Fly Ahead - love it

[samas]

All very interesting.... Has anyone ever tried to use this to maybe go via places to get SC up? So request to go via a couple of other destinations to get to end spot faster or something?

Yep, Instead of doing PER-ADL direct I'm doing PER-SYD-ADL to enable my status to tick over to platinum and using the SYD stopover to catch-up with friends for dinner without having to pay for a hotel for the night

 

[Shano]

I have been offered a direct flight (CBR-MEL) when using fly-ahead in place of my booked CBR-SYD-MEL. I declined which turned out to be a good move as that was when the flexi SC glitch existed.

I have never requested a routing change though.

 

[QF WP]

I love using Fly Ahead, except when I get allocated 28b as well

 

[Deleted member 29185]

I had an interesting "fly ahead" experience yesterday.

A client had booked me on an ATR dog ROK-BNE and I was determined to use fly ahead to get the 737 but given the amount of road work around ROK I was delayed many times, but........a glimmer of hope as the news was reporting a fire in VA dom BNE which was delaying all flights. Great (sort of....no one injured in the fire I hope), I was only going to be about 10-15 min away from normal close off time.

Arrived at the terminal hastily trying to see if a 737 was there and no......I'd beaten it so I hurried up to the check-in counter to arrange my much sought after fly ahead, only to be informed they had already closed off the flight .......before it had even landed (actually about 1/2 an hour before it landed). I was heart broken. My face must have been a window to my soul as the lovely Sam said to me, "if it's the ATR, I can give you the later E-jet". "Oh yes please!" and she then really made my day by giving me 2A (I did mention that I had never tried the single seats in the E-Jet before).

So, I wanted the fly ahead, but in the end got a fly behind. Sheer bliss......I do like the E190s and always have. Why oh why did VA ditch the E170 for the flying dash hound? (rhetorical markis10...I have no concern for the fuel burn).

In the end, despite delays, I had a truly enjoyable flight instead of being forced to endure the park bench with wings. An odd win, but a win nonetheless!

 

[markis10]

..I do like the E190s and always have. Why oh why did VA ditch the E170 for the flying dash hound? (rhetorical markis10...I have no concern for the fuel burn).

In the end, despite delays, I had a truly enjoyable flight instead of being forced to endure the park bench with wings. An odd win, but a win nonetheless!

While you may not like the ATR, it does have a lot of fans, it's backlog is 10x the Q series.

 

[Deleted member 29185]

While you may not like the ATR, it does have a lot of fans, it's backlog is 10x the Q series.

A race to the bottom? The ATR may have many financial benefits, but so does a Smart car, yet we don't see them taking the auto world by storm. Accountants buy by figures, normal people buy by many factors.....comfort being one of them. I just think there's horses for courses. An ATR into some regions (economic and geographic) makes sense. An ATR in a first world economy country to replace an E jet sucks, especially when we've seen those air fares escalate at the same time.

 

[bass_ke]

I had an interesting "fly ahead" experience yesterday.

A client had booked me on an ATR dog ROK-BNE and I was determined to use fly ahead to get the 737 but given the amount of road work around ROK I was delayed many times, but........a glimmer of hope as the news was reporting a fire in VA dom BNE which was delaying all flights. Great (sort of....no one injured in the fire I hope), I was only going to be about 10-15 min away from normal close off time.

Arrived at the terminal hastily trying to see if a 737 was there and no......I'd beaten it so I hurried up to the check-in counter to arrange my much sought after fly ahead, only to be informed they had already closed off the flight .......before it had even landed (actually about 1/2 an hour before it landed). I was heart broken. My face must have been a window to my soul as the lovely Sam said to me, "if it's the ATR, I can give you the later E-jet". "Oh yes please!" and she then really made my day by giving me 2A (I did mention that I had never tried the single seats in the E-Jet before).

So, I wanted the fly ahead, but in the end got a fly behind. Sheer bliss......I do like the E190s and always have. Why oh why did VA ditch the E170 for the flying dash hound? (rhetorical markis10...I have no concern for the fuel burn).

In the end, despite delays, I had a truly enjoyable flight instead of being forced to endure the park bench with wings. An odd win, but a win nonetheless!

I've been waiting a long time for another of your ATR stories, always enjoyable!

I'm also a massive fan of the jungle jet, did you enjoy the single seat?

 

[Deleted member 29185]

I've been waiting a long time for another of your ATR stories, always enjoyable!

I'm also a massive fan of the jungle jet, did you enjoy the single seat?

Well I'm hoping I never have to tell another tale of ATR woe in my life (as that will mean I never again get the misfortune to fly on one).

I loved the single seat! Row 2 is definitely the row to have and the single seat, withgate to gate music made me feel very comfortable and a bit like a private jet (except no grog on the ROK runs) with the only downside being the piddly little overheads.

I did make a mental note for future though, not to choose 3C as the pax there was rammed with the food cart, pretty loudly too, so I assume it would have hurt!

 

[austgap]

All very interesting.... Has anyone ever tried to use this to maybe go via places to get SC up? So request to go via a couple of other destinations to get to end spot faster or something?

I've done this before when going to fly ahead BNE-MEL which ended up being cancelled and so the only option the girl could see was a three hour wait or go via SYD, which I took. I got the points/SC for both legs that I flew.

 

[robd]

Flew ahead from Bne to Mel today in J. Unfortunately, due to the fog in Melb, had to fly around for an extra hour before landing, but still a couple of hours saved catching the earlier flight.

 

[Edge]

Love fly ahead, have used it from BNE-MEL & SYD-MEL in the last few weeks. Getting home an extra hour earlier makes a big difference to me!

 

[SimonF]

So i haven't flown ahead recently where you step a sector and go direct so can someone enlighten me what happens if you were booking on MEL CBR SYD then use fly ahead to board MEL - SYD, what by default is credited to you points and status wise? Original booking or new direct route?

 

[Jeremy Kronk]

Is everyone only using fly ahead with no bags checked or getting away with checking bags?

 

[SimonF]

Checked bags never been an issue for me

 

[Demon_fan]

Never been an issue for me either.

 

[JohnK]

Asked for fly ahead a couple of weeks ago at OOL and went from 8:05pm flight to 7:05pm flight.

Asked again today and no issue to be moved from 7:05pm to 6:05pm flight but was given 4E. Sorry but I don't do middle seats.

And this is where the issues start.

Lady at the premium check-in counter tells me she could possibly get me on the 8:05pm flight. :shock: But I was on the 7:05pm flight in 4D. Apparently 4D is gone but I can have 25D or 24D or 23D or exit row. But she can't get me back on flight. Rings supervisor who puts me back on flight (apparently it is not so easy to be transferred after you have been transferred once) and hands me boarding pass for 24D. So off I walk through security and to the lounge.

On entry to the lounge I ask if there are any other aisle seats forward of 24D and how I was originally in 4D but lost it because I asked for change of flights. She says no problem or you can have aisle seat in row 3. So I accept 3C. :shock:

Full marks for the fly ahead but lesson learned again almost the hard way. I should have asked if there was aisle available on earlier flight before being moved.

Also why the huge difference in authority levels from premium check-in staff to lounge staff?

 

[serfty]

Often the case that lounge staff have more experience/clout than check in staff.

Also the prior 3C occupant may have moved flights in the meantime.

 

[Caversham04]

Is everyone only using fly ahead with no bags checked or getting away with checking bags?

A fail here (albeit a slightly different scenario) - we were due to fly OOL-MEL-ADL earlier this week (with checked luggage), and I asked at the check-in desk to see if they could switch us to the direct OOL-ADL flight, which I had discovered was now scheduled to leave about 40 minutes after our originally-booked first leg to MEL. At first, this seemed to be fine, but then the check-in lady came back to advise that "computer says no" (even though there was space) because it wouldn't let her switch us from a 2-leg flight down to a 1-leg direct flight. So we flew OOL-MEL-ADL as originally planned, gaining more miles and SC's but also burning a lot more fuel (and drinking extra wine in the MEL lounge )

If it's a genuine restriction with the software, this should be sorted out - I would happily have switched to save both time and fuel, and it should be easy enough to set something up whereby the computer system automatically flags the option to switch people to a more direct flight if timings etc. aren't too dis-similar.

 

[JohnK]

Often the case that lounge staff have more experience/clout than check in staff.

Also the prior 3C occupant may have moved flights in the meantime.

Perhaps you are right. Service a little inconsistent if that is the case. And more than likely there may have been a vacant aisle seat on previous flight but the premium check-in agent had no idea how allocate it?

All is good though. As it turned out 3A was vacant on Embraer so with me in 3C I had shadow all to myself.

 

[bass_ke]

Often the case that lounge staff have more experience/clout than check in staff.

Also the prior 3C occupant may have moved flights in the meantime.

This is my experience

A no at check in is quite often yes in the lounge