exit and bulkhead rows can only be assigned at the airport.
Air Tahiti Nui aims to honor advance-seating requests. However, we cannot guarantee any particular seat even if the booking is confirmed. Air Tahiti Nui reserves the right to reassign seats at any time, even after boarding of the aircraft, for operational, safety or security reasons. Please accept our apologies if your preferred seat is not available at departure.
Lounges
Only TN Poerava Business flyers get lounge access (AA codeshare flyers have been denied) TN are not oneworld, so oneworld status does not apply.
At AKL, NRT, and SYD TN use Qantas Business lounge.
At CDG, TN use the Cathay Pacific Business lounge.
At LAX, TN uses the 'International Lounge' in the Tom Bradley International Terminal for business passengers, shared with Air Fiji, El Al and Philippine Airlines; at other times, they will use the Korean Airlines lounge.
At PPT, TN offer their own Salon Manuhiri International lounge (also Diners, Airport Angel and Priority Pass may be used, though TN ticket counter employees may incorrectly tell you they don't accept those cards - in this writer's personal experience, they do.) airside, second floor via stairs or lift, open 150 minutes prior to departures.
Only TN Poerava Business flyers get lounge access (AA codeshare flyers have been denied) TN are not oneworld, so oneworld status does not apply.
At AKL, NRT, and SYD TN use Qantas Business lounge.
At CDG, TN use the Cathay Pacific Business lounge.
At LAX, TN uses the 'International Lounge' in the Tom Bradley International Terminal for business passengers, shared with Air Fiji, El Al and Philippine Airlines; at other times, they will use the Korean Airlines lounge.
At PPT, TN offer their own Salon Manuhiri International lounge (also Diners, Airport Angel and Priority Pass may be used, though TN ticket counter employees may incorrectly tell you they don't accept those cards - in this writer's personal experience, they do.) airside, second floor via stairs or lift, open 150 minutes prior to departures.
Other airline services to PPT include LA via SCL-IPC and AF. HA also offers once a week flights (Saturdays at this time) to PPT via HNL. AA flyers to SYD and AKL; this offers other award opportunities via AA and TN. LA flys SCL-IPC-PPT as well.
Websites: www.airtahitinui.com and www.airtahitinui-usa.com
nsuring Responsiveness to Our Customers’ Complaints
If a passenger has an unsatisfactory experience on one of our flights or while interacting with one of our employees, they may file a formal complaint to our Customer Relations Department. Every customer complaint will be read and acknowledged in writing within 30 days of our receipt of the complaint. If this initial communication does not fully address the concerns raised, we will send a substantive written response to the customer within 60 days.
Customer Relations can be reached immediately by clicking on the following link:
www.airtahitinui-usa.com/complaints
Or by calling 1(855) 835-9286
Or by writing through the U.S. Mail, and should be sent to:
Air Tahiti Nui - Customer Service
1970 E. Grand Ave, suite 100
El Segundo, CA 90245
Any written communication should contain the following information:
If a passenger has an unsatisfactory experience on one of our flights or while interacting with one of our employees, they may file a formal complaint to our Customer Relations Department. Every customer complaint will be read and acknowledged in writing within 30 days of our receipt of the complaint. If this initial communication does not fully address the concerns raised, we will send a substantive written response to the customer within 60 days.
Customer Relations can be reached immediately by clicking on the following link:
www.airtahitinui-usa.com/complaints
Or by calling 1(855) 835-9286
Or by writing through the U.S. Mail, and should be sent to:
Air Tahiti Nui - Customer Service
1970 E. Grand Ave, suite 100
El Segundo, CA 90245
Any written communication should contain the following information:
- The name of the passenger concerned;
- The ticket number;
- The date and flight # concerning the complaint;[
- If not a complaint onboard the aircraft, the date and location of the event; and
- The nature of the event
A few French Polynesian words make your travel friendlier
Ia ora na - hello (EE-ah o-RAH-na
E - yes (eh)
Aita- no (EYE-tah)
Mauruuru - thank you (may-ooh-ROO-oo-roo)
Cheers - manuia (mon-oo-EE-ah)
Haere maru - take it easy (hah-EH-reh MAH-roo)
Nana- goodbye (NA-na)
Pronunciation:
Bora Bora - POra POra (yes, "B" is pronounced as "P")
Faa'a - faah ah
Papeete - pa-pay-EH-tay
N.B. French is the official language; speaking French is very useful in PF.
Ia ora na - hello (EE-ah o-RAH-na
E - yes (eh)
Aita- no (EYE-tah)
Mauruuru - thank you (may-ooh-ROO-oo-roo)
Cheers - manuia (mon-oo-EE-ah)
Haere maru - take it easy (hah-EH-reh MAH-roo)
Nana- goodbye (NA-na)
Pronunciation:
Bora Bora - POra POra (yes, "B" is pronounced as "P")
Faa'a - faah ah
Papeete - pa-pay-EH-tay
N.B. French is the official language; speaking French is very useful in PF.
AA Miles Award: TN / Air Tahiti Nui award redemptions (master thread)
Jan 6, 2019, 8:38 pm
#107
Moderator: American AAdvantage
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2000
Location: NorCal - SMF area
Programs: AA LT Plat; HH LT Diamond, Maître-plongeur des Muccis
Posts: 62,948
One thing that has happened since I posted about my successful AA mile use for a U (Coach) outbound from LAX and F (Business) return - TN has cancelled both flights! Originally, it was a A340 in April flying as TN111/LAX-PPT. They have subbed in the 787 and I was rebooked on TN7. They have also cancelled TN102/PPT-LAX, but so far have not subbed in another flight/aircraft on that date. I talked with TN agents in LAX and they said the company is currently reworking flight schedules and to hold tight.
The only reason I bring this up is because AA doesn't know the flight 102 is cancelled. The TN agent told me that their liason will notify partner airlines when they have a solid schedule - until then "phantom inventory" exists.
The only reason I bring this up is because AA doesn't know the flight 102 is cancelled. The TN agent told me that their liason will notify partner airlines when they have a solid schedule - until then "phantom inventory" exists.
Jan 7, 2019, 4:29 pm
#108
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 787
Jan 13, 2019, 8:36 am
#111
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 567
Has anyone got a Air Tahiti pass (not Nui) for inter island trips after using an AA award to fly to PPT? Do they require cash ticket purchases on TN to get to PPT in order to buy the pass? Or can we just pay $$ for the pass and use an award ticket to get to PPT?
Jan 13, 2019, 9:30 am
#113
Community Director Emerita
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Anywhere warm
Posts: 33,742
They are two separate airlines with no visibility of what you do with the other carrier. Yes, you can fly into Papeete on an award ticket. You'll then have to purchase your flights within French Polynesia as that airline has no reciprocity with a carrier where points can be earned.
Jan 16, 2019, 5:00 pm
#115
Join Date: Aug 2018
Location: SF Bay Area
Posts: 60
I have 3 business award tickets booked on TN NRT-PPT for my March trip using AA miles but so far no seat assignment. Nor have I found a way to select seats on TN website. Does anyone know how to pre-select seats on TN flights? I'd hate to leave it to chance and be assigned seats at a foreign airport, especially we're traveling as a family.
Jan 16, 2019, 6:04 pm
#116
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: Austin
Posts: 4,629
I have 3 business award tickets booked on TN NRT-PPT for my March trip using AA miles but so far no seat assignment. Nor have I found a way to select seats on TN website. Does anyone know how to pre-select seats on TN flights? I'd hate to leave it to chance and be assigned seats at a foreign airport, especially we're traveling as a family.
I've had general success with the AA CK desk but a couple of times I have had to resort to calling TN.
Jan 16, 2019, 8:38 pm
#117
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: DFW, TX USA
Posts: 53
AA cannot select seats because TN is not OW, nor do they use SABRE. AS crazy as it sounds, TN's website doesn't allow seat selection - it will show them after they are booked, but I had to call TN directly to have them select seats for me. It pays to know what you might want... I used EF to see what was available.
Jan 16, 2019, 9:01 pm
#118
Moderator: American AAdvantage
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2000
Location: NorCal - SMF area
Programs: AA LT Plat; HH LT Diamond, Maître-plongeur des Muccis
Posts: 62,948
I have 3 business award tickets booked on TN NRT-PPT for my March trip using AA miles but so far no seat assignment. Nor have I found a way to select seats on TN website. Does anyone know how to pre-select seats on TN flights? I'd hate to leave it to chance and be assigned seats at a foreign airport, especially we're traveling as a family.
In my experience, that’s pretty reliable for Business, much less so for Economy best seats. Exit and bulkhead seats can only be assigned at the airport, but they’ll often be granted to nonrevs, friends and favorites.
Jan 17, 2019, 11:37 am
#119
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: LAX
Programs: Delta Silver, Marriott Gold, HH Diamond, Ex-UA Gold, Ex-AA Gold , Ex-SPG Gold, Peon everywhere else
Posts: 616
Just booked 3 business awards LAX-PPT for April (230k total: 10k less because of AA Credit Card). Had to call AA to get booking number for TN so that I could get seats assigned. Called TN in LA and seats were assigned with no problem. Took less that 10 minutes to have it all done. Just went on the TN website to verify it and everything looks good.
Jan 17, 2019, 2:35 pm
#120
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: SFO
Posts: 642
Just booked 3 business awards LAX-PPT for April (230k total: 10k less because of AA Credit Card). Had to call AA to get booking number for TN so that I could get seats assigned. Called TN in LA and seats were assigned with no problem. Took less that 10 minutes to have it all done. Just went on the TN website to verify it and everything looks good.