Last edit by: Tobias-UK
This is community help desk which allows members to assist each other in finding out how many seats are available on any given flight.
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 and probably unauthorised (so buyer beware)
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
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 and probably unauthorised (so buyer beware)
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 BA seat availability and BA flight loads
#2836
Join Date: Sep 2017
Programs: BAEC - Gold
Posts: 47
Could some please check BA35 LHR-MAA 20th December? Many thanks in advance
#2837
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2014
Location: UK
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 12,255
RUH
19/12/18 1:05 LHR
19/12/18 5:25 777
Daily
79% / 64m F2 A0 J1 C0 D0 R0 I0 W0 E0 T0 Y3 B0 H0 K0 M0 L0 V0 S0 N0 Q0 O0 G0
RUH
21/12/18 1:05 LHR
21/12/18 5:25 777
Daily
79% / 64m F1 A0 J0 C0 D0 R0 I0 W0 E0 T0 Y0 B0 H0 K0 M0 L0 V0 S0 N0 Q0 O0 G0
Also, please ensure you put the Depart and Arrival airports / airports codes - otherwise a Google on flight number is required
19/12/18 1:05 LHR
19/12/18 5:25 777
Daily
79% / 64m F2 A0 J1 C0 D0 R0 I0 W0 E0 T0 Y3 B0 H0 K0 M0 L0 V0 S0 N0 Q0 O0 G0
RUH
21/12/18 1:05 LHR
21/12/18 5:25 777
Daily
79% / 64m F1 A0 J0 C0 D0 R0 I0 W0 E0 T0 Y0 B0 H0 K0 M0 L0 V0 S0 N0 Q0 O0 G0
Also, please ensure you put the Depart and Arrival airports / airports codes - otherwise a Google on flight number is required
#2839
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Riyadh, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Programs: BA Gold. Iberia Plus Blue, Miles and More Blue, Gulf Blue, Tesco Clubcard, Elite PAL Mabuhay
Posts: 421
RUH
19/12/18 1:05 LHR
19/12/18 5:25 777
Daily
79% / 64m F2 A0 J1 C0 D0 R0 I0 W0 E0 T0 Y3 B0 H0 K0 M0 L0 V0 S0 N0 Q0 O0 G0
RUH
21/12/18 1:05 LHR
21/12/18 5:25 777
Daily
79% / 64m F1 A0 J0 C0 D0 R0 I0 W0 E0 T0 Y0 B0 H0 K0 M0 L0 V0 S0 N0 Q0 O0 G0
Also, please ensure you put the Depart and Arrival airports / airports codes - otherwise a Google on flight number is required
19/12/18 1:05 LHR
19/12/18 5:25 777
Daily
79% / 64m F2 A0 J1 C0 D0 R0 I0 W0 E0 T0 Y3 B0 H0 K0 M0 L0 V0 S0 N0 Q0 O0 G0
RUH
21/12/18 1:05 LHR
21/12/18 5:25 777
Daily
79% / 64m F1 A0 J0 C0 D0 R0 I0 W0 E0 T0 Y0 B0 H0 K0 M0 L0 V0 S0 N0 Q0 O0 G0
Also, please ensure you put the Depart and Arrival airports / airports codes - otherwise a Google on flight number is required
#2840
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2014
Location: UK
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 12,255
Good luck!
#2841
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Cape Town
Programs: BA Exec Gold , Qatar Priviledge Club Plat
Posts: 1,584
BA6429 JNB-CPT 13/12
Thank you!
Thank you!
#2843
Join Date: Aug 2018
Programs: British airways
Posts: 19
Could someone check BA0008 on December 24?
Thanks in advance
Thanks in advance
#2845
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: Peterborough, UK
Programs: BA Silver; IHG Spire; Avis P+; Global Entry
Posts: 1,505
#2848
formerly mattking2000
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: DXB
Programs: BA|AC|AZ|SPG|H|FPC
Posts: 1,187
#2849
formerly mattking2000
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: DXB
Programs: BA|AC|AZ|SPG|H|FPC
Posts: 1,187
#2850
Join Date: Dec 2018
Programs: BAEC Silver, IHG Platinum
Posts: 8
Thanks so might just get an upgrade