Suffering through LH codeshare flights
 

Just wondering if LH gives all UA codeshare pax the worst seats on the plane?

I just suffered through my eight LH intraEurope commuter flight (booked through UA) and I'm 6 for 8 in the very last row and 2 for 8 in full rows when there was plenty of room to spread the pax out.

Latest example was this week FLR-FRA on a CityLine Avro that's 6 across in seats that cannot be more than 15" wide. Even though the plane was not half full Mrs GRE and I were seated in one of the 2 or 3 packed rows. While we were six across the entire row in front of us was empty (of course we moved as soon as the cabin door shut).

My question is, does LH intentionally try to screw UA-booked pax? Alternatively, does UA go out of their way to screw LH-booked pax?

I insist UA book me on the LH flight number, always.

A few years back, I was flying LH from Germany to the US, and towards the end of the boarding process, a pax asked anyone flying on a UA ticket tor raise their hands. Hands came up - from the middle seats and the non-reclining rows.

That said, my seating has gotten much better on code-shares than even a year ago.

I seem to always end up in the very back of the plane on my little puddle jumper flights connecting from/to UA FRA flights.

Since I usually don't (can't) get the LH boarding pass and seat assignment until I arrive in FRA, I have come to the conclusion that it's probably not UA that's giving me the seat.

For me it's never been a big deal as it's a 20-30 min flight, with plenty of open seats, and the aircrafts often board from the back.

A similar thing happens with US on UA codeshares and also on BD when booked via the UA web site.

Does that make a difference? My LH connections are always LH flight numbers (don't even know if UA code-shares), but I still end up in the back of the RJ.

The computer will by default put you in a crap seat but you can ask for it to be changed and have access to the same seats as LH own elites, which is more than UA offers LH (and other *A) elites: an LH HON on an international F ticket will be stuck in the e- section of a connecting TED flight.

This is the biggest shortcoming of *A compared to other global alliances, imo: preferred/elite seating is not part of *A elite privileges.

In the latest instance my flight was listed by LH flight number. But when the TA at FLR brought up the e-ticket and saw that we were connecting to UA 933 at FRA I'm assuming that she intentionally packed us in unnecessarily. She asked if we wanted a window or an aisle and I said "both if the flight is not too full". She said no can do when clearly there was plenty of space on the plane.

More often than not, I get a seat in the second row behind the curtain with the middle (and sometimes the window) blocked. I have been on several short-haul LH flights were the flight is rather full, but there are still two empty seats next to me.

On intra-Europe flights in Y I end up in the last 3-4 rows about 99% of the time! Again last week on FDH-FRA. I don't know why that is. It happens even if I am one of the first to checkin, and regardless of whether the flight is booked as a UA or LH flight number.

I've never flown anything longer than LHR-FRA on LH shorthaul planes, so it hasn't bothered me too much. But I am curious why this is happening.

AFAIK, LH computers start filling the flights from the back, so if you check-in early and do not ask for something further up front, the odds are that you will be at the back.

But as mentioned earlier, flights often board from the back, so as long as you're not in the very last row, it doesn't really make a difference. Having said that, I've never been in Y on LH. Is it nice back there? :cool:

Where is your US gateway? I always get my LH boarding passes from UA agents in SFO, although about half the time you have to specifically ask them.

Personally, I'm almost always in either the very first row or the very last row, and always have an empty seat next to me unless the flight is completely full.

SFO. I used to be able to get the LH BP from OLCI, but the last few times it just printed an error page for that segment and told me to check in at the airport. The agents at the UA gate were then also unable to get me the BP. I did not try the LH counter at SFO.

During check in from state side, I usually get assigned to one of the last rows for the LH intra-Europe flights, even when I fly LH operated flight on LH stock. I usually have no problem getting a seat change closer to the front when I arrive to FRA.