[Anonymous]

[KeaneJohn]

Ooops…… If that was me paying up to £400 for my frequent trips to London I’d be fuming and wanting my cash back for domestic connecting flights paid with money.

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/transport/ba-apologises-after-scots-lose-out-on-long-haul-air-miles-offers.21945490

[SimonS1]

All covered in this thread KeaneJohn, including an explanation on how this is another example of excellent service from BA.

http://www.businesstraveller.com/discussion/topic/BAEC-Reward-tickets-in-Club-and-First?page=2

[Swindoneric]

I commented on the other thread about some of the challenges faced in obtaining avios redemption flights on domestic services connecting to available avios redemption flights ex London and how it can be overcome, albeit for a change fee.
In the interests of fairness I should point out that the number of avios required for eg, Edi-LHR-NYC is the same as that required for the ex-LHR sector only…

[ImissConcorde]

Wouldn’t a better thread title be “BA responds positively to Scottish customers concerns”?

[KeaneJohn]

Didn’t see the other thread. and no don’t think it should be retitled. Ive lost count of the number of people here and on other forums who have had long layovers or had to rebook or buy a cash ticket until BA have been rumbled.

Why should you be disadvantaged by having to pay a change fee even if the number of miles is the same.

[MartynSinclair]

@ImissConcorde – I was surprised by the quoted BA apology. Surely “confusion” is not relevant, more about the need to apologize for the system glitch…

[pdtraveller]

Is anyone really surprised that London Airways has been found out! Frankly I think there are greater issues ( though fully support the outing of this one) but some clever investigative journalist needs to dig the dirt on the whole shoddy Avios long haul situation.

[Swindoneric]

@keanejohn.. I’d rather not pay a change fee either but doesn’t the fact that the connecting flight costs nothing extra actually imply that BA is disadvantaging English residents by offering Scottish residents free flights? I live in Scotland by the way.

[goalie11]

I’m a Scot myself but is this not more of a regional problem than specifically Scottish. You can get the same free connecting flights from Manchester and Newcastle on your Avios.

The problem seems more to do with the inadequacies of the system in not downloading domestic flights until the day after.

[6Continents]

I sometimes have the same problem out of MAN, I simply make a telephone call and get the MAN-LHR added later. You do not have to pay a change fee for anything that is not available on-line.

[Papillion53]

On the couple of occasions we’ve not been able to get great connections, ie having to change LON airports or a long wait at LHR, I just wait and then when I see availability I want, I have always been able to change, usually with no cost. (Maybe I just got a really helpful BA person and as 6continents says sometimes you can’t make changes online, so no fee there either) But remember if there is a 24 hour “delay” issue, then changes made within 24 hours or booking are free anyway.

[pdtraveller]

It should not be necessary to rely on the largesse of BA to make a booking from a regional departure point to a long haul flight via their main base of LHR. They after all, still masquerade as British Airways.

As for fees, firstly only Gold Card holders can be certain of fees being waived. Secondly BA.com’s lack of functionality is not a guarantee that fees will be waived and I and many others have expensive experiences of BA and their fees when BA.com does not work. Eg open jaw is chargeable but mixed class is not. Hopelessly inconsistent and confusing!

And it is not about convenient connections, it was about a system issue which resulted in the search A to C via LHR showing nil availability when there was indeed availability from LHR to C. The lack of availability from A to LHR was due to the seats being released 24 hours later but this not being communicated to customers.

Passengers should not need a degree in understanding the complexities of BA internal machinations in order to book a ticket using a reward programme that allegedly rewards their loyalty.

[canucklad]

I actually laughed when I read the newspaper article…..

I do recall BB having a go at me for my incompetence at planning a trip back to YVR via LHR !!

Why was I catching the 10.00 flight when the YVR flight didn’t leave till the back of 5…..

I could have caught a later flight to LCY, and enjoyed the pleasure of traipsing through the wonders of TFL with my luggage or indeed caught an even later flight to LGW which would have required a supersonic effort to get to LHR in –time for check-in again..

All these choices except for the next 3 flights to LHR after my 10.00 flight!

Upside to my long layover was it cost BA a small fortune to keep me refreshed in their lounge : )

If I hadn’t had access to the lounge I might not have been a happy chappy !

It does however just re-enforce the London Airways tag !

[AnthonyDunn]

@ Swindoneric – 25/08/2013 07:47 GMT

+1 My thoughts entirely: if it costs the same number of Avios to book from the English regions and from Scottyland and Norn Ireland as it does from London, is this not a case of London-originating pax effectively subsidising those from the regions/Celtic fringe?

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