Travel Companion Policy

Hi all:

I'm just doing some research on how your stand-by policies work for travel companions. I was wondering what your company offers you as a travel companion (ie. do you have to be married to have a companion, if you're married does that have to be your companion?) Any thoughts or ideas? At my airline you can choose whoever you want as your companion until or unless you're married and then it has to be your husbnad/wife. Is this the norm for most airlines? http://www.nonrev.net/forums/style_e..._DIR#>/huh.gif

Delta's was covered pretty well in this thread.

For United you can have your parents and children use your unlimited flight benefits. Also your spouse or "domestic partner," all of which you need proof to establish the relationship. Then you get 24 "buddy" aka companion passes a year, which are per person, per SEGMENT. The "buddy" doesn't have to travel with you so long as it is not First on an international three-cabin aircraft. They do have a lower boarding priority than if they were traveling with you. As an employee your boarding priority drops if there is more than one "buddy" traveling with you. Service charges for the buddy passes are the same as an ID90. For employees/spouses/dp's/children/parents the flight is free if you get on in economy. First or Business is a percentage off of established ZED fares.

Alaska's benefits are pretty simple. Eligible dependents travel free in coach with a surcharge for first class. We can either have our spouse travel or we can designate an EDG (employee designated guest) instead. The EDG gets the same benefits on Alaska (not OAL) as a spouse would. The designation must be done during the open enrollment period and can be changed yearly. We receive 20 flexible passes per year. These are used one way and can be redeemed as "guest" pass or as a "companion" pass depending on whether the employee/spouse is traveling with them or not. If redeemed as a companion pass, the applicable taxes are deducted from the employee's paycheck. If redeemed as a guest pass, the traveler takes the pass to the airport and pays what amounts to an ID90 fee for their ticket.

We can have as many companions as we like and it does not affect our boarding priority. The guests have a lower priority than employees dependents but higher than OAL employees and their boarding is based on the seniority of the employee who gave them the pass. I only give mine to close relatives, however, because their behavior can affect MY privileges going forward.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (trollydolly @ Dec 3 2007, 09:24 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

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Hi all:

I&#39;m just doing some research on how your stand-by policies work for travel companions. I was wondering what your company offers you as a travel companion (ie. do you have to be married to have a companion, if you&#39;re married does that have to be your companion?) Any thoughts or ideas? At my airline you can choose whoever you want as your companion until or unless you&#39;re married and then it has to be your husbnad/wife. Is this the norm for most airlines? http://www.nonrev.net/forums/style_e..._DIR#>/huh.gif[/b]

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At American, if you are married, your spouse or company-recognized domestic partner and dependent children (up to 22 years old), have the same privileges as the employee (unlimited stand-by; service charges apply; free domestic coach after 5 yrs with the company; free int&#39;l coach after 25 yrs).

If you are not married or do not have a domestic partner, then you can choose one person (anyone - can be a sibling, friend, s.o., whoever) as your designated companion. The DC also travels at the same stand-by priority as you; BUT, their trips come out of your 24 one-way buddy pass limit for the year. Parents travel at a slightly lower priority, but higher than others on buddy passes. Basically, employees are "D2" priority (A-passes are employees traveling for business and certain higher level management, whether personal or business travel); D2P are parents, and D3 are buddy passes. D3s can be given to anyone, but you are limited to 12 people per year on your travel buddy list; and once someone is put on the list, they can not be removed until after one year of being on the list. This is for security reasons and to prevent fraud.

Employees do not get D3s for their first 2 years; and each employee and their eligible family members get 4 one-way D1 (higher priority) passes to use each year. Boarding priority is first come-first serve (NOT seniority based).

There are more rules, but that&#39;s the jist of it. Hope this helps.

-L

One small correction about Alaska/Horizon passes. EDGs are not given the same travel privileges as a spouse/domestic partner would be given. They have a lower boarding priority than employees (but higher than guest pass holders) and count against the employee&#39;s annual allotment. The only real benefit to an EDG is that they can travel on Alaska/Horizon without the employee and without the need to get guest passes ticketed at the ticket counter.

At Continental you may designate a spouse or travel companion. A travel companion can still be designated even if you have a spouse. They receive the same benefits as a spouse except for travel on other airlines. Travel charges are the same as it cost the employee and they are eligible to use the employees vacation passes. I don&#39;t know of any other airline that will allow a travel companion travel benefits except for the airline your are listed under. Normally parents, spouse and children are allowed to travel on almost all airlines that they have a ticketing agreement with.

Thank you so much for your input, this has clarified a great many things for me!