Exec_Plat

Trying to get space for two on a specific QF flight, SYD-ADL next March, on a Thursday afternoon.

Booked one seat in J with Avios. Done. (Only award space QF released was U1..no X)

Need one more seat.

So my choice is:

1. Wait, see if they release U. if not buy a coach ticket for ____? (Was 150 now AUD215...could be much more ?)

2. Buy the cheapest right now, just fly coach

3. Pick up a J award on the next flight (one hour later) and see if they'll let me fly earlier with my SO- this at the airport on day of travel.

This would be either a BA or AA award booking.

Any opinion as to the odds of success for option 3?

Thx!

PS I know J isnt worth the money, miles nor avios...just that they didnt have any coach awards AND I had piles of AVIOS. I wouldnt buy J for a 1:30 flight...

LTN Phobia

1. Could it be much more? YES. It can increase to a fairly large amount. Given the flight is not for another few months and it's already gone up from AUD 150 to AUD 215 suggests that the load may well be high, increasing the risk of a higher fare if you wait.

2. Yes, this would be the sensible option. I'd personally do 2 unless I know the route really well and know how the fares move, as per 1 and am I am happy to "risk" the likely maximum fare by waiting for an award space to open up.

3. Not a good idea. For a start, the earlier flight could well be full. QF will allow a change on a flex ticket but probably not for an award booking (particularly made on another FF scheme) unless they have a compelling reason to do so.

grov

Do you have a fourth option - points plus pay? You mentioned that you had points to spare.

Exec_Plat

Looking at seat maps there is one J taken and 8 Y occupied.

But not an accurate reflection of sold space I assume? Seems very very empty though- however I dont know QF polices and how maps correlate.

EF shows inventory a 9 for all classes down to S...no N no O no E no G no Q no X. But just that flight, others before and after have some cheaper inventory classes

I dont think points plus pay works if there is no underlying award inventory...all ears if I am missing. Avios or AA miles only.

Thx!

moa999

On coach fares QF will regularly run a few sales over this period so just keep checking

LTN Phobia

Would that work with non-QF points though? The OP seem to be talking about BA Avios or AA miles.

m0hamed

I would never do this with my partner, however IME QF treat QF J awards the same as revenue fares in that they will allow you to move flights at the airport (and only at the airport). I have no experience with QF flights booked via Avios, however QF status is likely to also be influencing this situation.

If I was in your position I would purchase the second fare with cash.

og

Agreed. Travel on the same aircraft. Otherwise you risk problems in case one person is delayed.

nux

QF have moved me to an earlier domestic flight on an avios redemption, done in the lounge.

I guess it is a question as to whether you'd be happy on separate flights, if so book the two available award seats and hope you can move to the same flight on the day. Otherwise, book the cash ticket now and one will have to travel economy.

m0hamed

But do you know if there was a fly forward directive for operational reasons that day that enabled all pax to move to earlier flights?

nux

Not sure, but neither flight seemed oversold as there was still J/Y availability on both and J was not full on my flight.

Globaliser

Thinking one step further, if you'd be happy flying on separate flights, does that mean that the choice of the primary flight is not actually critical? Looking at award availability on the day that I think you're referring to, there are later flights that are U2. But of course if there's a reason you need to try to get to ADL by a certain time, that may not work.

Exec_Plat

Thanks for all the inputs.

- I have a dinner booked at penfolds Macgill. So the early flight really is imperative for both of us. I will likely book Y for cash in the next 3-4 weeks. The later flight is indeed U2, but leaving 1:15 between landing and dinner isnt going to work

- They have various 'fare sales' active- fare codes of ODEAL, EDEALAP, SDEAL, QDEAL exist on this routing...just not O E S or Q inventory on this one flight. Ive set EF alerts, I should be able to grab something if they open that flight

kamchatsky

Just checking, is the Thursday you are flying on March, the day before Good Friday? If so, suggest you lock in what ever you have now as it would be very busy at that time as people travel to visit families.

Exec_Plat

Very good thought....

This is March 17, so the week prior.

Question for QF flyers:

Does QF let people reserve seats when they purchase?? On other carriers (my primary is AA) the Seat Map is a good indicator of load- not perfect, but good. When I look at this flight there are literally 9 seats occupied in Y and one in J (my wife).


If QF has sold 80 seats but only allows their very top tier flyers to reserve this far out, Id like to know...

thx