Oneworld Classic Flight Reward Discussion - The Definitive Thread

[DC3]

For 5,000 points to get the booking done, I'll pay.

 

[gilldo]

Book the first leg only, then ring up.

This is the generic error I'm talking about.

Appears to be more of a performance/connection error with their processing back end. Always occurs at the same point.

 

[Azusa]

This is the generic error I'm talking about.

Appears to be more of a performance/connection error with their processing back end. Always occurs at the same point.

I have just started my OWA booking and basically for multi cities bookings, Qantas’ site is coughe, and some popular flights go quickly, so you would want to book them as soon as they are released, which means you won’t be able to book the whole trip with all 5 stops in one go, I am anticipating 2 more changes to secure all business class with the path we want, so all up we will be paying 3 times 5000 points each per person. Even I would love to avoid this, paying 15k extra points to avoid the stress of not being able to get a seat or getting a economy long haul is worth it to us. And like the others said, once you made the first leg of booking, call in to make the subsequent ones requesting a change on your existing booking reference.

 

[gilldo]

If you keep getting error messages from the website, are you within your rights to ring the Service Centre and ask for them to make the booking, and not pay the Assistance fee?

It worked too - the issues with my booking type were known technical issues, and I didn't have to pay the Assistance Fee.

 

[Oubline]

Thanks! Well we might have hope then, we only booked one flight before 18th so fingers crossed!

I’m in the same boat, kind of wishing I’d added some placeholder flights to get the award to cap out at 280k, instead of just booking the first two legs. It’ll be interesting to see the points difference when I call up to add the extra flights, and whether it caps out at 319k or 280k.

 

[Jacques Vert]

I’m in the same boat, kind of wishing I’d added some placeholder flights to get the award to cap out at 280k, instead of just booking the first two legs. It’ll be interesting to see the points difference when I call up to add the extra flights, and whether it caps out at 319k or 280k.

Looks like it will max out at 280K

 

[gilldo]

I have just started my OWA booking and basically for multi cities bookings, Qantas’ site is coughe, and some popular flights go quickly, so you would want to book them as soon as they are released, which means you won’t be able to book the whole trip with all 5 stops in one go, I am anticipating 2 more changes to secure all business class with the path we want, so all up we will be paying 3 times 5000 points each per person. Even I would love to avoid this, paying 15k extra points to avoid the stress of not being able to get a seat or getting a economy long haul is worth it to us. And like the others said, once you made the first leg of booking, call in to make the subsequent ones requesting a change on your existing booking reference.

Got our initial trans-Pacific flight outbound this afternoon, but was planning to wait the 8 weeks until the rest of the flights are available before we go back and finish it off.

Remaining flights are US/CAN with AA, and West Coast to home via HKG or Japan. Less concerned about these and if we miss a business leg somewhere I can live with it. About 12 flight legs in all planned.

Your plans are very sound though and I might still end up doing something similar.

Good luck!

 

[leaving on a jet plane]

The flights need to be on any of the thirteen OneWorld member airlines. No others.

Hmm... I just did a mock itinerary on the QANTAS site with the routing of MEL-AKL-PPT STOP PPT-LAX STOP LAX-JFK STOP JFK-LHR-DOH stop DOH SYD-MEL all bar 2 sectors in Business and it came out at 318,000 points. This would infer that code share flights DO count as One World sectors wouldn't it? (in this case the AKL_PPT_LAX legs were Air Tahiti Nui with QANTAS code share flight #s. Is there any definitive rule book to consult that I could reference that you (or anyone else) knows of on the whole One World Award flight thing?

 

[DC3]

... Is there any definitive rule book to consult that I could reference that you (or anyone else) knows of on the whole One World Award flight thing?

Not as such, from what I've found, just many posts of AFF members experiences. Post # 1 has an article attached, although not completely up to date, but near enough.

The article mentions this, regarding codeshares:



The trick is to get it ticketed, regardless of what the QF site produces. Any glitches should result in no ticket.

Others will know a bit more, but please let us know if your codeshares actually ticket when it comes time to book.

Edited for content

 

[flychrisfly]

From the T & Cs (emphasis added):

14.7.6 Subject to this clause 14.7, the following changes are permitted to a Classic Flight Reward flight before departure of that flight, provided the booking contains one or more Flight Segments that are not within Australia, and the Flight Segment(s) being changed do not include a partner airline that requires a ticket to be reissued for the change. Any such change will incur a Change Fee (see the Fee Schedule) per passenger:

(a) change to flight number; and
(b) change to date of travel.

So, in answer to your question (and assuming you have an international segment which, of course, is what this thread is all about), my understanding is:

• After you have departed on your first leg, you can change the date and or time of a flight (changing the time will usually result in a change of flight number);
• After you have departed on your first leg, you cannot change the flight route, or class of travel, or carrier...

My reading of this is that flights can be changed (date and time or flight number) before the individual flights are flown. You can't go anywhere new or different, nor can you not go, you can just change the date and time with a corresponding change to the flight number.

The Rule below relates to the entire trip where as 14.7.6 above talks about the individual flights:

14.7.4 Subject to this clause 14.7, the following changes are permitted to a Classic Flight Reward after ticketing and prior to commencement of any travel and will incur a Change Fee (see the Fee Schedule) per passenger...

 

[Jacques Vert]

My reading of this is that flights can be changed (date and time or flight number) before the individual flights are flown. You can't go anywhere new or different, nor can you not go, you can just change the date and time with a corresponding change to the flight number.

?

Isn't that what I said?

 

[mrsterryn]

Just starting to plan for Nov Dec 2020 for husband

Beginning in Sydney , need to end in London for coming home
Away for about 18 nights.
Would prefer first class as points aren't an issue
Thank you
Has had the following in first
Qantas
Cathay
Thanks , looking forward to planning this

 

[gilldo]

Just starting to plan for Nov Dec 2020 for husband

Beginning in Sydney , need to end in London for coming home
Away for about 18 nights.
Would prefer first class as points aren't an issue
Thank you
Has had the following in first
Qantas
Cathay
Thanks , looking forward to planning this

Are you just doing SYD-LHR-SYD, or are you going elsewhere while there?

If you're not going anywhere else, you may be better grabbing Qatar or Emirates product instead.

Where do you need to be exactly?

 

[mrsterryn]

Are you just doing SYD-LHR-SYD, or are you going elsewhere while there?

If you're not going anywhere else, you may be better grabbing Qatar or Emirates product instead.

Where do you need to be exactly?

Husband is going to Denmark (Billund ) for a day lol
Basically that is the reason for the trip
He likes to try out other first class airlines for a sticky beak.
Probable Paris or any of the German ... Austrian cities

 

[zoom&boom]

And I thought I was so smart.....
Having read a lot of info about this award, experimented with routings., did dummy bookings etc etc, it seemed like a missed a small but unfortunately a deal breaker for me.

I planned to start my trip in SIN and after visiting HEL and JFK I would return to BKK. Six months later I would then start another trip to Europe and return to SIN to complete the award.

I booked the first sector SIN-HEL / 23AUG20 on the 28AUG19. I tried to add sectors today but was informed that I could not add a 21SEP20 sector as it was more that 12 months from my initial booking of 28AUG19.

Is this true? If it is how do you book one of these awards when there isn’t availability for all the sectors?

Mrs Zoom is preparing the Sword as I write this....

 

[gilldo]

And I thought I was so smart.....
Having read a lot of info about this award, experimented with routings., did dummy bookings etc etc, it seemed like a missed a small but unfortunately a deal breaker for me.

I planned to start my trip in SIN and after visiting HEL and JFK I would return to BKK. Six months later I would then start another trip to Europe and return to SIN to complete the award.

I booked the first sector SIN-HEL / 23AUG20 on the 28AUG19. I tried to add sectors today but was informed that I could not add a 21SEP20 sector as it was more that 12 months from my initial booking of 28AUG19.

Is this true? If it is how do you book one of these awards when there isn’t availability for all the sectors?

Mrs Zoom is preparing the Sword as I write this....

From my minimal knowledge, you should be able to add a sector if it's for travel within a 12 month period - booking time shouldn't be relevant.

I too would be very interested to know if this is correct as it will stuff up future plans I have.

 

[vetrade]

Your trip has to be completed within a 12 month period i.e. from the date of your first flight to when your last flight arrives back home. The date you booked is irrelevant.
Zoom&Boom, is it possible the CSA thought you were trying to book flights more than 12 months away i.e. flights which haven't been released yet?

 

[gilldo]

Husband is going to Denmark (Billund ) for a day lol
Basically that is the reason for the trip
He likes to try out other first class airlines for a sticky beak.
Probable Paris or any of the German ... Austrian cities

Is there much first class product from London to these relatively close Euro cities?

You could go via HKG, NRT, HEL, DOH or MAD using OneWorld

Going anywhere else is a challenge as you have the one stopover rule in London

Can you stop at Billund on the way over, or does it have to be mid-trip?

 

[mrsterryn]

Is there much first class product from London to these relatively close Euro cities?

You could go via HKG, NRT, HEL, DOH or MAD using OneWorld

Going anywhere else is a challenge as you have the one stopover rule in London

Can you stop at Billund on the way over, or does it have to be mid-trip?

Preference is near the end of the trip but having said that Billund doesn't have to be included in the trip . There is numerous BA flights from Heathrow

 

[zoom&boom]

From my minimal knowledge, you should be able to add a sector if it's for travel within a 12 month period - booking time shouldn't be relevant.

I too would be very interested to know if this is correct as it will stuff up future plans I have.

Your trip has to be completed within a 12 month period i.e. from the date of your first flight to when your last flight arrives back home. The date you booked is irrelevant.
Zoom&Boom, is it possible the CSA thought you were trying to book flights more than 12 months away i.e. flights which haven't been released yet?

Thanks for the quick responses. All sectors would be within 12 months of the original Departure date, however more than 12 months of the original booking date. The CSA seemed to be implying that all the sectors would have the same booking date ie the date of the first sector. If that is the case it is almost impossible to book this if you have to grab the sectors as they are released at -354/330 etc.