Booking Award Flights as Placeholders

[NoName]

Are you allowed to book award flights as placeholders (for want of a better word) until travel plans become more certain? I'm talking about the actual dates/class of travel rather than the actual travel itself.

For example, could you book an award for QF11 in F as well as QF17 in J on the same day to secure the seats until you decide which class you wanted to travel?

Or if there were two people travelling with 2 J awards available but only 1 F award available. Could you book both people in J as well as one in F in the hope of a 2nd F award being released? Obviously talking about partner awards on airlines who do sometimes release more awards closer to the date of departure. If this isn't possible on the same flight what if the the bookings were the same day but different flights?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Are you allowed to book award flights as placeholders (for want of a better word) until travel plans become more certain? I'm talking about the actual dates/class of travel rather than the actual travel itself.

For example, could you book an award for QF11 in F as well as QF17 in J on the same day to secure the seats until you decide which class you wanted to travel?

Or if there were two people travelling with 2 J awards available but only 1 F award available. Could you book both people in J as well as one in F in the hope of a 2nd F award being released? Obviously talking about partner awards on airlines who do sometimes release more awards closer to the date of departure. If this isn't possible on the same flight what if the the bookings were the same day but different flights?

The simple answer is 'no'. Airlines have systems in place, as well as terms and conditions which attempt to prevent the above scenarios.

The system limitation is that of duplicate bookings - passengers are not allowed to hold duplicate bookings (same flight) or seats which would be 'impossible' to fly (eg second or multiple flights on the same day which cannot possibly be taken - for example on flights leaving hours apart and you couldn't possibly be on both).

The system will flag the duplicate and one of the bookings will be cancelled at some stage either with, or without contacting you.

While I haven't checked the QF terms and conditions, American Airlines specifically prohibits any 'gaming' of the system in order to unfairly benefit the passenger at the expense of others. Holding multiple seats is such an example. (Another example is passengers booking First class seats which they cancel just before boarding in the hope that their status will get them a free upgrade to the now empty first class seat.)

If nothing there is no specific equivalent on QF, you would potentially be caught under provisions of 'abuse' of the system.