Oneworld Classic Flight Reward Discussion - The Definitive Thread

[ffhound]

Thanks for pointing out that I can''t return back to Singapore as it is my country of origin.

Tweaking the plan a little how about this?

1. Mel-Sin (paid positioning flight)

One world award segments

2. Sin-LHR (first stopover in London)

3. Land segment LHR to AMS

4. AMS to HKG (second stopover in Singapore)

5. HKG to Mel ( third, very lengthy stopover in Melbourne)

6. Mel - NRT (Tokyo) (fourth stopover in Japan)

7. NRT (Tokyo) to Melbourne (end destination)

8. Notional land segment Mel-Sin

Adding up the miles = 6738 + 217 (land segment) + 5761 + 4608 + 5089 + 5089 + 3769 = 31,271 miles. Also am I correct in having used 4 stopovers or is it in fact 5?

cheers Peter
ps I corrected for the missing land segment

 

[Mr H]

That should be ok and it looks like 4 stops. You will need to make sure the agent understands the second MEL is the end destination and doesn’t count as a second stop there.

If any of your legs uses connecting flights that will add to the mileage.

I should say how refreshing it is to see an itinerary set out so clearly. It makes it easy to check.

 

[KingHuang]

Would you be able to book a surface sector (return e.g. FCO >ATH) outside of the itinerary also using reward tickets?

Also: anyone have any feedback good or bad on BA/AF/IB intra Europe J flights? (Understanding AF is not part of oneworld, but would like to try the product if it is good)

 

[jase05]

Also: anyone have any feedback good or bad on BA/AF/IB intra Europe J flights? (Understanding AF is not part of oneworld, but would like

Run of the mill Euro business seating that has all Y seats with just the middle seat blocked for J. Food and beverages can be hit or miss and find most staff are pretty good. Had some really good BA and AF flights last trip to Europe but QF and VA domestic flights here are better IMO

 

[Mr H]

Run of the mill Euro business seating that has all Y seats with just the middle seat blocked for J. Food and beverages can be hit or miss and find most staff are pretty good. Had some really good BA and AF flights last trip to Europe but QF and VA domestic flights here are better IMO

Also be aware that the BA Embraer flights are all 2-2 and have no free seat next to J passengers - but they are quite comfortable seats and I’d take this over the standard Euro-biz A320s.

 

[DC3]

Run of the mill Euro business seating that has all Y seats with just the middle seat blocked for J. Food and beverages can be hit or miss

And for anyone who hasn’t experienced this, keep expectations low.

 

[KingHuang]

And for anyone who hasn’t experienced this, keep expectations low.

Would this be for all airlines, or are there any that is actually decent?

 

[jase05]

Would this be for all airlines, or are there any that is actually decent?

Euro business seating is pretty much the norm.
ITA often have cheap fares and some aircraft have lie flat seats which is a rarity in Europe

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Would this be for all airlines, or are there any that is actually decent?

I have a different view in eurobusiness. The majors like BA/LH/AF/LX do excellent food and drink in that cabin, superior to just about anything in the USA, Asia or Australia. Yes, it’s economy seating, but with a spare middle seat there’s plenty of legroom and shoulder room. I find it very comfortable. And plenty of overhead and under-seat space.

BA and a few other carriers like TP don’t block the side seat on regional jets… which is primarily the Embraers in europe these days. SAS I think is introducing business class,but their previous ‘premium economy’ when they were part of *A was dreadful!

Other eurobusiness classes aren’t necessarily so good on the food and drink front, but the four above are usually outstanding.

Yes, you can book any number of separate tickets outside your main one.

 

[gfraser]

I am starting to plan a
OWA for later in the year, unfortunately in Economy. Can I book a Classic Plus ( with higher points ) and it counts towards the 132,000?
TIA

 

[levelnine]

Can I book a Classic Plus ( with higher points ) and it counts towards the 132,000?

No. Classic awards only.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

I am starting to plan a
OWA for later in the year, unfortunately in Economy. Can I book a Classic Plus ( with higher points ) and it counts towards the 132,000?
TIA

further to the response above, you don’t tally up the sectors to reach 132k. That’s the cap on the number of points you’ll spend provided you meet the rules. The sum of the individual sectors and trips could far exceed 132k points.

 

[MelbFlyer]

Also: anyone have any feedback good or bad on BA/AF/IB intra Europe J flights? (Understanding AF is not part of oneworld, but would like to try the product if it is good)

Most of Euro business class is basically a regular economy seat, with just the middle seat blocked off / not sold.

You'll get priority check-in, lounge access and food onboard but that's pretty much it.

If you're expecting even QF style narrowbody domestic business class seats (ie. the 2-2 layout on the 737s), prepare to be disappointed.

 

[gfraser]

The sum of the individual sectors and trips could far exceed 132k points.

I understand that but was wanting to know if I could use Classic Plus points within the 132,000.
According to Levelnine, this is not allowed.

 

[cjd600]

I understand that but was wanting to know if I could use Classic Plus points within the 132,000.
According to Levelnine, this is not allowed.

No.
Classic only.

 

[clifford]

You can't start a flight in CMB on the QF website; CMB is not supported as an originating airport. Put in a dummy first flight and you will then be able to search flights departing from CMB as a second or subsequent flight.

I've managed to find suitable reward flights SYD-CMB-LHR and CMB-MEL-CBR, using UL.

They show as available on the Qantas website, but unfortunately they don't seem able to be ticketed online as the website gives up at the payment stage.

Does anyone know if these flights ex-CMB can be ticketed by a call centre agent?

 

[Mr H]

I've managed to find suitable reward flights SYD-CMB-LHR and CMB-MEL-CBR, using UL.

They show as available on the Qantas website, but unfortunately they don't seem able to be ticketed online as the website gives up at the payment stage.

Does anyone know if these flights ex-CMB can be ticketed by a call centre agent?

Yes they can. In order to qualify as a OWA you’re going to need a second non-Qantas airline on your itinerary.

 

[WilsonM]

I've managed to find suitable reward flights SYD-CMB-LHR and CMB-MEL-CBR, using UL.

They show as available on the Qantas website, but unfortunately they don't seem able to be ticketed online as the website gives up at the payment stage.

Does anyone know if these flights ex-CMB can be ticketed by a call centre agent?

exCMB, they can be ticketed by a call centre agent, but if you're using the multi-city tool i.e. SYD-CMB, then CMB-LHR, then CMB-MEL, the MEL-CBR, the POS is set to Australia for the entire itinerary anyway - you should (in theory) remove any issues of the exCMB.

My guess is that you're either trying to book a UL phantom or that it's blocking MEL-CBR, if its erroring out. But it could also be other things (thanks QF IT...)

 

[elanshin]

exCMB, they can be ticketed by a call centre agent, but if you're using the multi-city tool i.e. SYD-CMB, then CMB-LHR, then CMB-MEL, the MEL-CBR, the POS is set to Australia for the entire itinerary anyway - you should (in theory) remove any issues of the exCMB.

My guess is that you're either trying to book a UL phantom or that it's blocking MEL-CBR, if its erroring out. But it could also be other things (thanks QF IT...)

Just for future reference (as well as for anyone else reading) - you can specify when booking on the phone for AUD pricing. In fact it would make your life significantly easier if you do that.

My hobart agent the other day actually complimented me on that decision when I initially requested for my current trip (ex KUL) as it makes it significantly easier to price, ammend and reticket.

My OWA last year (2024) was done with IDR exCGK and boy was it a massive headache to get someone to price it. Basically only specific teams at HBA / AKL could do it as I understood and it meant every change needs to be sent up to that team or you hope you lucked out and got an agent from that team (not just the call centre itself).

 

[N860CR]

exCMB, they can be ticketed by a call centre agent, but if you're using the multi-city tool i.e. SYD-CMB, then CMB-LHR, then CMB-MEL, the MEL-CBR, the POS is set to Australia for the entire itinerary anyway - you should (in theory) remove any issues of the exCMB.

My guess is that you're either trying to book a UL phantom or that it's blocking MEL-CBR, if its erroring out. But it could also be other things (thanks QF IT...)

UL is showing a lot of availability at the moment which leads me to think it might be phantom. The domestic connection causing dramas seems to be a QF-QF issue.