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Pay for a seat assignment in business class??

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My step-mother recently bought a business class flight (with $$) and her return flight is from LHR to SFO on British Airways. They actually want her to pay $125 in order to select her seat in advance. I've heard of no-frills carriers charging for a seat assignment in Economy, but that's the first time I've heard of a business class customer having to pay for a seat assignment. Are any other airlines doing this?

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LADoug1 Mentor

LADoug1

Posted
Posted

I used miles for a free business class ticket on BA to fly roundtrip from L.A. to Rome. They charged me a ridiculous fee (over $1,000) because I was traveling over water (ocean). I called them and asked their reasoning/rules and their reply was vague and I didn't really understand it. By the time all fees and taxes were totaled the "free ticket" cost about the same as a coach ticket. Also, if I had used miles for a coach ticket there would also have been the "over water" fee although it was less ($400). I think I got ripped off. :eek::(:mad:

AdamSmith Grand Master

AdamSmith

Posted
Posted
Also - why is this post in The Gallery? Shouldn't it be in The Lounge?

Possibly Unicorn's stepmother is a fox? :cool:

 

No firsthand experience with British Airways in many years but by all accounts they seem to have gone far downhill.

UKtop Rookie

UKtop

Posted
Posted

UNICORN - I seem to recall that Lufthansa were thinking about starting the same system, although I don't fly them so cannot be sure.

 

LADoug1 - the difference between charges Business v Economy is because of the different tax rates on the two classes

jawjateck Veteran

jawjateck

Posted
Posted

Airlines.....<sigh>......everything about it is dreadful now. Although since TR brought him up, pulling Keith off-duty for a romp in the lavatory would make me like flying again. ;)

geminibear Experienced

geminibear

Posted
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Possibly Unicorn's stepmother is a fox? :cool:

 

No firsthand experience with British Airways in many years but by all accounts they seem to have gone far downhill.

I just spit my coffee out laughing so hard. :)

 

Not that your stepmother couldn't be a fox unicorn. ;)

actor61 Community Regular

actor61

Posted
Posted
My step-mother recently bought a business class flight (with $$) and her return flight is from LHR to SFO on British Airways. They actually want her to pay $125 in order to select her seat in advance. I've heard of no-frills carriers charging for a seat assignment in Economy, but that's the first time I've heard of a business class customer having to pay for a seat assignment. Are any other airlines doing this?

When I lived in Los Angeles, I often flew British Business Class to Europe to visit family and there was always a charge of between $90 and $125 to reserve a seat. This, after paying thousands of dollars for a ticket in what they call Club Class. If you wait until 24 hours before your flight, seat selection is free but if the flight is heavily booked, you end up in a middle seat, and yes there are middle seats in BA's Club Class. It's outrageous and one of the reasons I stopped flying with them. The one and only time I paid $90 to select a seat was when I flew in the A380 for the first time from London to L.A. and wanted to be sure I was on the upper deck by a window. One year, I connected to Switzerland on BA through London but Club was full, so they put me in Economy and then tried to charge me for my luggage between London and Zurich. I stayed very calm and very polite and pointed out that the only reason I was in Economy on the short haul flight was because they had overbooked Club and there was no way I would give them 25 pounds for my suitcase. I'm happy to say I won the battle.

 

I have also flown American and United Business Class between L.A. and London and there was no charge for reserving a seat. This year, I'm flying Aer Lingus's Business Class from Chicago to Dublin and got exactly the seat I wanted (window) for free. BA stinks and should be avoided if possible. American's Business Class is far more luxurious and worth the money than BA's, and United runs a close second. Even their food is better.

 

I'm interested to see how Aer Lingus is. They came highly recommended by friends who use them often. Anybody have any information about their transatlantic Business Class service?

ncc1701d Mentor

ncc1701d

Posted
Posted
I used miles for a free business class ticket on BA to fly roundtrip from L.A. to Rome. They charged me a ridiculous fee (over $1,000) because I was traveling over water (ocean). I called them and asked their reasoning/rules and their reply was vague and I didn't really understand it. By the time all fees and taxes were totaled the "free ticket" cost about the same as a coach ticket. Also, if I had used miles for a coach ticket there would also have been the "over water" fee although it was less ($400). I think I got ripped off. :eek::(:mad:

 

NO I think that's pretty standard for most carrier...essentially you are using points to upgrade from coach to business.

Guest

Guest

Posted
Posted
Also - why is this post in The Gallery? Shouldn't it be in The Lounge?

 

Oops! Yes, I intended to post this in the lounge. I forgot that I was in the gallery when I posted it (in fact, I was looking in the lounge, wondering why my post was removed). Hopefully someone can move it. It sounds as if British Airways may, indeed, be the only airline which charges its business class passengers for a seat assignment, since so far I haven't heard of anyone getting so charged when flying other airlines. Very chintzy.

mike carey Grand Master

mike carey

Posted
Posted

I don't know if they charge for seat allocation, although I doubt it, but I would recommend checking Air NZ from LAX to LHR (B777). I did a random check on Wotif and they came in as one of the lower business class fares (on that day at least). Air Canada would be good too, although that would involve a stop in YVR (B767 + B777) or YYZ (B767 + B777 or A321 + B787/B767). Both are in Star Alliance so you'd get your United miles.

sincitymix Mentor

sincitymix

Posted
Posted

;)

The extra fees y'all see on BA are the dreaded LHR taxes, fuel surcharges, fees, etc that are mandated. When I was booking my Europe trip trying to utilize miles, those taxes came out to about $700 or so per person. BA is increasingly going in the direction of LCCs and doing the fee for everything model, so you'll be seeing more and more of those types of fees.

 

In regards to the taxes, I went ahead and logged onto American and planned out just a one-way trip from AUS to LHR ( using miles ). This is the cost breakdown for a BA flight:

 

Base fare

$0.00 USD

 

CARRIER-IMPOSED FEES

$452.00 USD

 

TRANSPORTATION TAX (UNITED STATES)

$17.70 USD

 

PASSENGER FACILITY CHARGE (UNITED STATES)

$4.50 USD

 

US SECURITY FEE (UNITED STATES)

$5.60 USD

 

Total Adult taxes and carrier-imposed fees

$479.80 USD

Now if we just book an itinerary using AA metal only we get the following:

 

Base fare

$0.00 USD

 

US SECURITY FEE (UNITED STATES)

$5.60 USD

 

Total Adult taxes and carrier-imposed fees

$5.60 USD

Now if we do the reverse and book something from LHR to AUS ( using miles ), we get the following on BA:

Base fare

$0.00 USD

 

CARRIER-IMPOSED FEES

$234.40 USD

 

PASSENGER SERVICE CHARGE (UNITED KINGDOM)

$63.20 USD

 

Air Passenger Duty (APD) (UNITED KINGDOM)

$215.50 USD

 

TRANSPORTATION TAX (UNITED STATES)

$17.70 USD

 

US APHIS USER FEE (UNITED STATES)

$5.00 USD

 

US FEDERAL INSPECTION FEE (UNITED STATES)

$7.00 USD

 

US CUSTOMS USER FEE (UNITED STATES)

$5.50 USD

 

Total Adult taxes and carrier-imposed fees

$548.30 USD

 

On American metal we get:

 

Base fare

$0.00 USD

 

PASSENGER SERVICE CHARGE (UNITED KINGDOM)

$63.20 USD

 

Air Passenger Duty (APD) (UNITED KINGDOM)

$215.50 USD

 

US APHIS USER FEE (UNITED STATES)

$5.00 USD

 

US FEDERAL INSPECTION FEE (UNITED STATES)

$7.00 USD

 

US SECURITY FEE (UNITED STATES)

$5.60 USD

 

US CUSTOMS USER FEE (UNITED STATES)

$5.50 USD

 

Total Adult taxes and carrier-imposed fees

$301.80 USD

 

You will also earn less AA miles if traveling on BA metal come Feb 1 as most economy tickets will only earn 50% EQMs & RDMs or even worse 50% EQMs and 25% RDMs.

 

Can you record yourself saying this, and add in some extra long words? :p ;);):p

sincitymix Mentor

sincitymix

Posted
Posted
What goes the fox say ?

 

Dog goes "woof"

Cat goes "meow"

Bird goes "tweet"

And mouse goes "squeek"

Cow goes "moo"

Frog goes "croak"

And the elephant goes "toot"

Ducks say "quack"

And fish go "blub"

And the seal goes "ow ow ow"

 

But there's one sound

That no one knows

What does the fox say?

 

"Ring-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding!

Gering-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding!

Gering-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding!"

What the fox say?

 

"Wa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pow!

Wa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pow!

Wa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pow!"

What the fox say?

 

"Hatee-hatee-hatee-ho!

Hatee-hatee-hatee-ho!

Hatee-hatee-hatee-ho!"

What the fox say?

 

"Joff-tchoff-tchoffo-tchoffo-tchoff!

Tchoff-tchoff-tchoffo-tchoffo-tchoff!

Joff-tchoff-tchoffo-tchoffo-tchoff!"

What the fox say?

 

Big blue eyes

Pointy nose

Chasing mice

And digging holes

Tiny paws

Up the hill

Suddenly you're standing still

 

Your fur is red

So beautiful

Like an angel in disguise

But if you meet

A friendly horse

Will you communicate by

Mo-o-o-o-orse?

Mo-o-o-o-orse?

Mo-o-o-o-orse?

How will you speak to that

Ho-o-o-o-orse?

Ho-o-o-o-orse?

Ho-o-o-o-orse?

 

What does the fox say?

 

"Jacha-chacha-chacha-chow!

Chacha-chacha-chacha-chow!

Chacha-chacha-chacha-chow!"

What the fox say?

 

"Fraka-kaka-kaka-kaka-kow!

Fraka-kaka-kaka-kaka-kow!

Fraka-kaka-kaka-kaka-kow!"

What the fox say?

 

"A-hee-ahee ha-hee!

A-hee-ahee ha-hee!

A-hee-ahee ha-hee!"

What the fox say?

 

"A-oo-oo-oo-ooo!

Woo-oo-oo-ooo!"

What does the fox say?

 

The secret of the fox

Ancient mystery

Somewhere deep in the woods

I know you're hiding

What is your sound?

Will we ever know?

Will always be a mystery

What do you say?

 

You're my guardian angel

Hiding in the woods

What is your sound?

(Wa-wa-way-do, wub-wid-bid-dum-way-do, wa-wa-way-do)

Will we ever know? (Bay-budabud-dum-bam)

I want to (Mama-dum-day-do) I want to, I want to know!

(Abay-ba-da bum-bum bay-do)

Mikegaite Collaborator

Mikegaite

Posted
Posted

You might be able to get around the seat surcharge if you find someone who's willing to give you a BA SWU. Long shot, but you have a revenue ticket and first often goes emptyish. I'll have a few come the end of the month, and someone as beautiful as I will only be flying F so I will never get to use them.

 

I'm pretty sure that if an Emerald or even specifically a BA gold who has the seat selection fee waived buys a ticket for someone without elite status, the seat selection benefit does not carry over from the purchaser to the passenger.

 

If flying after 2-1, accrue your BA flights to BA, get enough tier points for gold, and get admirals club access.

Guest

Guest

Posted
Posted
The extra fees y'all see on BA are the dreaded LHR taxes, fuel surcharges, fees, etc that are mandated.

 

 

No, the fee to reserve a seat was separate from all of those fees. She basically purchased the tickets (all of the fees came to some $1000 as I recall for the R/T tickets), but it wouldn't give her a seat assignment for LHR to SFO. When she goes in to the reservation and gets to the point of seat selection, the box says "Reserve seats now from $121.00 each." I couldn't believe it. From what I'm hearing, this may be the only airline which treats its business class passengers this way.

sincitymix Mentor

sincitymix

Posted
Posted
No, the fee to reserve a seat was separate from all of those fees. She basically purchased the tickets (all of the fees came to some $1000 as I recall for the R/T tickets), but it wouldn't give her a seat assignment for LHR to SFO. When she goes in to the reservation and gets to the point of seat selection, the box says "Reserve seats now from $121.00 each." I couldn't believe it. From what I'm hearing, this may be the only airline which treats its business class passengers this way.

 

Well. At least be lucky some airlines still have business class. Most are transitioning to First class/ Economy only.

or was it phasing out first class to make it Business/Economyo_O

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