Thread: Seat availability - news

If you are planning to travel on BA UK domestic or European services, you need to be aware of the change in commercial pricing, and what this does to the chances of you getting a seat on standby.

The new approach means substantial commercial fare reductions in order to stimulate demand and to compete with the no-frills carriers. This has already had a big impact on loads on the routes where its been implemented - and you can expect that impact to increase with the rollout across Europe, increased marketing, and the summer peak in economy traffic..... which is obviously great news for us and our fare-paying passengers, but not, dear nonrev, what you want to hear as you stand sadly at checkin clutching your 90 or ZZZ in your hand! [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif[/img]

If you are planning on using standbys the odds are not as good as they used to be. The old theory of picking an off-peak flight will not necessarily hold any more. Also, although the people wanting the cheapest prices will have to book in advance, you will still be in competition with the late-bookers for a smaller number of empty seats. This means that you could be in trouble if you have to get back to LHR/LGW for a longhaul connection home, or risk disappointment if one of the highlights of a trip to London was going to be a day/weekend trip to the continent. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_frown.gif[/img]

So that's the doom and gloom. Now, without wanting to sound like I am 'selling', a lot of these fares are very, very good. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_razz.gif[/img] Go to www.ba.com and familiarise yourself with the price levels in general and how to use the "Fare Explorer" website - its easy to use and will let you see immediately the lowest fares on your preferred tarvel date as well as those nearby. Test out a domestic route - eg London-Edinburgh (not all of the continental routes have been implemented yet) - and compare the price with what you were expecting. Then pick a date a couple of months in the future - you save a lot by booking in advance.

My advice would be plan ahead and think seriously about booking a commercial fare. The advantages are:
- You can plan your trip around standby availabilty on the longhhaul sectors alone, which simplifies your choice of travel dates
- You do not have to worry about whether you will get back to London for your return connection
- You fly into LHR/LGW (unlike most of the no-frills carrier services) - so you arrive at the right place
- You still get a meal and full-service on the flight!

I am not sure what bmi (British Midland) are doing - they have a nofrills carrier called bmibaby, but I am not sure how their fares now work on mainline (Mark, maybe you could shed some light?)

As for me, I have just bought my first commercial ticket since being stuck in Atlanta after we met up, and that was more than two years ago....... it's a strange feeling knowing that I am definitely going to get on! [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img]