king1983

I'm booked in Club on the three-class 777 service from Gatwick to Tampa on Tuesday.

Manage my booking suggests there are 14 Club World seats not yet assigned, however it looks like this is a four-class aircraft. On logging in, rows 1-4 (First seats) are shown on the seat selection page, though are currently greyed out as unavailable.

I've fallen out with BA before about this as there doesn't seem to be any logic about how they release the first seats to Club World passengers. I know once they are opened up it is a Club service, but it doesn't seem as though Gold card holders are given first dibs.

Last year in Tampa, American check in staff told me I am better off not checking in at all in advance: they told me they usually bump those who have not done online check in (which suggests this assignment is a process done late in the day).

I'm currently occupying 10G (a seat on the first row of Club World).

any idea how I can secure a seat in the First cabin?

Don't online check in? Ask nicely on arrival at Gatwick? Complain on board that it should be a gold perk? I have seen the latter deployed with success, but it would at least be good to understand the logic.

I am gold, by the way.

cheers

BA6501

The front cabin will only be used if necessary (main CW is full).

rupert_s

Last time it happened to me my travelling companion was moved to a first seat (GGL) and I (Silver then) managed to bag the last free seat when the seat map opened up - about 24 hours out.

Globaliser

You've got competition on that flight: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/briti...sit-first.html

orbitmic

There is another thread on this going on (also on the TPA flight). Basically, BA will only open the F seats if it needs to (ie if they can't fit the entire J cabin in the J cabin). I do believe that priority is given to status holders if/when they do.

corporate-wage-slave

And looking at the current selling figures, that isn't heading the right way for you:

J9 C9 D8 R4 IC W6 E4 TC Y3 B3 H3 K3 M3 L3 V3 S3 NC QC OC G2

If there's a G2 that suggests WT isn't sold out, let alone anywhere else.

I think you may want to review your expectations here. BA won't provide extra crew for the extra cabin unless the service is full, and therefore it's in no-one's interests to use that cabin unless proper service can be provided. I'd certainly keep an eye on the situation, perhaps not printing / Apping (etc) your boarding pass until a few hours before departure, but I'd take it as a nice bonus if it happens, and not something you can expect.

king1983

Thanks - assuming they open it how and when do I try and get it? Do I need to keep logging in to look at seat map and hope the seats become available?

kanderson1965

As first class seating is not used unless J is oversold there is no guarantee thst it will be opened. This would also suggest that until the full load is known, when checkin closes, it is still an unknown albeit a reasonably known unknown if it is known that J is oversold more than it typically is. If there is known overselling in J, more than typical, the standard backroom op-up procedures will be followed. Once checkin has closed, it will be known for certain if J is oversold or indeed if W is oversold and upgrades to J have then oversold the J cabin. If not F will not be opened, if it is, and it is unknown it would be up to thst point, the J seats would be allocated and the passengers who have checked in later and do not have a seat already reserved would most likely to be moved into the F seating.

EsherFlyer

Will Expert Flyer let you watch a blocked seat?

kanderson1965

No, I have just tried, it has a tick box for blocked seats but if you try to set up a blocked seat alert it says it is an invalid seat.

Globaliser

I have no trouble setting up alerts for blocked seats! I'm usually looking for the first few rows of short-haul economy, which are blocked until T-3d.

I think that one should not tick the box for blocked seats. AIUI, ticking the box means "treat blocked seats as already available". This may be why you can't set an alert for a blocked seat if you tick the box.

kanderson1965

Ah ok, thanks for the tip.

LondonElite

Try slipping the check-in agent a £20 and give her a little wink. That should 'bag' it.

OverTheHorizon

I know this is meant as a joke, and would probably be taken as one in real life as well, BUT.... corporates are getting awfully po-faced about bribery these days, and airports are notoriously joke-free zones.

Offering a check-in agent money to "bag" a better seat, outwith the airline's published processes, would seem to be on the borderline of committing an offence under the Bribery Act 2010 which in theory could land you with a criminal conviction.

Sorry to be a misery about banter, but you have no idea how many bum-numbing hours of bribery, corruption, AML and the like training we have had to sit through recently due to our public sector clients