Transfer in SIN between different carriers

[huwcar]

Hi Everyone,

I've been on the lookout for a while for a bargain fare to get the Mrs overseas for a wedding in late April.

Whilst it's obviously not the best time to be looking for bargain flights, I have come across one interesting combination. A return flight on EK from MEL-SIN and a SIN-LHR return on QR (is that right for Qatar?).

It's the cheapest by far, but the transfer between different carriers is a slight cause of concern. Outbound there is only 2h35m between flights, return is about 7h.

Given that the carriers are different, I assume the procedure is to collect luggage, go through customs, etc in Singapore and then check in luggage for connecting flight? If this is a case I don't think 2:35 is enough time to be comfortable.

Is it possible to have luggage transferred from one carrier to another without having to collect it? If it is possible, how would this work with checking in for the connecting flight?

Thanks for any suggestions you have!

huwcar

 

[Dave Noble]

When I have asked EK about transferring baggage to another airline on another ticket, they have said no

Dave

 

[JohnK]

Call Qatar or Emirates and ask if they have an interline agreement with each other.

 

[Dave Noble]

Call Qatar or Emirates and ask if they have an interline agreement with each other.

Having an interline agreement does not mean that they will do it, just that they can do it. What is needed is to find out whether they will check the bags through to QR on separate bookings

 

[JohnK]

Having an interline agreement does not mean that they will do it, just that they can do it. What is needed is to find out whether they will check the bags through to QF on separate bookings

Nothing to do with QF!

We are discussing an interline agreement between Qatar (QR) and Emirates (EK). From my experience if 2 carriers have an interline agreement then they will generally check luggage through on separate tickets. Cannot hurt to call Qatar or Emirates to find out if this is possible....

 

[NM]

Nothing to do with QF!

We are discussing an interline agreement between Qatar (QR) and Emirates (EK). From my experience if 2 carriers have an interline agreement then they will generally check luggage through on separate tickets. Cannot hurt to call Qatar or Emirates to find out if this is possible....

Having an interline agreement they will transfer bags if its on the same ticket. While having an interline agreement means they have the processes and systems in place to transfer bags, there is no requirement for them to do so if the tickets are purchased separately. By interlining the bags, the airlines are each accepting a level of responsibility for the other's baggage delivery, and without a through ticket some airlines will refuse to check bags through an hence accept the responsibility.

While some airlines will check bags through on separate tickets, when they do, it should be considered a bonus and not an expectation.

 

[Dave Noble]

Nothing to do with QF!

We are discussing an interline agreement between Qatar (QR) and Emirates (EK). From my experience if 2 carriers have an interline agreement then they will generally check luggage through on separate tickets. Cannot hurt to call Qatar or Emirates to find out if this is possible....

Typo. meant QR as per the OPs post as could probably be deduced. Having an interline agreement still does not mean they WILL do it.

 

[JohnK]

Having an interline agreement still does not mean they WILL do it.

Which is why I mentioned it cannot hurt to call Qatar or Emirates to find out if it is possible.

From personal experience my bags have always been checked through to final destination on separate tickets on airlines with an interline agreement.

 

[dajop]

Having an interline agreement they will transfer bags if its on the same ticket. While having an interline agreement means they have the processes and systems in place to transfer bags, there is no requirement for them to do so if the tickets are purchased separately.

Absolutely. We are spoilt as QF are very liberal when it comes to interlining to different airlines even on separate tickets. Even SQ (who are obviously have a reasonable presence in Australia (!) ) are also very liberal, so it's easy to draw a conclusion that it is common practice. But it is not, even within same "alliance" it won't happen in many instances.

 

[dajop]

Which is why I mentioned it cannot hurt to call Qatar or Emirates to find out if it is possible.

From personal experience my bags have always been checked through to final destination on separate tickets on airlines with an interline agreement.

1) If you do ring and ask ensure you mention you are on separate tickets.
2) Respectfully JohnK, your personal experience may be limited. I tried connecting from NZ->SQ on separate tickets (important partners for the last 10 years and both members of star alliance) and NO WAY! (and I might add it was indicated on the phone that I could). As for NZ to LX (another star alliance partner) cough cough splutter splutter haha you've got to be kidding. NZ does have interline agreements with both, but will only thru check luggage for travel on same ticket, or pax that cannot/ do not have a visa for transit if they are on separate tickets.

 

[huwcar]

Thanks for the helpful replies folks.

I have spoke to someone in the Emirates call centre. After holding for about 10 minutes while the staff member checked, I was told it would not be a problem as long as I show my ticket for the connecting flight at check in time in MEL.

This is great news!

In theory then one should be able to use QR's OLCI before leaving MEL and not have to worry about either check in or bags in SIN!

Cheers,

huwcar

 

[Mal]

2:35 is pretty risky, although I would possibly be willing to risk it at Singapore - or at least I'd feel more comfy doing it there than most other airports. Immigration, bag reclaim and customs is often very quick at Singapore, although Qatar check-in does appear to close at T-1 hour.

There is also possibly the option (although again it is a little risky as you would need to know that the desk is open and they'll do it) of just arriving at Singapore and going to the "Flight Connections" desk, showing the bag tag from the ex-Mel flight and having them find the bag and re-tag in the background. Certainly some other airports can do that...

What sort of price have you found? There might be other options which are around the same price but less risky.

Also, if a travel agent is able to ticket the 2 flights on one ticket - the protection against mis-connect, and chance of through baggage checking is much stronger.

 

[huwcar]

But if the bag is tagged for transfer at QR doesn't that mean not having to find and claim the bag in Singapore for the transfer?

It may be worth doing it through a travel agent rather than myself online if it will offer some protection.

The price I have is $630 MEL-SIN return on EK, followed by $887 SIN-LHR (via Doha) return on QR. About $1500 all up which is a bargain!

 

[Mal]

But if the bag is tagged for transfer at QR doesn't that mean not having to find and claim the bag in Singapore for the transfer?

It may be worth doing it through a travel agent rather than myself online if it will offer some protection.

If a bag is interlined (or through-checked), then there is no requirement to collect and re-deposit at Singapore. It becomes a standard airside transfer (although you may have to collect the QR boarding pass there at the airside transfer desk).

Thanks for the fare information. That is a good price to London based on other prices out at the moment. Having had a look at the fares, you may run into problems with getting a travel agent to get them onto one ticket, because the SIN-LON fare seems to only be available via Qatar's booking engine - or to Singapore based travel agents.

 

[Dave Noble]

But if the bag is tagged for transfer at QR doesn't that mean not having to find and claim the bag in Singapore for the transfer?

It may be worth doing it through a travel agent rather than myself online if it will offer some protection.

The price I have is $630 MEL-SIN return on EK, followed by $887 SIN-LHR (via Doha) return on QR. About $1500 all up which is a bargain!

I wouldn't risk it. If the EK flight is delayed then you can easily miss the onward flight and then be out a significant amount. The fare is good, but I would not risk a 2.5 hour connection on separate bookings; the risks are too high.

If going for it, I would really recommend having an overnight stop in Singapore and minimise the risks

I also would not trust that they will definitely check thje bags through and you could end up even with a brief delay having a decent risk of mising checkin time for QR

The price seems good, but if you end up having to buy new tickets due to being a no-show to QR in SIN , then the loss could be significant .. ( see the QF forum on FT for an example of this )

Dave

 

[NM]

Note that even when bags are interlined, the second airline will want to see the bag tag so they can include the tag details in their system. This often happens even when it is the same ticket and the same alliance. Its common to be requested to show the baggage tag at the connecting point when collecting the boarding pass. And sometimes even at the departure gate when the board pass was provided earlier. So be prepared and keep the baggage tag receipt handy.

 

[Mal]

Note that even when bags are interlined, the second airline will want to see the bag tag so they can include the tag details in their system. This often happens even when it is the same ticket and the same alliance.

Indeed! Don't do what I once did and stick it on the back of the boarding pass ... of course I stuck it on the part of the BP that was retained at the gate!

After a lot of hassle and the staff phoning the original carrier at the 2nd airport, they managed to track down the Bag Tag number and things worked out ok.

Lesson learnt !

 

[peachy3333]

Just for curiosity's sake, how much time would one have to allocate between connecting flights of 2 separate tickets. 4 hours? I know Singapore airport is quite swift but other airports?

 

[thewinchester]

Just for curiosity's sake, how much time would one have to allocate between connecting flights of 2 separate tickets. 4 hours? I know Singapore airport is quite swift but other airports?

Depends on the airport and carriers. If you can give me the names of the carriers and ports, some of us have a minimum connection time tool which we can check the information against.

 

[peachy3333]

Oh, it wasn't for a particular flight

It was for future reference if I wanted to book something like this! Thanks though!