milesrus

Well after six weeks and eight airports with six alternative dates no seats in Business or Coach. In my opinion this is really phony on either LP or KLM. Eight months out, coach or business six different dates eight airports come on they aren't that full.

SFO_FT

Have you independently confirmed whether the flights have availability in the award inventories and had LP tell you they're not avail? I sent in a request three weeks ago for some Jan05 flights that I know (confirmed directly with KLM) still have D class avail ... my suspicion is that LP is the culprit for "non-availability".

milesrus

No I have no way of knowing if there are seats on the KLM flights. I have tried numerous times and there is not a section on Northwest web site that will tell you that. I tried March 17-27 from all the airports to London via Amsterdam no luck. I had dates forward/ backwards for three business/coach tickets no luck.

SFO_FT

You can call NW award res and ask them to look at the avail of space on KL flights -- I'd be really surprised if those flights were actually sold out at this point. LP "did" get back to you to tell you that KL could not confirm the space? How long did it take, each time, for LP to check and then tell you to pick other dates? I believe that altho LP may tell us that they're submitting a long list of alternative dates/cities to KL, in fact LP is only submitting one itinerary and waiting to see if it clears/doesn't clear. That's why being armed with dates you KNOW are already avail can simplify the process. It may also be valuable to call and ask LP if they're issuing anymore KL award tickets for this year -- seem to recall that last year around this time, they were honest and telling folks that they had already used up their allotment. I'm out of country currently and can't make the call myself. Maybe they'll give you an update?!?

milesrus

The LP desk says they have no contact with KLM they talk via email only. Even if I give them specific times and dates they will just send an email and wait four days till I call back. I had a backup plan on United via Lufthansa that is now gone, as United changed their rules with Luft tickets. This operation as usual is half--- as it took me August 17 through September 29 to run through all the cities. So basically unless your going to Central America your toast. And if your going beyond South America that is not a good option as it takes two days, because you arrive in Costa Rica at 6 then the flight South have already left so stick around till tomorrow. Then do this drill on the return

tfjim

milesrus,

I'm tending to agree with you that there is some underlying lack of effort on Latinpass' part to book KLM tickets, for whatever reason. There has been some anecdotal evidence here of people obtaining KLM award tickets, so we know it does happen.

I don't know what amount of effort and follow-up is required to get a ticket. Whether it means calling every single day, over and over and over, without losing patience. Being available to take any seat on any day. I really don't know as I haven't been down that road.

I did try to book some KLM award tickets once a year or two ago, but I wasn't successful, so I gave up.

milesrus

I called Delta and they were able to secure seats on KLM so where is the problem KLM telling Delta Yes and LP No or LP ? LP sends an email and three days later KLM responds. If they were truly out of allotment or something why would they just not tell us so? Instead I wasted 7 weeks trying to secure seats and now have flights on Delta but not the times I would have liked.

NickB

It seems that LP has minimal allocation on KL. I have given up trying to use LP miles on KL. As you experienced, you waste a lot of time for no results.

Djlawman

I believe it is probably related to a desire to avoid exchanging cash, and whether any KLM customers want FF seats on Globalpass airlines in return. If KLM members are asking for FF seats on some TACA flights, they probably trade some availability. If KLM customers are not asking for Globalpass FF seats, then Globalpass would have to pay KLM cash for the seats (in whatever amount) and does not want to.

Just a guess as to why no KLM availability. (I am among those who have given up. Tried for a couple years to get KLM seats to Europe, and gave up.)

Djlawman

milesrus

I asked the girls at LP where are people getting seats to? The answer is Europe to Asia. I am reday to help somebody like Doctors without Borders giving some away. I would imagine the doctors could afford tickets but maybe not some of the nurses. If you know of the group I'd be interested in helping them.

davistev

I can confirm that LP KLM tickets are available on Asia-Europe routes as well as intra-European routes. I think LP's allotment of Trans-Atlantic tickets are limited (except maybe AMS to CCS or LIM.)_

tfjim

Davistev, yes it was you I was thinking of as having reported success on KLM bookings. So, it does happen. You're all over the place. As I recall most recently you were in Tokyo. Now Khartoum?

SFO_FT

I'm surprised to hear that Europe to Asia is easy to get using LP. Europe to FarEast (BKK, KUL, SIN, PVG, PEK) is nearly impossible to get in D class (biz award space) for everyone (incl KL FD members) and can be a little tricky even for Plat Elite, whose avail is equiv to C class. I've been trying to get between AMS and any of these FarEast destinations for at least a year (of failed attempts). Maybe there's alot of seats in economy and/or to destinations in the MidEast.

NickB

I am also very surprised.

My attempts to get flights to Asia or South Africa (AMS-BKK, AMS-KUL, AMS-SIN, AMS-JNB, AMS-CPT) have resulted in 100% failure.

From what I recall of earlier messages on this board, a few people reported getting transatlantic or intra-European tickets. I would have thought that these would have been easier to get, at least until last year or so, as KL often had plenty of availability under its own FD scheme. FD availability has become more scarce over the last year.

BlackBerryAddict

KL to lima or caracas using GP miles is also impossible. I've tried many times, always unsuccessgully, and have now, like many others on this forum given up on transatlantic KLM tickets via GP