pretzlaff

View from the Wing has an article on Frontier starting a new thing where for $49 you can buy out the middle seat in the first two rows as an extra seat. Kinda like European business class.

This may be why elites have not been able to choose stretch seats the last few days as they change the software.

This will probably reduce the pool of free seats for elites.

AtlCoug

So, after the big push to get all the $$$'s from passengers for elite status for 2024, Frontier is now reducing stretch seating by 4 seats per flight.
One of the main reasons I paid for status was to get my spouse stretch seating.
Seems a bit "bait and switch"-like.

pretzlaff

The Points Guy has a piece with the seat map.

This is looking worse and worse for free seat elites.

They pre-block the middle seats. The aisle and window pax each pay. I thought it might be that they would block the seats only after somebody bought up. The prices on that seat map were $146 vs $88 for the next row back.

This really takes a lot of seats out of the free pool, really limits options, and ensures that there will never be an empty seat next to you in the exit row.

expert7700

WAY worse than this.

Booking a flight for April 10 or later (when this takes effect) shows that Diamond 100k status has NO free (or discounted) access to Row 1 or 2 more. The same will be true for Gold/Platinum that could have selected at time of checkin.

​​​​The way they implemented this +$49 for a blocked middle, instead is 'IF' the passenger wants a blocked middle they will pick the more expensive row #1 or 2. No flight that I found will sell the B or E seat after April 9th.

This is a huge devaluation.

Sure enough on test bookings PRE April 10th, an elite member utilize 18 different Stretch Seats in Row 1-3. April 10 onward, elites can only get free seating woth 6 different stretch seats, all in Row #3.

pretzlaff

I did a mock booking for a typical $19 flight. I could pick any seat on the plane as a diamond for free except the 8 aisle/ window options in rows 1 and 2. They were a $49 up charge.

Free stretch seats on that specific aircraft included row 3 and 2 full exit rows, so 18 possible free seats.

The Points Guy indicates that the $49 initial cost is a discounted rate. Hate to see what they try to charge later.

expert7700

Frontier new elite terms & conditons now reflects the change.
Premium Seat Assignment (formerly Stretch Seats) are included.

Upfront Plus seating is a whole new thing. 1AC DF 2AC DF.
1B 1E 2B 2E no longer exist for sale.

​​​​​​

rhwbullhead

While it sucks to lose the extra seats, I found they filled these rows before the exit rows when flights were near full.

I wonder how annoying it will be for people to get a refund if the flight is full? I imagine they would fill the plane over leaving the middle seat open and IDB a passenger.

payam81

I don’t quite equate Exit Rows with the Stretch Seats in the front. You can’t seat elderly or kids in them!

iahphx

This seems like a terrible business strategy for Frontier -- it will likely cost them revenue AND annoy their elite customrs. Do they lack the IT capability to just sell you the middle stretch seat if you want it? Removng those stretch seats from sellable inventory is crazy. Demand for their new product is undoubtedly much less.

willy702

Its annoying but really nothing surprising for them. I don't know if they will annoy as many elites as we think they will but annoying just one is enough to make them reconsider this. I see where they are going with this along with the route changes, they really think they can get business travelers. I could see them getting a very small slice of the potential market, probably mostly ownership/equity level people in small companies who are watching every dollar of expense. If you just work for a company and are traveling on business this isn't going to be you. If you are a road warrior and do sales trips, you certainly won't accept their limited schedules and network so you will pass too. This is basically getting back to what Spirit had ages ago when they introduced their Big Front Seat and created the illusion of a near business class without having it cost 5-10x the cost of economy.

For the elites such as myself and as I go through booking right now, it really isn't an issue. They sell so few of those seats in advance its not hard to get a stretch seat anyways. I think as others have mentioned its just going to reduce the lucky random recipients who get these seats within the last 12 hours when its clear they won't sell. And if these don't get traction I could see them getting reopened to elites in the last 24-48 hours at no charge. So we'll have another incentive to check in and look at options again. Maybe in summer it will be a bit of an issue but I try to stay out of airports as much as possible at that time of year, so hoping its just a minor annoyance.

EugeneK

If you try booking further into the future (e.g. July), you'll see that the $49 jumps up to over $100, depending on the flight.

MileHighColorado

I feel like we could see a future option for elites to get these seats. Maybe if not sold 24 hours before the flight one could transfer to them. This would not cost F9 anything. I do not think these seats will sell out.

pretzlaff

Not only will these seats not sell out, but I doubt that they sell at all. Currently the stretch seats are rarely sold out. On many of my flights, at check in, almost none are sold. If people won't pay a small amount for the current stretch seats, almost nobody will pay a large amount for these seats. I see this whole thing going away in a few months.

The worst part is that it is just another Frontier complication. With the website not working well, and your KTN falling off, and the flight schedules changing, and no phone service, and....and...and, it is just so tiring.

aerosly

I'm curious to see how this unfolds when the middle seats are sold/reserved and the flight is overbooked (or an entitled Karen pax decides she's just going to self-upgrade). A dozen donuts says we eventually hear of someone paying for this feature and someone getting put in that seat anyway.

iahphx

Maybe they'll offer you a (worthless?) voucher if they need the seat? Personally, I'd feel bad if I had the last empty middle seat on the plane and some unlucky pax who missed their connecting flight would otherwise stay stranded without it.