Keith Flyer Maven

I know that if I use a J award from LAX to LHR, an infant traveling as a lapchild would pay 10 % of the full J fare (yikes!), but if I were to upgrade from discounted Y, does the infant pay 10 % of the J fare, 10 percent of the Y fare, or 10 percent of the Y fare plus 10 percent of some value applied to the upgrade instrument?

And does it matter if the UPG is processed with miles/copay or an eVIP?

thanks.

FWAAA

It's 10% of the fare for the cabin in which the infant sits.

That would be at least 10% of I or D, but probably 10% of J. I don't think it matters that it's an upgrade for the parents or an award ticket, nor does the upgrade currency matter.

Why not call AA reservations and ask?

Mark_T

This is covered in the Wiki as well :

http://www.flyerguide.com/wiki/index...ant_Fares_(AA)

Doesn't matter how the infants parents get into the cabin, the fare is the same.

It makes late clearing upgrades a real gamble as by that point the only fares left will probably be the full J making it expensive but if the GA neglects to re-price and re-issue the infant ticket due to pressure of time ...

ijgordon

Has it ever been documented what exactly the 10% is based on? It's not in the Wiki. Is it 10% of the lowest available fare at the time of ticket issuance? If the parent is purchasing an expensive J/D fare, does the infant fare necessarily have to be 10% of the same fare?

Mark_T

I took this statement in the Wiki as the answer to that :

'The cost is 10% of any applicable fare of the cabin where the accompanying person is seated plus applicable fees/taxes.'

I can't see why you wouldn't ask for it to be the cheapest available fare that was used if it wasn't offered and it is my understanding that is what is normally used.

mikelat

My sister ran in to this with her 5 month old travelling from LHR-DFW. I believe she was told it was $1k for the baby's fare with the parents travelling on Award MileSaver tickets in First. They tried to find other approaches but ended up just using 3 Business MileSavers in the end as it was 'cheaper'. Plus, that way they have 3 passengers so can take 6 bags

OWdevotee

I just paid a little over $700 to take my 7 month-old as a lap child DFW-ORD-DUB in the J cabin. Given that the cheapest r/t business fare AA is offering on the same flights, on the same dates is $2255.90, I feel a little like hard-done by. That said, I don't have the time or inclination to fight them over it.

The tickets my wife, my son and I originally had were in coach. I upgraded myself and the missus using eVIPs. It took AA only a day or two to call me looking to up-charge the infant ticket. They obviously do watch for these situations quite closely.

ijgordon

For nearly $500 you won't make a phone call to AA?!? Give me your PNR and I'll "fight" it on your behalf, for a 50% commission. Still gets you $250 with no effort...

Eujeanie

Since I have no infants, I had no idea this was true. What is the difference between a domestic and int'l flight that they can fly free domestically?

3Cforme

The fare rules. AA charges for international infant travel because UA, DL and all the rest do.

Keith Flyer Maven

But this isn't as simple a matter as keeping up with the Joneses. For example, BA very sensibly offers a 10 percent infant lapchild reward... so that if dad and mom 'pay' 125K to be in F, the baby could 'pay' 12.5K to be a lapchild.

I only wish AA would copy this idea... it certainly is more internally consistent with the 10 percent rule than 10 percent of a paid premium ticket!

Eujeanie

So it's no international law then, that says, say, that no one can travel free on a flight? Just the airlines collecting more money? Do the foreign carriers have this 10% rule, too? What would happen if they started to charge infants to fly domestically...do you think there would be an outcry? And if so, why are people so accepting of it internationally?

brp

I'm not sure I understand your point here. I'm not sure if anyone does allow children on international flights for free but, if someone does, folks with lap kids should choose them since they get a better deal. What do you mean by people being "accepting" of a published fare rule? Flights to Rome are pretty expensive in June, and I'd rather pay less to go there. If I do buy the ticket,does that mean I'm too accepting? I think it just means that that's the price for the product. And folks should go with the company that gives them the best value for their particular situation.

Cheers.

onobond

That is the ideal system

COpltASgldPHX

Well, not quite. More on that later.

When the parent has a revenue ticket, the industry standard is 10% of the lowest available fare in the same cabin at the time infant is ticketed. The airlines go hog wild with infant tickets issued in conjunction with an award since the "cost" in miles (not close-in booking fees) for the award ticket is the same regardless of when it's booked. The airline can then justify charging 10% of the lowest unrestricted fare for that cabin.

It's a law that all passengers on an international flight must appear on the manifest so therefore all passengers including infants must be ticketed. (On a domestic flight a lap infant only appears as a notation with the parent's name on the manifest which simply indicates a lap infant. There is no name, age, etc.) What the airlines charge for an infant ticket is entirely up to them. As long as they charge the appropriate taxes, airport/immigration fees, etc. the actual fare charged is up to the airline. I'm not sure when or why they decided on 10% but it has been this way for quite some time.