tcook052

http://globalnews.ca/news/2238972/ho...a-lot-cheaper/

Getting to London won’t just be cheaper for Canadian travellers when WestJet begins service to Gatwick Airport next spring – travel throughout Europe will become accessible for less than it currently costs, experts say.

AA_EXP09

It entirely depends on the fare rules, whether the airlines' fare rules allow end on end (for different fare components)/allow interline (on one fare component).
I imagine that WS will want to keep as many options open as possible (i.e. they could permit end on end but not file fares beyond LGW themselves), or they could do some kind of partnership with BA.
(at the same time, I do wonder how cooperative BA will be as WS will be a direct competitor for TATL business, especially the higher yielding LON pax.)

respectable_man

Is there much to loose by cooperating ex-LGW?

Fiordland

Given BA and WS already interline it is a positive move. They already are co-operating. The strategy for BA is to keep the major destinations at Heathrow and the tourist destinations at LGW.

A good example is Faro. Lots of flights in and out of Faro but most are discount airlines or to airports like LGW that have limited international connections. A host of destinations with a similar problem where a LGW connection is actually a better option.

If BA and WS were to go beyond interline and codeshare on the LGW service that would good.

Queen B

I looked for fun for next spring and it's almost impossible to get a seat in the PLUS category.

chx1975

Does anyone know when this ends? I am looking at LGW-YVR for Oct 3 and Air Transat already sells them but the last you can book on Westjet is on Aug 31. Does the service end or simply it's too far out?

aerobod

Flights are only loaded until 31 Aug system wide at the moment, we sometimes don't load the full 330 days (which would give flights until 12 Sept 2016 if the full 330 days where there), depending on pricing and availability strategy in the Revenue Management team. I would keep an eye on the flight availability into Sept 2016, it shouldn't be too long until they are posted.

chx1975

I will be very much on it, those Plus tickets go fast and I want one

chx1975

One more question, do you have a feeder agreement with any airlines in Europe? If so, how is that bookable? For example, if I want a British Airlines ticket to London and then Westjet onwards, can that be made on a ticket and if yes, by whom ? The website certainly doesn't find anything like DUB-LHR,LGW-YVR instead it offers... interesting... options. DUB-YYT-(change planes)-YHZ-YYZ-(change planes)-YWG-YYC-YVR. My poor ears

WestJet

All WestJet flights can be included in itineraries built by our interline partners or third-party booking agencies, on another airline's ticket stock.

For the sample itinerary you've provided, your best bet would be to speak with British Airways or your travel agent and have them get you fixed up.

Cheers,
Darren

chx1975

Note that the advertised GBP 543 for Plus does not exist and it's GBP 616 when you book. Still a good price but even after I talked to the airline I still think this is illegal advertising and will file a complaint with the Competition Bureau. I have screenshots going back weeks showing this GBP 543 price which I believe counts as an advertisment and WestJet is selling above the advertised price which is listed under the "don't" http://www.competitionbureau.gc.ca/e...eng/03133.html in here.

rehoult

Sounds like they may have finally clued in that they needed to charge the higher UK APD on the plus tickets, which at 71 GBP is pretty much exactly the difference.

If that's the case, you'll have no chance on a Competition complaint. An advertisement run in good-faith prior to the company realizing they were calculating the taxes wrong is not going to be enforced by the bureau. Especially as the ad likely notes that taxes are subject to change.

chx1975

Erm, the wrong price displays one screen before they show the actual price. I mean it's not like the price just went up: the same wrong price is still shown on many dates and it's available exactly nowhere. As far as I am concerned, this is the same as grabbing something off the shelf in Safeway just to have a higher price scanned. Even if the cashier warns you.

rehoult

Yeah, and it's a tax issue that is happening regardless of Plus fare selected.

For example:
On the flight selection page: 1,570 + 15 + 230.26 = 1,815.26 CAD
On the purchase summary: 1,570 + 15 + 377.56 = 1,962.56 CAD

The difference is the additional 71 GBP ADP that is due on Plus fares.

The WS fare selection grid system isn't setup properly to adjust the tax rates on the fly, so it's doing it after flight selection. Same reason they are making you call in for passengers aged 12-15 to LGW, because their system can't yet remove the APD based on birth date.

I've got very little good to say about WS, and agree that the above is ridiculous, especially considering they are using Sabre which can easily handle it. But having said that, as much as you'd like to believe otherwise, it's not false advertising and it's not actionable with the competition bureau, because the final price is clearly displayed as part of the check-out process as is legally required. I wouldn't bet $0.01 paying $1000 that you'd win a complaint based on the above.

WestJet

Thanks for alerting us to this issue. It's actually the first our web team has heard of this problem. They're looking into it right away.

Thanks,
Darren