danger

I can't help with your first question (but I'm very interested in the answer). As for the second, date, time and carrier (but not reroute) changes are permitted free of charge at any point, although whoever does the change may charge you an administration fee.

pandaperth

The Oneworld Explorer rule sheet is here http://www.oneworld.com/content/libr...t%201oct12.pdf (you can navigate to this on the oneworld web site - then you'll always get the current version)

See rule 11 for what the implications are if you change dates (in brief date changes are free of charge - BUT if you change the date of the first segment AND the price has gone up then you're up for the new price)

See rule 5 for the Maximum Stay - which is that the date of the last flight must be no later than one year after the first flight
Using the on-line tool, you have to enter a date for each flight. But if you book through a travel agent or say the AA RTW desk then most flights can be left open-dated (see rule 3a)
But remember, since date changes are free, you can put dummy dates into the tool and later change them to the actual dates you want (subject to there being availability in the booking class you're flying on the dates/flights you want)

danger

Does this mean you can essentially plan a oneworld Explorer to finish about 23 months out from booking? That is, if I was to book today for the first flight in 330 days and then the last flight to be one year from then?

pandaperth

Yes

Just book the first flight, leave the rest open-dated
and firm up the flights that are "first international flight and all preceding flights" prior to departure (or seven days prior if starting from TC1)
as per rule 3a

(Having just purchased ex-KRT DONE4s, we are now looking at the next one - starting in September 2013 but wanting it to run through to April 2014 - weighing up whether to have dummy dates for most of the segments, or have open dates)

AND if booking in a premium cabin the cancellation fee is just 5% (of en ex-KRT DONE4 that is about $150!)

A possible caveat has just occurred to me:
With the demise of paper tickets, it might now be the case that airlines cannot issue tickets with open-dated segments
If that is the case I'm sure someone will soon point it out to us

pianoperson

just trying dummy bookings online and all pricing much higher - for AONE4 ex KRT - base fare over 7000 USD and that's ending in KRT
is the party over ?!!!

pandaperth

Don't panic (yet at least)
See posts 361 and 363 above

It's known bug that sometimes the tool prices at double the true fare

uproared

Thanks pandaperth! I found this after I posted the question.

Looks as though I'll just book dates as far in the future as possible and then amend them when it's possible to do so. Assume that if booked online this will be done through the AA call centre.

Assuming that I can book online, is there any advantage to not doing so? (e.g. to book through a Canadian travel agent instead). I see many references to people doing this, but can't see the advantage except where AA refuses to ticket.

anabolism

I've learned that airline geography doesn't always match conventional thinking (e.g., all of the Caribbean is North America even though some of it should be South America, such as Curaçao, which is just off Venezuela). That's why I thought the text was saying that Russia counted as the Middle East.

Is there a complete list of countries in the xONEx Middle East?

As noted, either dummy dates (which means that you have to wait until you can book the last flight, which even with only connections may be weeks longer than 330 days before first flight) or open dated. Personally I've always used dummy dates, since it's then easy to have the dates changed with a phone call. Open dates require a paper ticket, which must be taken to a ticket agent to be reissued.

I assume there's no way to book an xONEx that extends out 11-12 months, and after flying some flights, possibly with multiple ticket re-issues, change the dates of subsequent unflown sectors so that they're more than 12 months from the first flown one? I assume each date change is verified against the original ticket?

pandaperth

Correct - if either AA or RJ is the marketing carrier of the first flight (in the tool AA does the ticketing on RJ's behalf)

So the ticket is then on AA stock, and AA will happily make changes for you (and will not charge any service fees, unlike other airlines' call centres - in particular QF's)

People, well me at least, have used the Canadaian TA option because:

• the tool either will not price the itinerary, or fails at the payment stage
• while AA will book and price the itineray, in order to get the ex-KRT price, it insists you either pay for the ticket in Canada (at an AA office or AA counter at the airport) or (I think this is the case) use a Canadian credit card - either way - pretty hard to do from PER!

pianoperson

HI
i've read all the posts - and have dealt with online tool bugs previously ex AMM
but every routing i've put in the tool comes back with approx 7700 US which was the fare prior to the recent devaluation of the the Sudanese currency .....
EF is still showing the much lower fare that we have all been excited about but much as I hope i'm wrong i'm not convinced that it's a bug but a fare hike back to pre-currency devaluation levels

if anyone is still managing to get the bargain fares please post and put us out of our potential misery!

pandaperth

I've just run a simple DONE3 through the tool - all appears in order
(KRT-AMM-HKG-JFK-LHR-AMM-KRT)
Prices at USD2,410 + taxes etc of USD990.37

Also KVS is showing the fares to be unchanged

Phew

Edited to Add
Just changed it into an AONE3 - also prices up fine
USD3,376 + USD1087

Shem76

Planning to do KRT-GRU-LAX-SYD-SIN-KRT in March. I have just completed setting up a trip with an AA agent on the phone. Will be easy as based in NBO.

Can someone help with the contacts for a TA in Canada who can help with ticketing.

pandaperth

YGPM

pianoperson

hi
just reading the Rules and it seems that according to the cut and paste below that if make any changes of routing - not just the initial flight - before departure the ticket could be repriced at a new fare .....

Have I read this correctly and is this a change to the rules?




[Changes other than to Date/time/oneworld carrier/inventory permitted at a charge of
USD125.00 per transaction. If the fare level has increased since ticket issuance, the Page 8 of 10 Rule 3015
difference between the old and new fare will also be charged. If the fare level has decreased





See rule 11 for what the implications are if you change dates (in brief date changes are free of charge - BUT if you change the date of the first segment AND the price has gone up then you're up for the new price)

See rule 5 for the Maximum Stay - which is that the date of the last flight must be no later than one year after the first flight
Using the on-line tool, you have to enter a date for each flight. But if you book through a travel agent or say the AA RTW desk then most flights can be left open-dated (see rule 3a)
But remember, since date changes are free, you can put dummy dates into the tool and later change them to the actual dates you want (subject to there being availability in the booking class you're flying on the dates/flights you want)[/QUOTE]

pandaperth

Yes - you have read it correctly
No - it is not a (recent) change to the rules

So, nowadays, the situation is:

IF BEFORE departure (in other words before you take the first flight)
you want to change either the date/time/carrier of the first flight
or the routing of any part of the itinerary
THEN if the price has gone up since you ticketed then you must pay the new price (and if the price has gone down - you get nothing back, of course)