fakecd

data point Sin-HKG on D fare on "business essential" ticket condition clearly states free of charge for change, and All J subclasses wide open for the intended flight. no connection or checkin luggage or special request as OWE

short version.
they are very unhelpful claims airport staff dont know if fare is changable thus refusing to help and asked to call reservation. after 10min back/forth they gave in and issued me with earlier flight. I am not sure what i need in hand to legitimately say my condition allow. I feel poor soul that fall for this non sense to call reservaion for airport control bookings.


long version
The F class checkin very unhelpful. they said i need talk to reservation. i told them politely that flight is closing in 5min and if you want me to call reservation you mind as well tell me straight u dont want to help instead.

i demanded the station manager to assist, she made a call hanged up in 5seconds and agent said to me "sorry this ticket is under reservation control so u need to call reservation"... thats when i really snapped. Being told "you cant change" is very different, to being lied blatantly that it is "reservation control is so my station manager cant do anything".

So i said to them "look i am OWE aand on business class flight i know what i am talking about. this is airport control now and i know you can help. but its ok you dont want help. but i am going to escalate this to CX customer service for blatant lie so i need station manager name. what is point of flexible ticket if you are not trying to help, let alone make a blatant lie about it not being airport control".. after very reluctant hold they issued with me a boarding pass for earlier one.

what i am not sure are:

1. why is Sin so reluctant? it almost feels like they are refusing to allow earlier flights for eligible tickets. Or is it really that being change fee free and fly earlier is different benefits?
2. was airport agents right and i was wrong that if i hold "eseential" with change fee free, is different to "flex" ticket which allow earlier flight? had i known i was wrong i woukd have pushed so hard... so by default only J subclass at highest of all rank allows fly earlier, in same way award tickets are?

percysmith

Replaced by post #35 Cathay Pacific Same-Day Flight Change?

sbs2716g

Was just checking the SIN-HKG essential business fare and there are change fee involved.

csycsycsy

https://flights.cathaypacific.com/en..._1694487734822
Says "Standby for earlier flight" is only available for Flex.
For Essential it would be "For a fee + potential fare difference" which in your case could be $0 but is it true this can/should only done through Reservations, or Airport Control can/should be able to do it?

percysmith

OK, fair enough, fakecd appears to have misunderstood his fare conditions (and I didn't know better).





I always thought fare difference should be able to process at desk. Don't tell me this is something they have Unelevated the desks from doing post-pandemic.

And also, desk should be able to advise what the fare difference is, unless this is something they again have Unelevated the desks from doing post-pandemic.

Reply1984

I think that really depends on the load factor on that route. If I understand correctly, demand between SIN and HKG is quite robust and load factor is quite high and I think that can explain something. Maybe TPE or PVG is more open to free same-day flight change.

csycsycsy

Is it assumed that when doing (free)SDC on a flex fare it is a smooth and easy process, even at out ports?
If one arrives rather early even for the desired earlier flight, would check in print a BP for the later-confirmed flight, allowing pax to wait in the lounge, then be notified/wait at gate to see if standby cleared? Assuming travelling without checked baggage.
Or would pax have to (literally) standby landside and wait till flight closes until given the desired earlier/original later BP?
If pax had not enquired at check in about SDC/Standby, went airside, then went to the gate for the earlier flight to ask about SDC, would gate agents even entertain the request, assuming pax has a flex fare and HBO?

For pax not on a flex fare, and not flying to/from the usual suspects PVG/TPE etc, is SDC always a Reservations/Ticketing problem?

pochi

A big no for TPE. TPE always refused to free same-day flight change unless it's overbooked or weather condition (post-COVID).
Post-COVID, CX tends to hold up all rights from checkin desk @ TPE. I encountered dozen times that if you asked for SDC, they have to callback, check all the fare-rules and tell you you've to pay. (not mad because I am on business essential).

Last time I did CX451 TPE-HKG sector and there's a delay for more than 1 hour, I asked for if I can switch to 565/473 (both widely open on J, and more than an hour before departure of 473), they called and said I have to pay for changing fee.

disclaimer: CX DM & no connection flight.

percysmith

Desks (even TPE desk, which I used to think was a better-trained desk because of the large number of flights leaving that day) seem Unelevated then.

Am I right in believing pre-Covid, HKG and TPE desks could have processed fare differences at desk. Or perhaps, ticketing desks were more prevalent?

Nicc HK

I had a very positive experience recently.

Had a connection to CX in BKK but separate tickets with a long layover. CX being a redemption. Went to the transfer desk, nobody there, so went to the lounge where the staff were wonderfully pleasant and efficient, sorting me out for an earlier flight. No fee. Flights fairly busy.

percysmith

And since it’s lounge sorting you out, I assume you’re hand baggage only?

I’m seeing this as an Unelevation that the desks can’t sort out fare changes/no longer has a ticketing desk. So desks can only process a fee-waived SDC, or bust.

pochi

From my experience, I can tell that pre-COVID HKG, TPE, KHH, SIN, PVG, even NRT and KIX are very generous and flexible to SDC.
For post-COVID, PVG is the only one I can think of, just because PVG always has "events"(活動, what the desk and ground said) happening.

And Yes, CX made a stupid move as they moved out ticketing from HKG and TPE (airport). Everything has to escalate by phone calls.

Nicc HK

The transfer desk was unattended, and you beat me to it, I was going to edit and say yes Hand Luggage only.

percysmith

Good question. If it is a Flex fare (neither Nicc HK nor fakecd are Flex), can desk process?

lsquare

Pretty sad that there aren't any dps of free SDFC for KUL/SIN-HKG flights.