Do YCA (govt fully refundable) tickets get Early Bird?
Jun 28, 2023, 3:26 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Under the Cone of Silence
Programs: UA Gold; AA Dirt; HH Diamond; National Emerald; CONTROL SecretAgent Platinum; KAOS EvilFlyer Gold
Posts: 1,499
Do YCA (govt fully refundable) tickets get Early Bird?
Title says it all- do fully refundable US govt fare tickets (YCA, not other _CA) get the same status as Anytime or Business Select fares with respect to Early Bird checkin and/or A1-A15 boarding?
Jun 28, 2023, 4:40 pm
#2
Join Date: Oct 2001
Programs: LTP, PP
Posts: 8,700
I believe your title is flawed. Early Bird is something you purchase (extra) when you don't have status
Automatic check-in is function of A List status.
BS 1-15 boarding is a function of buying that fare.
Do YCA fares equate AT or BS fares, both are fully refundable.
- Chief
Automatic check-in is function of A List status.
BS 1-15 boarding is a function of buying that fare.
Do YCA fares equate AT or BS fares, both are fully refundable.
- Chief
Jun 28, 2023, 4:49 pm
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Under the Cone of Silence
Programs: UA Gold; AA Dirt; HH Diamond; National Emerald; CONTROL SecretAgent Platinum; KAOS EvilFlyer Gold
Posts: 1,499
I believe your title is flawed. Early Bird is something you purchase (extra) when you don't have status
Automatic check-in is function of A List status.
BS 1-15 boarding is a function of buying that fare.
Do YCA fares equate AT or BS fares, both are fully refundable.
- Chief
Automatic check-in is function of A List status.
BS 1-15 boarding is a function of buying that fare.
Do YCA fares equate AT or BS fares, both are fully refundable.
- Chief
Your last sentence is essentially my question, perhaps not worded too well. AT fares say they include Early Bird, while BS fares say they give A1-A15 boarding.
YCA fares are fully-refundable fares that can be cancelled up to flight time like AT or BS (and they're priced sometimes on the order of AT or BS fares, sometimes cheaper).
So my question is, do YCA fares give the same benefits as AT or BS fares with respect to automatic/early checkin and/or boarding priority?
Jun 28, 2023, 5:08 pm
#4
Join Date: Oct 2001
Programs: LTP, PP
Posts: 8,700
Apologies, I do see that AT fares include EBCI, that is new to me.
I do not know for sure but would like to assume a fully refundable fare equates at least AT, perhaps at a discount being governmental. I used get BS fares slightly cheaper than AT by using Concur's negotiated rates. And those BS fares meant Air Tran business class for 2 sweet years.
Hopefully some one who had used them will know, sorry
I do not know for sure but would like to assume a fully refundable fare equates at least AT, perhaps at a discount being governmental. I used get BS fares slightly cheaper than AT by using Concur's negotiated rates. And those BS fares meant Air Tran business class for 2 sweet years.
Hopefully some one who had used them will know, sorry
Jun 29, 2023, 5:45 pm
#7
Join Date: Feb 2023
Location: Milwaukee, WI
Posts: 148
Hopefully someone with more recent experience and no status with WN can chime in.
Jun 30, 2023, 9:12 am
#8
Company Representative - Southwest Airlines
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Dallas, TX
Programs: Rapid Rewards, IHG/Kimpton, Bonvoy, AA/oneworld, British Airways
Posts: 798
Jul 4, 2023, 9:53 am
#10
Join Date: May 2012
Location: DCA, lived MCI, SEA/PDX,BUF (born/raised)
Programs: Marriott (Silver/Gold), IHG, Carlson, Best Western, Choice( Gold), AS (MVP), WN, UA
Posts: 8,738
Your last sentence is essentially my question, perhaps not worded too well. AT fares say they include Early Bird, while BS fares say they give A1-A15 boarding.
YCA fares are fully-refundable fares that can be cancelled up to flight time like AT or BS (and they're priced sometimes on the order of AT or BS fares, sometimes cheaper).
So my question is, do YCA fares give the same benefits as AT or BS fares with respect to automatic/early checkin and/or boarding priority?
YCA fares are fully-refundable fares that can be cancelled up to flight time like AT or BS (and they're priced sometimes on the order of AT or BS fares, sometimes cheaper).
So my question is, do YCA fares give the same benefits as AT or BS fares with respect to automatic/early checkin and/or boarding priority?
no…ECBI doesn’t come with it. It’s a contract negotiated fully refundable economy class fare. The tickets don’t officially get ticketed until about 72 hrs/3 business day before travel.
any status level/FF number can get attached to it.
you can’t bill the govt for ECBI
Jul 4, 2023, 10:45 am
#11
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Under the Cone of Silence
Programs: UA Gold; AA Dirt; HH Diamond; National Emerald; CONTROL SecretAgent Platinum; KAOS EvilFlyer Gold
Posts: 1,499
2. Ticketing times vary between agencies. While your agency might ticket 72 hours in advance, others may do it much earlier. Like mine, sometimes.
3. I believe you are correct that ECBI can't be reimbursed as a travel expense, however, there may be exceptions, so I'm always hesitant to pronounce such things as absolute.