Jul 8, 2016, 2:22 pm
Last edit by: Prospero
UPDATED FOR 15 NOVEMBER 2016: BA will no longer accept interlining on BA-BA separate tickets / PNRs.
From 1 June 2016, the oneworld policy on accepting customers travelling on separate tickets was changed. BA, along with some other oneworld partners, has implemented this change in policy which is as follows:
Only those customers that have separate tickets issued in the same PNR/booking will be accepted for through check-in. Furthermore all sectors must be BA / oneworld / other carrier, but BA to/fron Vueling is specifically NOT allowed even on the same ticket. Aer Lingus is not specified but some be covered by "other carrier".
A PNR is a wrapper, and it can have several tickets, and other items such as hotels, in one PNR, so long as it was built that way at the time of purchase. Another (new) ticket can be inserted into an existing PNR after purchase, it is easiest to do this at a BA airport, and there is a small fee for doing this (£15 in the UK). However you cannot merge 2 existing PNRs into one PNR - once a reservation has reached ticketed status it can't be moved. If you have 2 PNRs you need to allow time to collect and re-check any bags at the transfer airport.
There is one exception: BA to BA transfers, on 2 PNRs, are allowed. See post 643 for details.
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From post 947. Select "do not have IATA number"
http://www.speedbirdclub.com/ch/reservations-ticketing/rulesregulations/separatetickets/
From 1 June 2016, the oneworld policy on accepting customers travelling on separate tickets was changed. BA, along with some other oneworld partners, has implemented this change in policy which is as follows:
Only those customers that have separate tickets issued in the same PNR/booking will be accepted for through check-in. Furthermore all sectors must be BA / oneworld / other carrier, but BA to/fron Vueling is specifically NOT allowed even on the same ticket. Aer Lingus is not specified but some be covered by "other carrier".
A PNR is a wrapper, and it can have several tickets, and other items such as hotels, in one PNR, so long as it was built that way at the time of purchase. Another (new) ticket can be inserted into an existing PNR after purchase, it is easiest to do this at a BA airport, and there is a small fee for doing this (£15 in the UK). However you cannot merge 2 existing PNRs into one PNR - once a reservation has reached ticketed status it can't be moved. If you have 2 PNRs you need to allow time to collect and re-check any bags at the transfer airport.
___
From post 947. Select "do not have IATA number"
http://www.speedbirdclub.com/ch/reservations-ticketing/rulesregulations/separatetickets/
BA no longer through checking baggage with separate tickets
Mar 10, 2020, 8:43 am
#1996
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: London
Programs: Mucci. Nothing else matters.
Posts: 38,644
We live in Lonodn but had booked a (cheap) OSL-LHR-SIN-SYD in J using Cash before the COVID-19 mess started and then booked a LHR-OSL return using Points to get us upto and back from Oslo at either end of the cash booking.
Initially, we'd been planning on flying LHR-OSL early on the day of the OSL-SYD haul, spending the day in OSL, a nice lunch, etc and then heading off on the trip to Australia. However, we're now having issues with COVID-19 where BA is reducing European flights and we've been re-booked on a LHR-OSL flight which sees us on the same operating tin for LHR-OSL and then OSL-SYD. This is a trip we've done before - and we've learned (the hard way) that there is not sufficient time to claim luggage and re-check in OSL. On one occasion we were lucky to find a nice checkin at the Gold desk in LHR who actually let us board our luggage to SYD from LHR i.e. we flew LHR-OSL and then OSL-LHR without our luggage, it boarded at LHR and joined us in SYD.
However, the last two times we've made this trip they wouldn't let us do this (security).
Initially, we'd been planning on flying LHR-OSL early on the day of the OSL-SYD haul, spending the day in OSL, a nice lunch, etc and then heading off on the trip to Australia. However, we're now having issues with COVID-19 where BA is reducing European flights and we've been re-booked on a LHR-OSL flight which sees us on the same operating tin for LHR-OSL and then OSL-SYD. This is a trip we've done before - and we've learned (the hard way) that there is not sufficient time to claim luggage and re-check in OSL. On one occasion we were lucky to find a nice checkin at the Gold desk in LHR who actually let us board our luggage to SYD from LHR i.e. we flew LHR-OSL and then OSL-LHR without our luggage, it boarded at LHR and joined us in SYD.
However, the last two times we've made this trip they wouldn't let us do this (security).
Ignoring the advisability of actually spending any time in Airports or Planes at present does anyone know if BA with let us cross-check our luggage by linking the two PNR's in, effect an internline between two BA operating flights on different PNR's ? This would mean we don't have to claim and check luggage in OSL.
Nov 13, 2020, 5:41 am
#1997
Join Date: Sep 2013
Programs: BA Executive Club
Posts: 182
Hi All
I just wanted to check if anyone was aware of a relaxation of this policy during the current crisis. Does anyone know whether BA agents are allowed to apply any discretion when it comes to through checking bags between their own flights or with OneWorld partners (particularly Iberia)?
Thanks
Bob
I just wanted to check if anyone was aware of a relaxation of this policy during the current crisis. Does anyone know whether BA agents are allowed to apply any discretion when it comes to through checking bags between their own flights or with OneWorld partners (particularly Iberia)?
Thanks
Bob
Nov 13, 2020, 5:51 am
#1998
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Join Date: Dec 2004
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Posts: 10,780
I know of one example only at HKG. HKG-LHR one ticket, LHR-GLA separate ticket. The check in staff had to get approval to allow a check through and they made it clear that this was an exception due to COVID. This was in July.
Nov 13, 2020, 8:51 am
#1999
Join Date: Sep 2013
Programs: BA Executive Club
Posts: 182
Bob
Nov 13, 2020, 10:51 am
#2000
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Mäntyharju, Finland
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 155
I got lucky last month at Chicago (ORD). I was flying DCA-ORD-LHR-HEL all on separate tickets. I claimed my bags in Chicago after my AA flight and went to the BA check-in desk and asked if she could check the bags through to HEL on a Finnair ticket so I wouldn't have to go through the UK border and claim and re-check. She checked with her supervisor and said they don't normally do it but they would for me. Helped me out a lot since I could just take the shuttle bus from T5 to T2 to get the flight to HEL.
Nov 13, 2020, 1:32 pm
#2002
Join Date: Jul 2019
Programs: British Airways
Posts: 58
There have been no recent reports of this being a problem, so you should be able to check your bags in LHR for the LHR-SIN-SYD flights alone before you do LHR-OSL and OSL-LHR. If you check-in online, make sure that you select "Not sure" for the number of bags you are checking.This is a no. Leaving aside the BA policy issues that are the subject of this thread, a bag can't be tagged LHR-OSL-LHR-SIN-SYD for technical reasons.
Nov 13, 2020, 2:14 pm
#2003
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: ±38,000 feet
Programs: LH HON, BA GGL, AF Plat, EK Plat
Posts: 6,428
You must have been very unlucky. I have done this numerous times, especially when i needed a daytrip to scotland before taking the evening flight to VIE or BCN. Morning check in bag to BNC/VIE and off i go EDI/INV etc...
Nov 13, 2020, 3:59 pm
#2004
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 2,017
If you are flying LHR-OSL-LHR-SIN-SYD, then you are gaming the system by reducing the flight cost. If you are flying LHR-EDI-LHR-BCN, then you are probably not gaming the system. Could this be the difference?
Nov 13, 2020, 4:50 pm
#2005
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: ±38,000 feet
Programs: LH HON, BA GGL, AF Plat, EK Plat
Posts: 6,428
I dont think so - It might be that the agent didnt know what to do but checking in luggage for a future segment has never been a problem for me or any of my friends. I did have issues checking across separate PNRs (but that only happens to me on IB,BA,AV). Even LH was willing to check through separate tickets FRA-CDG-LHR LH-BA connection on separate tickets before...
Nov 13, 2020, 7:52 pm
#2006
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: London
Programs: BAEC Gold, Accor Live Limitless Gold, Hilton Honours Gold, Avis Preferred Plus
Posts: 1,807
Agreed, did this twice in Dec last year. Haven’t flown enough this year to need to try.
Nov 14, 2020, 4:51 am
#2007
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 3,061
BA policy is not to accept through checked luggage on separate PNRs. But the technical functionality remains in their systems, even if agents and GHAs have been told not to use it, so there are always going to be cases where people have for some reason been granted exceptions.
There is no restriction on accepting bags into BA that have been tagged by another airline. So if connecting from LH, SQ, etc. then that airline can through-check if they want to (it’s also their responsibility to ensure it makes the connection or to reflight it if it doesn’t, which might provide the background to why BA no longer does it). It does tend to be the case that Star Alliance carriers are more customer-friendly in this regard, as I almost never have an issue with them accepting a bag onto BA. I do wish BA would do the reverse, but there we go.
There is no restriction on accepting bags into BA that have been tagged by another airline. So if connecting from LH, SQ, etc. then that airline can through-check if they want to (it’s also their responsibility to ensure it makes the connection or to reflight it if it doesn’t, which might provide the background to why BA no longer does it). It does tend to be the case that Star Alliance carriers are more customer-friendly in this regard, as I almost never have an issue with them accepting a bag onto BA. I do wish BA would do the reverse, but there we go.
Nov 14, 2020, 6:39 am
#2008
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Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: London
Programs: Mucci. Nothing else matters.
Posts: 38,644
No, I've done this as recently as December 2019 with no problem: checked a bag for LHR-HKG before flying LHR-AMS then AMS-LHR.
Nov 14, 2020, 6:51 am
#2009
Ambassador, British Airways; FlyerTalk Posting Legend
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Location: Leeds, UK
Programs: BA GGL/CCR, GfL, HH Diamond
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Nov 14, 2020, 11:57 am
#2010
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jan 2002
Posts: 44,624
This is nothing to do with checking through on separate tickets though, which is what the thread topoc is. Having a ticket XXX-LHR-YYY and checking bags in at LHR for LHR-YYY is just simply checking in a bag for a single journey - that there is a separate ticket for LHR-XXX doesn't make it checking through on a separate ticket and so would not seem to be something that would be covered by the policy