Seat selected at time of booking

[Myrna]

November last year we booked SYD-MEL return for travelling this May - as it was cheap, one way pleb $95. Aircraft shown was A330 (!), so we selected seats 25A & 25B. Just checked MMB now, and aircraft is now B737 and our original seats were unchanged, but at the back of the plane. Have now changed seats to row 6 - and will try to move to row 4 when rows 4 & 5 open at T-80. Is there any way knowing about aircraft changes?

Thanks!

 

[slc767338]

On expertflyer.com you can set aircraft change alerts. I think that's just a premium feature though

 

[Myrna]

On expertflyer.com you can set aircraft change alerts. I think that's just a premium feature though

Thanks, sic. Sorry I am not a subscriber of expert flyer.

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

This is one of the bugbears of my flying "pastime"!
Exactly as you described.
While QF/VA and NZ have a right to do as they please, I feel its an affront to me personally, I am an egotist, that they (airlines) dare to do such a thing to me.
Years ago, during the QF 767 plane days, just before they took it out, I had one final booking on a 767, SYD - BNE, thought all my "Christmases" had come at once, but no, they took 767s out, and now only 737s exist on that route.
I have a Good Friday booking, NZ SYD - AKL on a 767, I hope they won't change it to a 320, but in the back of my mind, they probably will.
Oh, and how do I tell they have done a swap, I keep going to NZ's website and put in a dummy booking for that date.

 

[mannej]

Thanks, sic. Sorry I am not a subscriber of expert flyer.

Then you will have to keep an eye on your booking then.

 

[Myrna]

This is one of the bugbears of my flying "pastime"!
Exactly as you described.
While QF/VA and NZ have a right to do as they please, I feel its an affront to me personally, I am an egotist, that they (airlines) dare to do such a thing to me.
Years ago, during the QF 767 plane days, just before they took it out, I had one final booking on a 767, SYD - BNE, thought all my "Christmases" had come at once, but no, they took 767s out, and now only 737s exist on that route.
I have a Good Friday booking, NZ SYD - AKL on a 767, I hope they won't change it to a 320, but in the back of my mind, they probably will.
Oh, and how do I tell they have done a swap, I keep going to NZ's website and put in a dummy booking for that date.

A few years ago we experienced a change of aircraft at the last minutes - a few hours before departure on the day of travel. It was supposed to be a B767, so we selected seats 25a and 25b. We printed boarding passes, went to lounge. When we boarded they announced an aircraft change to B737! There were people at the counter asking for seats to be changed. They said the could not do ours, so we ended up in the 2nd last row!

 

[Myrna]

Then you will have to keep an eye on your booking then.

yes, I will check the booking more closely - particularly at T-80 when rows 4 and 5 open.

 

[eminere]

While QF/VA and NZ have a right to do as they please, I feel its an affront to me personally, I am an egotist, that they (airlines) dare to do such a thing to me.

Right, because the airlines know exactly who you are and deliberately swap operating equipment on you just so they can antagonise you for the fun of it. Never mind that there might be perfectly legitimate, operational reasons for swapping aircraft.

How "dare" they do such a thing to you? Please.

 

[medhead]

One way to mitigate the risk of a swap to a 737 is to select seats that don't exist on a 737. Specifically 25JK in your case.

 

[Mal]

Not aware of any free services. One site I use (I have a free upgrade to premium) grabs my bookings from my FF accounts and then monitors them. I get emailed as soon as it notices my seat has been moved. https://awardwallet.com/ . Last weekend, it helped a lot, as it advised me at 9am Friday that my class and seat had changed in my booking ... sure enough, BA had upgraded me T-21 from Y to J with a new seat assigned.

 

[Myrna]

Not aware of any free services. One site I use (I have a free upgrade to premium) grabs my bookings from my FF accounts and then monitors them. I get emailed as soon as it notices my seat has been moved. https://awardwallet.com/ . Last weekend, it helped a lot, as it advised me at 9am Friday that my class and seat had changed in my booking ... sure enough, BA had upgraded me T-21 from Y to J with a new seat assigned.

Thanks, Mal. What luck! An upgrade t-21. Have read about awardwallet, but not tried it out. So, I will check it out.

 

[Mal]

Thanks, Mal. What luck! An upgrade t-21. Have read about awardwallet, but not tried it out. So, I will check it out.

PM (or email me) when you have signed up as I do have some free premium codes to give away.

 

[JohnK]

This happens to me quite regularly. Although not as often since the 767s were retired.

Then you will have to keep an eye on your booking then.

That's OK if you have one or 2 bookings. Almost impossible to keep up if you 15-20 bookings or more.

 

[medhead]

There is also the Myflights App, which works well tracking bookings, including all manner of changes. Having said that, I don't think I've had an aircraft change yet.

I'm not sure that award wallet tracking seats would help in this case as the seats didn't change. :?:

 

[BD1959]

Right, because the airlines know exactly who you are and deliberately swap operating equipment on you just so they can antagonise you for the fun of it. Never mind that there might be perfectly legitimate, operational reasons for swapping aircraft.

How "dare" they do such a thing to you? Please.

Alternatively, when they know who I am, QF will send me a "Please Visit Your Booking To Verify a Change" when they've moved the departure time by 5 mins! Why can't they do the same for an equipment switch which possibly has far greater impact on both the passenger and their staff - particularly if the passenger can resolve prior to arriving at the airport?

Regards,

BD

 

[RichardMEL]

This is one of the bugbears of my flying "pastime"!
Exactly as you described.
While QF/VA and NZ have a right to do as they please, I feel its an affront to me personally, I am an egotist, that they (airlines) dare to do such a thing to me.
Years ago, during the QF 767 plane days, just before they took it out, I had one final booking on a 767, SYD - BNE, thought all my "Christmases" had come at once, but no, they took 767s out, and now only 737s exist on that route.
I have a Good Friday booking, NZ SYD - AKL on a 767, I hope they won't change it to a 320, but in the back of my mind, they probably will.
Oh, and how do I tell they have done a swap, I keep going to NZ's website and put in a dummy booking for that date.

yes it's all about you.

You buy a contract to take you from A to B, not a specific aircraft, type, make or seat etc.

Of course, we all get it, when you plan something specific and it doesn't come to pass for whatever reasons it's disappointing, but the airlines are not here to bow to your whim because you want X.

If you never want the ac type to be swapped or subbed may I suggest JQ or TT with a consistent domestic fleet?

 

[RichardMEL]

Alternatively, when they know who I am, QF will send me a "Please Visit Your Booking To Verify a Change" when they've moved the departure time by 5 mins! Why can't they do the same for an equipment switch which possibly has far greater impact on both the passenger and their staff - particularly if the passenger can resolve prior to arriving at the airport?

Regards,

BD

I'd tend to agree that a swap should trigger a message. I wonder if, in the OP's case, the fact that the seat assignments remained the same (due to I guess both being available on the 330 and 73H) then the system didn't flag it as a change per se, which is a flaw I agree. I wonder if the seats had been changed to say *AB it would have flagged it.

 

[medhead]

I'd tend to agree that a swap should trigger a message. I wonder if, in the OP's case, the fact that the seat assignments remained the same (due to I guess both being available on the 330 and 73H) then the system didn't flag it as a change per se, which is a flaw I agree. I wonder if the seats had been changed to say *AB it would have flagged it.

this is the reason for taking 25JK instead of 25AB. The system has to then put you in different seats, which should then revert to automatic selection based on status level.

 

[RichardMEL]

this is the reason for taking 25JK instead of 25AB. The system has to then put you in different seats, which should then revert to automatic selection based on status level.

Yep, that's a fair strategy. I had this work in reverse (sort of) the other day. I was in 1F on a 73H and I asked to move to an earlier flight which was operated by a 332. I got moved straight to 1F which of course wasn't what I wanted per se, by the time I'd looked at the seat map to determine a better seat it had been gobbled. Still, given it was my request to move to an earlier flight at the lounge, it was no big deal but it did seem to be that when the Lounge Angel moved me the system must have just made that selection automatically since it could match the available seat number. I wish she'd said "Oh I see you've gone from a middle to an aisle, would you like a window back?" but they're busy and beggers can't be chosers so I still enjoyed the flight and that I got there earlier

 

[JohnK]

You buy a contract to take you from A to B, not a specific aircraft, type, make or seat etc.

I don't quite see it this way. The airlines are extremely lucky to get away with it.

Let's say I purchase a seat on an A380 to go SYD-SIN. If that is downgraded to a 737 then I am no longer receiving the service I paid to receive.

And I don't quite understand how airlines continue to get away with their meaningless fine print that somehow allows them to screw you when they feel like it.