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{prem fare gone}: AF/KL/DL/VS: BUD-US from $750 R/T

Old Mar 15, 2020, 10:29 am
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: Maestro Ramen
FARE RULES:
I pulled down the DL fare rules (these are BUD-SEA but they all appeared nearly identical). I posted them on a share. We can easily grab the AF and KL variants if others need those.

Q: This is a fully flexible fare with free changes. Does that mean I can change the flight dates as I want without paying anything extra?
A: No. The airline simply doesn't charge a change fee. But depending on the fare rules, you will still need to pay the difference to the new price.

Q: But I read that some people could change their flights for free...?
A: The rules for this fare (linked to above) specify that historical pricing shall be used if either at least one flight from the ticket has been taken or the outbound remains the same. In other words, in order to be able to change your flights for free, you must have flown at least one flight from your booking. Otherwise, you can only change the inbound. The outbound has to remain the same or you will be charged the fare difference.

Q: Can I change the rest of the itinerary after flying the first segment without any other charges or additional fare differences?
A: Yes this is possible according to the fare rules where after completing the first segment, you can change the rest of the flights for free (with the condition that the same fare class is available- I-class - in this case. According to the fare rules, after flying the FIRST segment (in the case here BUD-XXX) the historical fare is used. Possible to use the first stopover at AMS or CDG (see post #830).

Q: But some people could change their outbound flights for free!
A: They got lucky. It was probably a bug on the website/in the app. When no flight from the ticket has been flown, the fare rules do not allow changing the outbound without repricing.

Q: Ok, ok, so I can only change the inbound for free. How do I do that?
A: You search for availability for alternative flights on ITA Matrix using "F ..I2FFHU" in the extension codes. You must search for round trip flights as this is a round trip fare. Then you ignore the outbound result (as long as you haven't flown at least one flight from your ticket) and just try to rebook your inbound on the website/app.

Q: I have found availability on ITA Matrix, but the app/website doesn't show me those flights!
A: Keep trying. Sometimes you may have to serach in a different way (split up the searches, e.g. HNL-LAX and LAX-BUD), sometimes you just have to repeat the search several times. But that's no guarantee the desired results will turn up (and without repricing).

Q: It doesn't work. Can I just call the airline to make the changes?
A: Please don't unless you need to. Calling can increase the risk for all of us that they'll change their mind and disallow all further changes, or simply cancel everyone's tickets. However, as this fare has now been running for months and has seen many calls made about it, it is reasonable to expect that calling will not cause issues at this stage. As best practice, avoid attracting attention on the low price paid, and avoid making additional demands or tempting your luck. Remember you get to fly a J ticket for the cost of a Y fare.

Q: How many times can I make changes?
A: In theory, as often as you like, but you can't make more than two changes online/in the app. After that, you'd have to call, which we are trying to avoid.

Q: I've changed my mind. Can I get a refund?
A: Yes, the fare was fully refundable. Just contact the airline or fill out a refund form online.

Q: Due to Coronavirus, I need to extend my travel plan beyond the original expiry date. What can I do?
A: For Delta tickets (starting with 006) you can travel at any point until December 2022. Changes to flights within a 10 month window can be done at any point on the app, following the rules above. If you want to fly later than 10 months from now, you can call Delta and ask them to "park" your ticket. You will receive a ticket number that ties to an eCredit which can be used later to buy tickets. As long as you keep the original itinerary, or if you have flown at least a segment, you will not be charged a fare difference. Bear in mind that the eCredit may only be refundable if your original flight was cancelled (which is very likely in those day and times). Note that only Delta in the US are able to do this so do not call the EU numbers (use Skype to save money on international calls). According to user feedback: iMessage agents seem to also be able to do this, but twitter agents not.
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{prem fare gone}: AF/KL/DL/VS: BUD-US from $750 R/T

Old Mar 21, 2020, 2:47 pm
  #541  
 
Join Date: Mar 2018
Programs: DL DM, FB Gold
Posts: 296
Originally Posted by stephem
Have a look at this
Thanks a lot! For anyone else wondering I understand that X stands for no stopover allowed and M designates a mileage-based fare construction.
David7 is offline  
Old Mar 23, 2020, 2:53 pm
  #542  
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: NYC
Posts: 117
Originally Posted by AirCanada881
I filed the form on March 14th. Still waiting for a response
One of the locators for an AF flight I requested to be cancelled now shows: "Your reservation file is empty. Please contact our customer service for information about this file."

opefully I'll be seeing a refund on my card soon! I haven't received any e-mail confirmation yet either.
pluu1285 is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 4:58 am
  #543  
 
Join Date: Feb 2017
Posts: 170
lol was looking at hotels in hawaii over nye, and they sure are expensive...
hkgg is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 7:21 am
  #544  
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: San Francisco, CA & Bangkok (Home)/Lawrenceville & Switzerland (Boarding School)/Baltimore, MD (College)
Programs: DL DM, AL MVPG 75K, SQ Gold, BA Silver, HH Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, Marriot Plat, Hertz Pres Circle
Posts: 599
2 of my flights are officially canceled. Wait time is 8 hours. Any idea if fare difference is collected if flights are canceled?
Quinlanty is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 7:32 am
  #545  
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Western Europe
Posts: 205
Originally Posted by Quinlanty
2 of my flights are officially canceled. Wait time is 8 hours. Any idea if fare difference is collected if flights are canceled?
What do you mean by wait time? When are your flights supposed to depart?
altalk08 is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 7:47 am
  #546  
 
Join Date: Apr 2019
Posts: 68
Originally Posted by Quinlanty
2 of my flights are officially canceled. Wait time is 8 hours. Any idea if fare difference is collected if flights are canceled?
why have they been cancelled? Did the airline cancel them or did you cancel them ? Do you mean the wait till to get through on the telephone?
Nigel Spencer is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 8:10 am
  #547  
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Programs: AA Exp
Posts: 836
Originally Posted by Nigel Spencer
why have they been cancelled? Did the airline cancel them or did you cancel them ? Do you mean the wait till to get through on the telephone?
I am guessing Corona-related cancellations...
gnargel is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 8:43 am
  #548  
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Posts: 119
Originally Posted by Quinlanty
2 of my flights are officially canceled. Wait time is 8 hours. Any idea if fare difference is collected if flights are canceled?
which airline did you book with? I had a KLM fare for last week cancelled due to corona. Their website/app allowed me to make an easy change for no fee and no fare difference. Was able to change dates all the way to end of schedule (next March 2021).
kodawg9 is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 8:57 am
  #549  
 
Join Date: Mar 2018
Programs: DL DM, FB Gold
Posts: 296
If the origin and destination stays the same changes are free. If you change any of those the fare difference applies
David7 is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 9:37 am
  #550  
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: San Francisco, CA & Bangkok (Home)/Lawrenceville & Switzerland (Boarding School)/Baltimore, MD (College)
Programs: DL DM, AL MVPG 75K, SQ Gold, BA Silver, HH Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, Marriot Plat, Hertz Pres Circle
Posts: 599
Booked on Air France. First leg is KLM operated flights. Delayed by 8 hours causing misconnect for Lax-HNL flight. The return legs are Air France opp. Both KLM and Air France website want to charge me $2,000 to change to different dates.
Quinlanty is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 10:26 am
  #551  
 
Join Date: Mar 2018
Programs: DL DM, FB Gold
Posts: 296
I think the going advice right now is to wait until 2-3 days before departure and then calling to rebook. I would delay contacting them as much as possible as to not wake sleeping dogs.
David7 is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 10:51 am
  #552  
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Western Europe
Posts: 205
Originally Posted by Quinlanty
Booked on Air France. First leg is KLM operated flights. Delayed by 8 hours causing misconnect for Lax-HNL flight. The return legs are Air France opp. Both KLM and Air France website want to charge me $2,000 to change to different dates.
Surely KLM will automatically rebook you? At least this is what they did when my flights got cancelled during last year's labour action.
altalk08 is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 11:01 am
  #553  
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Posts: 119
Originally Posted by Quinlanty
Booked on Air France. First leg is KLM operated flights. Delayed by 8 hours causing misconnect for Lax-HNL flight. The return legs are Air France opp. Both KLM and Air France website want to charge me $2,000 to change to different dates.
When is your flight? My corona induced flight cancellation allowed me to rebook with no fare difference. However I can't change dates on my other flights that are still intact and not cancelled yet without a fare difference.
kodawg9 is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 12:08 pm
  #554  
 
Join Date: Jan 2019
Location: VIE/PRG
Programs: FB Platinum, Marriott Platinum Elite
Posts: 1,591
I got phone from Delta today asking me to pay rebooking fee of $40.80 per each pax. We changed our return to HNL-MSP-JFK, two days in NY and JFK-AMS-BUD. Payment did not go through several days ago however changes were "confirmed" on DL MMB but not really. Now after payment on the phone flights are really confirmed. I just can't think how 1B and 1c is good or bad, if I am next to toilets on 767 or not.
747jetter is offline  
Old Mar 24, 2020, 12:10 pm
  #555  
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: San Francisco, CA & Bangkok (Home)/Lawrenceville & Switzerland (Boarding School)/Baltimore, MD (College)
Programs: DL DM, AL MVPG 75K, SQ Gold, BA Silver, HH Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, Marriot Plat, Hertz Pres Circle
Posts: 599
Originally Posted by kodawg9
When is your flight? My corona induced flight cancellation allowed me to rebook with no fare difference. However I can't change dates on my other flights that are still intact and not cancelled yet without a fare difference.
April 5 is outbound. Delayed by 8 hours and misconduct. April 7 LAX-CDG-Bud all canceled. Website ask for fare difference. I will call in once it get closer to time.
Quinlanty is offline  

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