Feb 10, 2024, 10:52 pm
Last edit by: WineCountryUA
This is an archive thread, the active thread is Fare Class has Inventory - Not Able to Book into?
Common issue
Expert Mode shows ..... T9, L9, K9, G9, N9 but you not able to get united.com or other sites to provide a fare for N or G or .... WHY?
There are three requirements to be able to book a fare class
1) there needs to be a fare rule for that fare class for your O/D.
2) you need to meet all the requirements for the fare rule -- advance purchase, days of the week, min stay, qualified flight numbers, qualified routing (including a possible RT requirement), .....
3) there needs to be inventory in the fare class
So if the cheapest fare rule filed is K, you will not be able to book N or G
Even if a fare rule is filed and there is inventory then you still need to meet the fare rule requirements.
As for searching, if multiple fares qualify, the cheapest will be displayed unless you specifically force a fare class. While the fare hierarchy will generally match the cost, occasionally a high fare class will be cheaper than a lower fare class due to differences in fare flexibility such as refundable, changeability, ....
So there are multiple reasons for why a specific fare class is and not is offered. Confusion on this is one reason UA has been reluctant to make fare class inventory easily available and the reason UA requires one to accept the following terms before providing access to Expert Mode:
How can you see the fare rules?
While booking (on the first "Review trip itin" page) and after booking (on the online view of the reservation) , UA will makes them available -- but this is only if UA will display that particular fare.
Before booking or if unable to get access on UA, there are paid services -- KVS, Expert Flyer. ... can provide access to all published fare rules.
Related threads
Decoding the alphabet soup - New fare buckets for UA
How to get a P class fare to Europe?
Understanding Airline Inventory (non FT blog posting)
Desired Fare Class is available but has insufficient space, what can be done?
Common issue
Expert Mode shows ..... T9, L9, K9, G9, N9 but you not able to get united.com or other sites to provide a fare for N or G or .... WHY?
There are three requirements to be able to book a fare class
1) there needs to be a fare rule for that fare class for your O/D.
2) you need to meet all the requirements for the fare rule -- advance purchase, days of the week, min stay, qualified flight numbers, qualified routing (including a possible RT requirement), .....
3) there needs to be inventory in the fare class
So if the cheapest fare rule filed is K, you will not be able to book N or G
Even if a fare rule is filed and there is inventory then you still need to meet the fare rule requirements.
As for searching, if multiple fares qualify, the cheapest will be displayed unless you specifically force a fare class. While the fare hierarchy will generally match the cost, occasionally a high fare class will be cheaper than a lower fare class due to differences in fare flexibility such as refundable, changeability, ....
So there are multiple reasons for why a specific fare class is and not is offered. Confusion on this is one reason UA has been reluctant to make fare class inventory easily available and the reason UA requires one to accept the following terms before providing access to Expert Mode:
This is not a forecasting tool. Availability levels in certain fare classes should not be interpreted as indicating that we will make other fare classes available.
The presence of a particular fare class does not mean that there is a fare associated with it. For example, we may offer availability in a discounted fare class, but that does not necessarily mean we have published a fare that corresponds to it.
The presence of a particular fare class does not mean that there is a fare associated with it. For example, we may offer availability in a discounted fare class, but that does not necessarily mean we have published a fare that corresponds to it.
While booking (on the first "Review trip itin" page) and after booking (on the online view of the reservation) , UA will makes them available -- but this is only if UA will display that particular fare.
Before booking or if unable to get access on UA, there are paid services -- KVS, Expert Flyer. ... can provide access to all published fare rules.
Related threads
Decoding the alphabet soup - New fare buckets for UA
How to get a P class fare to Europe?
Understanding Airline Inventory (non FT blog posting)
Desired Fare Class is available but has insufficient space, what can be done?
Fare Class has Inventory - Not Able to Book into? {Archive]
Mar 30, 2020, 3:56 pm
#346
Join Date: Jun 2018
Posts: 489
General question on limitations of Fare Class buckets. I am trying to book RT Business/First between IAD - SJD for December travel for party of 2. Apparently there is one fare in C class and the rest are J. So in this instance when booking for a party of 2 on same itinerary 1 will price in C and the other in J at a 150% of the C fare. Currently the entirety of Business/First is empty. I called the 1K desk to see if both could be priced in the C bucket given same itinerary/same confirmation #. They told me to pound sand after talking to "fare desk". Any suggestions of possible remedy? Alternate route to bring to better resolution (from my point of view clearly). I have not experienced this situation in last 15 years of flying almost exclusively on UA.
I do appreciate any insight fellow FTers can offer.
Kind regards and stay healthy!
I do appreciate any insight fellow FTers can offer.
Kind regards and stay healthy!
If it doesn't you can always cancel.
Mar 30, 2020, 3:58 pm
#347
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: BOS/EAP
Programs: UA 1K, MR LTT, HH Dia, Amex Plat
Posts: 32,092
If there is C1 then there is C1 and no way to book 2 pax under a C fare. For December I would argue to wait or as it has been suggested, buy 1 and wait 23 hours to see if C1 comes back.
Mar 30, 2020, 4:14 pm
#348
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,421
That's not correct. If you book a party of two on the same itinerary, both will price into J. It is not possible to have a single PNR with passengers in different fare buckets.
Mar 30, 2020, 5:40 pm
#349
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.997MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,861
General question on limitations of Fare Class buckets. I am trying to book RT Business/First between IAD - SJD for December travel for party of 2. Apparently there is one fare in C class and the rest are J. So in this instance when booking for a party of 2 on same itinerary 1 will price in C and the other in J at a 150% of the C fare. ....
Short of the fare desk opening more inventory on request (very rare occurrence except for when UA has created a problem to an existing ticket), some other approach will be needed.
Jun 12, 2020, 3:28 pm
#350
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: FLG
Programs: AA ExP, UA Platinum, Marriott Platinum, IHG PlatInum
Posts: 88
Inventory showing in P but booking engine insists on Z
I'm trying to book a ticket PHX-EDI in biz class for a trip in October. Most results come back as booking in Z class (some higher), but all the flights I select show inventory in P class (all the United flights show P9 and the 2 codeshare flights show P6 and P4 respectively). If all flights show space in P class, why won't it bring back a P booking option? I called United premier desk and the agent I talked to put me on hold to have the ticketing department reprice the flights. She came back saying they couldn't book it in P, saying it wasn't available, though she couldn't exactly explain why that was the case (other than the canned "inventory changes quickly" response). I can accept that if something showed as P1 or P2 even, but given the current market conditions, I really don't see inventory changing that quickly. I've been looking at the same flights for a few days and there's been zero change in inventory.
I'm guessing there's a better explanation, and I'm hopeful one of our resident United gurus has it. Can someone educate me as to how that could happen? TIA
I'm guessing there's a better explanation, and I'm hopeful one of our resident United gurus has it. Can someone educate me as to how that could happen? TIA
Jun 12, 2020, 3:33 pm
#351
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: SF Bay Area
Programs: UA 1K, Hyatt Globalist, Virtuoso Travel Agent, Commercial Pilot
Posts: 2,117
To book into a booking class, you need both the inventory in that booking class (which you see) and a fare available in that booking class that meets the requirements for the requested trip. United doesn't have any P fares published for PHX-EDI in October (that I can see at first glance), so you only had one half of the equation.
Jun 12, 2020, 3:35 pm
#352
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: FLG
Programs: AA ExP, UA Platinum, Marriott Platinum, IHG PlatInum
Posts: 88
To book into a booking class, you need both the inventory in that booking class (which you see) and a fare available in that booking class that meets the requirements for the requested trip. United doesn't have any P fares published for PHX-EDI in October (that I can see at first glance), so you only had one half of the equation.
Jun 12, 2020, 3:40 pm
#353
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: SF Bay Area
Programs: UA 1K, Hyatt Globalist, Virtuoso Travel Agent, Commercial Pilot
Posts: 2,117
Even if you had access to all the fares that are published, interpreting the fare rules to find one that is applicable to a trip is an incredibly involved process. For example, there may be a Z fare published for your route, but it's only applicable for travel on Tuesdays and you must stay at least 10 days at the destination, so the cheapest fare that is actually applicable to your trip is a D fare. You can use a better fare search engine like ITA Matrix or Google Flights to get a better sense of what is actually available when united.com is acting up though.
Jun 12, 2020, 3:44 pm
#354
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: FLG
Programs: AA ExP, UA Platinum, Marriott Platinum, IHG PlatInum
Posts: 88
You'd need to subscribe to a tool like ExpertFlyer. As far as I know, there is no free source for all of that information.
Even if you had access to all the fares that are published, interpreting the fare rules to find one that is applicable to a trip is an incredibly involved process. For example, there may be a Z fare published for your route, but it's only applicable for travel on Tuesdays and you must stay at least 10 days at the destination, so the cheapest fare that is actually applicable to your trip is a D fare. You can use a better fare search engine like ITA Matrix or Google Flights to get a better sense of what is actually available when united.com is acting up though.
Even if you had access to all the fares that are published, interpreting the fare rules to find one that is applicable to a trip is an incredibly involved process. For example, there may be a Z fare published for your route, but it's only applicable for travel on Tuesdays and you must stay at least 10 days at the destination, so the cheapest fare that is actually applicable to your trip is a D fare. You can use a better fare search engine like ITA Matrix or Google Flights to get a better sense of what is actually available when united.com is acting up though.
Dec 1, 2023, 11:09 pm
#355
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.997MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,861
This is an archive thread, the active thread is Fare Class has Inventory - Not Able to Book into?
WineCountryUA
UA coModerator
WineCountryUA
UA coModerator
Last edited by WineCountryUA; Feb 10, 2024 at 10:50 pm