PP Pricing AKL-SFO-LHR more than Polaris. - why?
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2011
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PP Pricing AKL-SFO-LHR more than Polaris. - why?
I want to fly AKL-SFO-LHR return in late March. I want to book PP to be sure of a good seat in case my upgrade to Polaris fails. The price for PP exceeds that of Polaris!
Any thoughts?
Any thoughts?
#2
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That can happen in airline pricing.
Domestic unrestricted Y (and even as low as M fares) is often more than Domestic discountF
Availability of PP in O fare with Polaris in P fare can make this happen.
Note the "cheaper" fare is likely to have more restrictions on change / refundability
Domestic unrestricted Y (and even as low as M fares) is often more than Domestic discountF
Availability of PP in O fare with Polaris in P fare can make this happen.
Note the "cheaper" fare is likely to have more restrictions on change / refundability
#4
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@findark is right. Or, a misfiled fare that you should jump on quickly.
But in all likelihood it's because only "O" is available for PP and "P" is open for Polaris where P can be cheaper than O. Of course, "O" is usually fully flexible while "P" is usually very restricted.
-RM
But in all likelihood it's because only "O" is available for PP and "P" is open for Polaris where P can be cheaper than O. Of course, "O" is usually fully flexible while "P" is usually very restricted.
-RM
#6
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Location: NZ
Programs: UA1k 2.5mm NZ Elite IHG
Posts: 12
That can happen in airline pricing.
Domestic unrestricted Y (and even as low as M fares) is often more than Domestic discountF
Availability of PP in O fare with Polaris in P fare can make this happen.
Note the "cheaper" fare is likely to have more restrictions on change / refundability
Domestic unrestricted Y (and even as low as M fares) is often more than Domestic discountF
Availability of PP in O fare with Polaris in P fare can make this happen.
Note the "cheaper" fare is likely to have more restrictions on change / refundability
So if I marry the 2 airfares I get NZ$6039 vs NZ$15847. Outrageous.
#7
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Are all these flights UA operated (not UA flight numbers but actually UA operated)
What are the fare classes in each case?
#8
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Oh, I see the issue. United does not publish a Premium Economy fare between AKL and LHR. Furthermore, I cannot plate AKL-SFO-LHR on a single ticket with UA PE fares, as there is no combinable unrestricted fare on the AKL-SFO sector.
Fares between two remote non-US points unfortunately receive little attention from US carriers. You're probably going to have to pick a different option (both Economy and Business fares are filed for AKL-LHR).
Actually, SFO-LHR has no end-on-end legal PE fares either. Part of this is also a botched rollout of full fare PE, presumably because they don't really expect people to buy it.
Further eta. I can ticket on LH stock onto the UA flights using the LH codeshares. LH has PE fares. Technically the LH fares can be plated on UA so... I get NZD 5,470 as all the cheaper LH fares require routing the other way.
Fares between two remote non-US points unfortunately receive little attention from US carriers. You're probably going to have to pick a different option (both Economy and Business fares are filed for AKL-LHR).
Actually, SFO-LHR has no end-on-end legal PE fares either. Part of this is also a botched rollout of full fare PE, presumably because they don't really expect people to buy it.
Further eta. I can ticket on LH stock onto the UA flights using the LH codeshares. LH has PE fares. Technically the LH fares can be plated on UA so... I get NZD 5,470 as all the cheaper LH fares require routing the other way.
Last edited by findark; Dec 4, 2019 at 3:29 pm
#9
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2011
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Oh, I see the issue. United does not publish a Premium Economy fare between AKL and LHR. Furthermore, I cannot plate AKL-SFO-LHR on a single ticket with UA PE fares, as there is no combinable unrestricted fare on the AKL-SFO sector.
Fares between two remote non-US points unfortunately receive little attention from US carriers. You're probably going to have to pick a different option (both Economy and Business fares are filed for AKL-LHR).
Actually, SFO-LHR has no end-on-end legal PE fares either. Part of this is also a botched rollout of full fare PE, presumably because they don't really expect people to buy it.
Further eta. I can ticket on LH stock onto the UA flights using the LH codeshares. LH has PE fares. Technically the LH fares can be plated on UA so... I get NZD 5,470 as all the cheaper LH fares require routing the other way.
Fares between two remote non-US points unfortunately receive little attention from US carriers. You're probably going to have to pick a different option (both Economy and Business fares are filed for AKL-LHR).
Actually, SFO-LHR has no end-on-end legal PE fares either. Part of this is also a botched rollout of full fare PE, presumably because they don't really expect people to buy it.
Further eta. I can ticket on LH stock onto the UA flights using the LH codeshares. LH has PE fares. Technically the LH fares can be plated on UA so... I get NZD 5,470 as all the cheaper LH fares require routing the other way.
#10
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Thanks Findark for seeing the issue and suggesting a possible solution.. Actually the route is very popular and its volume is growing as NZ's roots are England. Its a wonder that UA's marketing Dept does not not try and build market share as both legs of the journey are so long that PP would have great appeal.Perceptive reply I am going to try playing with.
#11
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Agreed -- and, while I agree that NZ-UK is a viable market, I'm not sure why you'd connect through the US to fly it, considering that AKL-SIN-LHR is only 30 miles further than AKL-LAX-LHR, and AKL-TYO-LHR is actually 400 miles shorter than AKL-LAX-LHR. Making a wholly unnecessary trip through customs and US immigration seems like a pain best avoided if possible.
#12
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Agreed -- and, while I agree that NZ-UK is a viable market, I'm not sure why you'd connect through the US to fly it, considering that AKL-SIN-LHR is only 30 miles further than AKL-LAX-LHR, and AKL-TYO-LHR is actually 400 miles shorter than AKL-LAX-LHR. Making a wholly unnecessary trip through customs and US immigration seems like a pain best avoided if possible.
The end of the LAX - LHR route
#13
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Thanks Findark for seeing the issue and suggesting a possible solution.. Actually the route is very popular and its volume is growing as NZ's roots are England. Its a wonder that UA's marketing Dept does not not try and build market share as both legs of the journey are so long that PP would have great appeal.Perceptive reply I am going to try playing with.
#14
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They publish Economy and Business fares though. It's very clearly an oversight - when they rolled out PE a human had to add the PE fares to every city pair. Clearly those humans forgot that UA sells fares between AKL and LHR. The same is also true for SYD-LHR.
#15
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Why fly United ? BIS and upgrades [Plus Points}.If you cannot get a thru fare it makes it very difficult to upgrade.