Enhancements to Avios booking functionality on ba.com
 

Dear all

A short while ago we launched some enhancements to the way you can book flights using Avios on ba.com.

The key change is that you can now book mixed cabins - the following is a summary of the changes launched today:

- Up to three available cabins will now be displayed when you searches for reward flights on ba.com.
- This functionality is available for British Airways and partner airline flights
- Improved RFS (Reward Flight Saver) signposting and new icon to distinguish from standard redemptions.
- A 'change flights' button on the fare quote page to make it easier for you to change selected flights.
- A new 'back' button on the fare quote page to allow enable easier navigation between pages

We are continuing to work on the online experience for Spending Avios on ba.com and will keep you updated as an when any enhancements or changes are made.

As ever, please do let us know your feedback on the changes made today.

Warm regards

Nicci

Thanks for the news, Nicci!

^ on mixed class bookings. Thanks!

However, for those of us based abroad and since the introduction of the 'per flight' Avios charging system, it would be great if you could work on the following two improvements:

- cash+upgrade open jaw itineraries

- per segment upgrades on cash+upgrade itineraries

At the moment for either of those very frequent cases, we are dependent on calling Bremen at surcharged rates and during their extremely limited opening hours, so being able to do this autonomously would be an enormous improvement for many of us! Thanks in advance for considering it.

It does look a lot better - thank you to the team who designed and launched this. Still doesn't help with the availability issue :p

Thanks for letting us know, Nicci.

On the plus side it may now be easier to find premium availability. On the minus side the new-found ease of securing premium availability could cause the seats to disappear faster!

Just a quick feedback point: On the BAEC welcome page, there are a couple of bits of stray rubric that need to be deleted now that the new functionality has gone live. I'm not quite sure what needs to go and what needs to stay, because some of the stuff is contradictory!

In the left hand side pod, there are these bits that need to be sorted out:-

Excellent news, Nicci - my next question is when open-jaw Avios bookings will be able to be done on the website ... and whether someone will until then ensure that because the website can't handle my open jaw request, I should face extra fees for having to book it offline.

(Note: I know one can book two singles, but there are a multitude of reasons, not lease Amex 2-for-1 vouchers, which make booking an Open Jaw return a preferred choice).

Doesnt seem to display properly on latest version of chrome - the cabin/avail is all squashed up and loads over each other so you cant see it properly or easily select

Same problem on Firefox. Was fine on IE.

Thanks for letting us know Nicci. Good to see that the web time are trying to improve reward booking.

It did that for me the first time, but F5 fixed it...

Thanks for the information. I am amused that BA continues to use the word 'enhancements' when they must surely by now be aware of the Orwellian inference we will draw from it here.

So is Reward Flight Saver yet on the path to being crippled -- includes being creatively devalued -- or placed in a coffin? With this sort of change, I almost sort of expected it. :o

And if that doesn't, then CTRL+F5 certainly will.

you still can't book each segment in different classes so

Edit: well actually you can, if you choose a stopover

I do not like the change from coloured dates to all white dates with text depicting availability. It's impossible to see the difference at a glance, and it looks like a recent change Ryanair made from showing prices on their dates to showing "Low Fares Available".

http://www.adambrown.co.uk/images/ba_availability.jpg