Last edit by: NWIFlyer
If you wish to request availability for a specific flight, please state the date and origin/departure airport codes, not just the flight number.
Please also restrict requests to BA/oneworld flights - flights for other airlines may be removed to avoid cluttering the thread and taking it away from BAEC.
As of 15 Oct 2014 flightstats.com no longer displays flight availability.
Fare class availability can be queried in various ways*:
* Please update wiki if you know of any others.
** Origin of data concealed
What do the codes mean?
Suppose we have a result as F1 A0 J9 C7 D0 RC IC W9 E9 T4 Y9 BC HC ...
This means:
There is 1 seat in the F bucket for sale
There are 0 seats in the A and D bucket for sale, but you can join the waitlist in case seats get released later.
There are at least 9 seats in the J, W, E and Y buckets.
The R, I, B and H buckets are closed to waitlisting.
There are two important things to note about how to interpret these numbers that many people don't understand as it is very counter intuitive:
1) There is NO direct relation to the actual number of seats available on the specific flight. They only mean that the airline is willing to sell this many seats on that specific flight. The airline may intend to oversell seats or withhold seats from sale for many reasons.
2) In the example above, the results show W9 E9 T4 (which are all WT+ buckets). This does not mean that there are 9+9+4=22 seats for sale. Interpret these numbers as "there are at least 9 seats for sale in WT+". There could really be anywhere between 9 and 22 seats for sale - we just can't tell from the numbers the system gives us. Therefore, the conservative approach of assuming that there are at least 9 seats for sale is usually the best one.
What does the "C" mean?
Closed to waitlisting.
In the example above we have RC, IC, BC and HC. This is different to A0 and D0: The A and D buckets are "full" but you can apply to join their waitlists (if your fare permits waitlisting). With R, I, B and H you cannot even request a seat.
The carrier will determine how to confirm your seat if it wishes. Sometimes this may happen immediately, other times only a few minutes before the flight's departure. The order of the waitlist is determined by the carrier privately, but your Executive Club status will push you towards the front of the queue. Many cheap fares do not allow waitlisting.
Differences for non-BA airlines
Please also restrict requests to BA/oneworld flights - flights for other airlines may be removed to avoid cluttering the thread and taking it away from BAEC.
As of 15 Oct 2014 flightstats.com no longer displays flight availability.
Fare class availability can be queried in various ways*:
* Please update wiki if you know of any others.
** Origin of data concealed
What do the codes mean?
Suppose we have a result as F1 A0 J9 C7 D0 RC IC W9 E9 T4 Y9 BC HC ...
This means:
There is 1 seat in the F bucket for sale
There are 0 seats in the A and D bucket for sale, but you can join the waitlist in case seats get released later.
There are at least 9 seats in the J, W, E and Y buckets.
The R, I, B and H buckets are closed to waitlisting.
There are two important things to note about how to interpret these numbers that many people don't understand as it is very counter intuitive:
1) There is NO direct relation to the actual number of seats available on the specific flight. They only mean that the airline is willing to sell this many seats on that specific flight. The airline may intend to oversell seats or withhold seats from sale for many reasons.
2) In the example above, the results show W9 E9 T4 (which are all WT+ buckets). This does not mean that there are 9+9+4=22 seats for sale. Interpret these numbers as "there are at least 9 seats for sale in WT+". There could really be anywhere between 9 and 22 seats for sale - we just can't tell from the numbers the system gives us. Therefore, the conservative approach of assuming that there are at least 9 seats for sale is usually the best one.
What does the "C" mean?
Closed to waitlisting.
In the example above we have RC, IC, BC and HC. This is different to A0 and D0: The A and D buckets are "full" but you can apply to join their waitlists (if your fare permits waitlisting). With R, I, B and H you cannot even request a seat.
The carrier will determine how to confirm your seat if it wishes. Sometimes this may happen immediately, other times only a few minutes before the flight's departure. The order of the waitlist is determined by the carrier privately, but your Executive Club status will push you towards the front of the queue. Many cheap fares do not allow waitlisting.
Differences for non-BA airlines
- Some carriers (those using Sabre such as AA) only show a maximum of 7 available seats (not 9). Others only show a maximum of 5.
- Some carriers use "L" instead of "0" (e.g., CL DL YL) to indicate you may waitlist for the seat. This tends to happen when the entire flight is on a list basis.
Help to check seat availability and flight loads
#4998
Join Date: Apr 2017
Posts: 1
Spare seats
Can anyone kindly tell me the loading /spare seats for BA11 LHR to Changi 24/4/17
#4999
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Cirencester
Programs: BAEC Gold
Posts: 234
F5 a4 j9 c9 d9 r9 i9 w9 e9 t9 y9 b9 h9 k9 m9 l9 v9 s9 n9 q9 o9 g9
#5001
Join Date: Apr 2017
Programs: None
Posts: 3
Spare Seats
Hi,
Please could someone let me know how busy BA2239 from LGW-LIM is? Travelling on 30th April 12:20-18:55.
If it is not busy, are you more or less likely to get upgraded?
Please could someone let me know how busy BA2239 from LGW-LIM is? Travelling on 30th April 12:20-18:55.
If it is not busy, are you more or less likely to get upgraded?
#5002
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: London
Programs: BA - Gold for Life, CCR & GGL; IC Spire Elite Ambassador; Diamond Hilton Honors; Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 6,720
BA 2239 LGW 30/04/17 12:20 LIM 30/04/17 18:55
777 Su
J9 C9 D9 R5 I0 W9 E9 T9 Y9 B9 H9 K9 M9 L9 V9 S9 N9 Q9 O9 G9
#5003
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Gloucestershire
Programs: BA Gold (ex-GGL, maybe future Silver), Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,204
Not busy = no need for upgrades.
Too busy = downgrades for some, though upgrades are more common than downgrades overall.
The ideal scenario for mass upgrades is an oversold flight in the cabins behind you, full but not oversold in your cabin, and empty in front of you.
That's not common - if people start seeing that economy is £700 each way and premium economy is £500 then most of them will choose the cheaper option, hence no need to upgrade anyone. A change from a plane with a small business class to a large business class is the other way to find yourself moving forward...
Too busy = downgrades for some, though upgrades are more common than downgrades overall.
The ideal scenario for mass upgrades is an oversold flight in the cabins behind you, full but not oversold in your cabin, and empty in front of you.
That's not common - if people start seeing that economy is £700 each way and premium economy is £500 then most of them will choose the cheaper option, hence no need to upgrade anyone. A change from a plane with a small business class to a large business class is the other way to find yourself moving forward...
#5006
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: London
Programs: BA - Gold for Life, CCR & GGL; IC Spire Elite Ambassador; Diamond Hilton Honors; Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 6,720
ExpertFlyer now shows:
BA 173 LHR 26/04/17 11:20 JFK 26/04/17 14:05 744
F1 A0 J6 C0 D0 R0 I0 W5 E0 T0 Y9 B9 H9 K6 M3 L0 V0 S0 N0 Q0 O0 G9
Last edited by TravellerFrequently; Apr 25, 2017 at 5:23 am
#5009
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: London
Programs: BA - Gold for Life, CCR & GGL; IC Spire Elite Ambassador; Diamond Hilton Honors; Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 6,720