Feb 14, 2015, 12:53 pm
Last edit by: 747FC
The ExpertFlyer support by email is at [email protected]
This is a community-maintained wiki, it is not necessarily endorsed by ExpertFlyer.
--------------------
Searches currently not working:
To search AA upgrades:
This is a community-maintained wiki, it is not necessarily endorsed by ExpertFlyer.
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Searches currently not working:
- Upgrades - AY, BA, EK, EY, IB, QR, VS
- Awards - AY, BA, IB, EY, QR, VS
To search AA upgrades:
- Use the Award & Upgrade tool
- Only search for individual segments (set the "Connection Preference" drop-down to "Direct/Non-Stop only"). Flight results that are part of a connection won't show the upgrade version of C or A inventory because AA only files upgrade inventory as individual, not married, segments. (Married segments show revenue inventory instead of upgrade inventory.)
- To avoid confusion, check the "Exclude Codeshares" box, as AA awards and upgrades are not valid on codeshares.
ExpertFlyer.com Help Desk Thread
Nov 20, 2020, 5:21 am
#2251
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Cayman, San Diego, London
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold, AA 4MM Lifetime Platinum, Hilton Diamond, IHG Diamond Amb, Bonvoy Lifetime Gold
Posts: 1,054
When are ExpertFlyer going to fix the numerous problems with their BA data supplier? For months info has been incorrect, or missing. What kind of service is this for premium subscribers? Emails to them come back with boilerplate responses passing the buck. For years it's been a vital source of info; now it's being overtaken by its competitors. Innovation is lacking. RFF and SeatSpy provide award info in a timely manner (even if SeatSpy only show BA availability up to 352 days in advance, rather than the necessary 355). Please get your act together, ExpertFlyer.
Nov 21, 2020, 2:10 pm
#2253
Left Expert Flyer 4/23
Join Date: Jan 2005
Posts: 2,741
Nov 23, 2020, 3:00 pm
#2254
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Cayman, San Diego, London
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold, AA 4MM Lifetime Platinum, Hilton Diamond, IHG Diamond Amb, Bonvoy Lifetime Gold
Posts: 1,054
For EXPERTFLYER VOICE:
You replied very quickly to Post 2243 above.
Could you kindly respond to Post 2242 since the BA problem has existed for such a long time.
You replied very quickly to Post 2243 above.
Could you kindly respond to Post 2242 since the BA problem has existed for such a long time.
Nov 23, 2020, 10:42 pm
#2255
Left Expert Flyer 4/23
Join Date: Jan 2005
Posts: 2,741
When are ExpertFlyer going to fix the numerous problems with their BA data supplier? For months info has been incorrect, or missing. What kind of service is this for premium subscribers? Emails to them come back with boilerplate responses passing the buck. For years it's been a vital source of info; now it's being overtaken by its competitors. Innovation is lacking. RFF and SeatSpy provide award info in a timely manner (even if SeatSpy only show BA availability up to 352 days in advance, rather than the necessary 355). Please get your act together, ExpertFlyer.
Second, it's not clear why you are comparing our award search to Seat Spy as they do not give flight level award data while ExpertFlyer does, and as such is not a comparison of data sources. When Seat Spy (a fine service itself) and others have the breadth of information and services (Flight Availability, Seat Maps, Award & Upgrades, Fare Tariffs, Timetables, 4 types of unique alerts, etc etc) that ExpertFlyer does, then we can talk about innovation. We've been doing that for the past 15 years.
Last edited by ExpertFlyer Voice; Nov 23, 2020 at 11:22 pm Reason: spelling
Nov 24, 2020, 5:41 am
#2256
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Cayman, San Diego, London
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold, AA 4MM Lifetime Platinum, Hilton Diamond, IHG Diamond Amb, Bonvoy Lifetime Gold
Posts: 1,054
First, the response that we sent you over email is accurate and not "boiler plate". BA broke things on their side and we have been working with our GDS provider to get them to fix it. We're not happy either that it's not being addressed fast enough, and have been working with our GDS partner to push them. We have been clear and upfront about what isn't working and that we are waiting for BA to fix it. In the meantime if you have no other use for EF's services then you can set you account not to renew or email us directly for any other consideration.
Second, it's not clear why you are comparing our award search to Seat Spy as they do not give flight level award data while ExpertFlyer does, and as such is not a comparison of data sources. When Seat Spy (a fine service itself) and others have the breadth of information and services (Flight Availability, Seat Maps, Award & Upgrades, Fare Tariffs, Timetables, 4 types of unique alerts, etc etc) that ExpertFlyer does, then we can talk about innovation. We've been doing that for the past 15 years.
Second, it's not clear why you are comparing our award search to Seat Spy as they do not give flight level award data while ExpertFlyer does, and as such is not a comparison of data sources. When Seat Spy (a fine service itself) and others have the breadth of information and services (Flight Availability, Seat Maps, Award & Upgrades, Fare Tariffs, Timetables, 4 types of unique alerts, etc etc) that ExpertFlyer does, then we can talk about innovation. We've been doing that for the past 15 years.
On this occasion, as in the past, you have conveniently ignored my main point which is that Reward Flight Finder AND SeatSpy have had similar data problems with BA regarding award availability, but they have managed to fix them in a very short amount of time. ExpertFlyer have been having these problems for months and have NOT fixed them.
I am not comparing these two apps with EF, except in the area of BA award availability, one in which you are failing miserably.
Here are excerpts of EF's Email responses from May onwards, that’s six months ago!
May 30: the BA award search was broken for a week until last night as there was a problem with our vendor.
May 31: We will take the BA search offline until the vendor can fix the issue, thanks.
June 4: We are doing everything we can to have this resolved.
June 8: BA award searching has been restored, thank you for your patience.
(UNTRUE - from ExpertFlyer.com: An error has occurred while communicating with the airline reservation system. The support team has been notified of this problem. Thank you for your patience and understanding.)
July 10: (when there was extensive availability throughout July and Aug) ExpertFlyer.com: No availability can be found for the date and class(es) specified.
Nov 18: The issue is stemming from our data provider and we have no control over when it will be fixed. We know their team is working diligently to solve the problem. Thank you for your continued patience and we will let you know when the issue has been resolved.
Nov 24 (today): BA award inventory is temporarily unavailable due to an issue with our data provider. They are actively working to fix the issue. Thank you for your patience.
Last edited by TWA884; Nov 24, 2020 at 5:23 pm Reason: FT Rule 12.2: Getting personal
Nov 24, 2020, 11:41 pm
#2257
Left Expert Flyer 4/23
Join Date: Jan 2005
Posts: 2,741
Full Score, we answered your question truthfully, as you requested. While we are happy to engage with our customers here on FT, however that doesn't mean anyone can tell us how/when/if to answer any given question, that is our business decision. I understand all this is frustrating. Patience is a virtue and a hard learned lesson when dealing with airlines and airline data for 15+ years.
So to clear things up, first, regarding:
No, we didn't ignore your point, we answered it. You are assuming that those sites and EF work the same way (they don't) or show the same data (they don't) or use the same data sources (they don't), as such what breaks/fixed on one has no bearing on the other. Apples and oranges. I understand you may not know that as you aren't privy to the internal workings of the various websites, but then please don't argue with us when we explain it. If you're going to ask a question, please be willing to hear the answer.
Second, regarding:
You are making the assumption that there has been one issue that has been going on since May, and that is just not accurate. I went into the logs and the current problem with BA award inventory not being available at all started on October 13, and not before. The "BA award inventory is temporarily unavailable due to an issue with our data provider..." message was put up about a day later once we realized it was not going to be fixed overnight.
The error that happened between May 30th and June 8th was that specific city pairs weren't returning data that should have been, but it wasn't a blanket issue with the service. Again, separate from the issue that started October 13, regardless of what you may think. Further there are many other instances where we know that BA didn't correctly publish, or incorrectly published, their award data so that it didn't match airline websites. This happens more often then one would think, but makes sense when you realize it's all based on 50 yr old mainframe tech where the answer to a question changes depending on how and who is asking.
The "An error has occurred while communicating.." error, that may be returned for any search, is when there is some sort of code/server error or communications error or the system gets back a response that it can't parse or understand, and happens from time to time. GDS/airline API's aren't perfect, neither are web servers. It's not "Untrue", code doesn't lie to you.
You now have 2 choices:
- Wait until the problem is solved and then contact us for possible consideration based on the total time the issue was present (from Oct 13), optionally setting your account not to renew if it's due for renewal soon.
- Contact us now and ask for a pro-rated refund and end your subscription.
Either one we would be happy to do for you, but that's it. Please direct any further correspondence on the matter to us directly as we won't respond to it on this thread.
Regards,
EFV
So to clear things up, first, regarding:
you have conveniently ignored my main point which is that Reward Flight Finder AND SeatSpy have had similar data problems with BA regarding award availability, but they have managed to fix them in a very short amount of time
Second, regarding:
...you have known about the issue with BA for MONTHS...
The error that happened between May 30th and June 8th was that specific city pairs weren't returning data that should have been, but it wasn't a blanket issue with the service. Again, separate from the issue that started October 13, regardless of what you may think. Further there are many other instances where we know that BA didn't correctly publish, or incorrectly published, their award data so that it didn't match airline websites. This happens more often then one would think, but makes sense when you realize it's all based on 50 yr old mainframe tech where the answer to a question changes depending on how and who is asking.
The "An error has occurred while communicating.." error, that may be returned for any search, is when there is some sort of code/server error or communications error or the system gets back a response that it can't parse or understand, and happens from time to time. GDS/airline API's aren't perfect, neither are web servers. It's not "Untrue", code doesn't lie to you.
You now have 2 choices:
- Wait until the problem is solved and then contact us for possible consideration based on the total time the issue was present (from Oct 13), optionally setting your account not to renew if it's due for renewal soon.
- Contact us now and ask for a pro-rated refund and end your subscription.
Either one we would be happy to do for you, but that's it. Please direct any further correspondence on the matter to us directly as we won't respond to it on this thread.
Regards,
EFV
Last edited by ExpertFlyer Voice; Nov 25, 2020 at 12:50 am Reason: Additional sentence
Nov 25, 2020, 11:10 am
#2258
Left Expert Flyer 4/23
Join Date: Jan 2005
Posts: 2,741
FYI this has now been fixed by BA today and all POSs in the Flight Availability search are working again, thank you for your patience.
Nov 25, 2020, 12:27 pm
#2260
Left Expert Flyer 4/23
Join Date: Jan 2005
Posts: 2,741
Nov 25, 2020, 2:59 pm
#2261
Moderator: Travel Safety/Security, Travel Tools, California, Los Angeles; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: LAX
Programs: oneword Emerald
Posts: 20,631
Moderator's Note: Personal Exchanges
Folks,
The FlyerTalk Rules prohibit personal exchanges and publicly calling out other members for violating the rules.
FlyerTalk Rue 12.2:
FlyerTalk Rule 22:
In the past couple of days, I have had to edit or delete posts by several members who got personal with each other and/or accused other members of violating the FlyerTalk Rules.
If you believe that someone had violated the FlyerTalk rules do not respond by posting your concerns in this thread. Instead, report the violation to the moderator - by sending a Private Message or by clicking on the "Alert a Moderator to this Post" icon, which appears in the lower left hand corner of each post - and leave the issue for the moderator team to handle. We will take care of it at our earliest convenience.
The next member to get personal with another member in this thread will have their posting privileges suspended for a minimum of seven days.
Please consider this to be your one and only warning!
TWA884
Travel Tools moderator
The FlyerTalk Rules prohibit personal exchanges and publicly calling out other members for violating the rules.
FlyerTalk Rue 12.2:
Avoid Getting Personal
If you have a difference of opinion with another member, challenge the idea — NOT the person. Getting personal with another member is not allowed. Personal attacks, insults, baiting and flaming will not be tolerated.
FlyerTalk is a diverse, multi-cultural community. Expressions of prejudice or discrimination in any form are not permitted (such as those concerning race, nationality, religious belief, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, etc).
If another member gets personal with you, do not retaliate. Retaliation may well subject you to the same discipline. Instead, please use the 'Alert a moderator to this thread' button in the lower-left-hand-corner of each post, send a note explaining your concern to the moderator team, and leave it to them to handle. Please also see Rule 22 — When you believe someone has violated the rules.
If you have a difference of opinion with another member, challenge the idea — NOT the person. Getting personal with another member is not allowed. Personal attacks, insults, baiting and flaming will not be tolerated.
FlyerTalk is a diverse, multi-cultural community. Expressions of prejudice or discrimination in any form are not permitted (such as those concerning race, nationality, religious belief, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, etc).
If another member gets personal with you, do not retaliate. Retaliation may well subject you to the same discipline. Instead, please use the 'Alert a moderator to this thread' button in the lower-left-hand-corner of each post, send a note explaining your concern to the moderator team, and leave it to them to handle. Please also see Rule 22 — When you believe someone has violated the rules.
When You Believe Someone Has Violated The Rules
When you believe someone has violated the rules of FlyerTalk, DO NOT respond by posting in a thread. Instead, report the post to a Moderator, either by Private Message, or by sending a note by clicking on the "Alert a Moderator to this Post" icon, which appears in the lower-left-hand-corner of each post. Then, please leave the issue to the moderator team to handle — do not post your concern in the thread.
When you believe someone has violated the rules of FlyerTalk, DO NOT respond by posting in a thread. Instead, report the post to a Moderator, either by Private Message, or by sending a note by clicking on the "Alert a Moderator to this Post" icon, which appears in the lower-left-hand-corner of each post. Then, please leave the issue to the moderator team to handle — do not post your concern in the thread.
If you believe that someone had violated the FlyerTalk rules do not respond by posting your concerns in this thread. Instead, report the violation to the moderator - by sending a Private Message or by clicking on the "Alert a Moderator to this Post" icon, which appears in the lower left hand corner of each post - and leave the issue for the moderator team to handle. We will take care of it at our earliest convenience.
The next member to get personal with another member in this thread will have their posting privileges suspended for a minimum of seven days.
Please consider this to be your one and only warning!
TWA884
Travel Tools moderator
Dec 4, 2020, 1:43 pm
#2262
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Cayman, San Diego, London
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold, AA 4MM Lifetime Platinum, Hilton Diamond, IHG Diamond Amb, Bonvoy Lifetime Gold
Posts: 1,054
BA award inventory is temporarily unavailable due to an issue with our data provider. They are actively working to fix the issue. Thank you for your patience.
This gives a new meaning to "temporarily" and "actively" - this has been an ongoing problem for weeks.
Dec 5, 2020, 6:08 am
#2263
Join Date: Nov 2016
Location: CMH
Programs: BA Gold, AA Plat, NK $9 fare club
Posts: 666
I received an email that my ExpertFlyer account had lapsed due to nonpayment and found that I'd yet to update my payment information from an address change on that account.
Problem was solved within minutes with the online billing department / account information section.
Just a friendly reminder for everyone to check the billing information on your account when you're up for renewal. ExpertFlyer checks your account for an updated and correct address.
Problem was solved within minutes with the online billing department / account information section.
Just a friendly reminder for everyone to check the billing information on your account when you're up for renewal. ExpertFlyer checks your account for an updated and correct address.
Dec 10, 2020, 4:27 am
#2264
Join Date: Feb 2020
Location: BHD/DUB/PTY
Programs: BA Silver / EI Silver
Posts: 419
First time I see the following error on ExpertFlyer:
Searched on FlyerTalk but posts about that error message seem mixed and depending on the airline. I'm looking at AMS-PTY KL757 12/12/2020.
There was an error message from the airline when trying to retrieve this seat map: PRS NOT ALLOWED THIS CLASS OR ZONE
Dec 10, 2020, 1:51 pm
#2265
Left Expert Flyer 4/23
Join Date: Jan 2005
Posts: 2,741
It means that the airline isn't allowing seat assignments (either in general or by agents) for that cabin/flight and therefore won't return a seat map.