[capetonianm]

The SITI / SOTO / SOTI/ SITO indicators have officially been removed from ticketing systems as they mainly pertained to PTA issuance which E-ticketing has made effectively redundant other than in a few isloated cases.

That said, the pricing differences such as HIPs, CTM (circle trip minima) etc remain.

[PeterCoultas]

why then agents….i realise airlines try to maximise returns but some of us try to minimize expenditure and hopefully using an agent will also save time and effort even where there is no financial saving..

in my case the route given to the agent was identical to the one I checked myself and both were researched from the same us city on the same airline…

like Swissdiver I wasn’t paying but, unlike him, the charge came from a grant which had limited funds to cover my trips and so it was in my interest to get the best fare to enable other trips

[capetonianm]

Agents will often have negotiated fare deals with airlines which can result in a lower fare than you would obtain from the airline, or a more flexible ticket at the same fare, or simply more profit for the agent, or a combination of all those factors.

A good agent will often be able to wheedle out better deals on complex journeys than the average user can get direct from the airlines’ websites or OLTAs. Despite what many people say, there is still a place for competent agents who work in the passengers’ interests.

I am not a travel agent and I have no interest in supporting them, other than fairness, just trying to be objective.

[Swissdiver]

It seems LH is not keen to open the “P” class for the FRA – IAD leg to a US based TA (while it is available out of Switzerland).

[TimFitzgeraldTC]

From the points made above (as an “agent”) I have been on the GDS at the same time and spoken to a colleague in Australia (I am in UK) and looking at the same flights we had different availability. Airlines yield management systems are getting cleverer and more sophisticated so they can tell where a TA is based and manage there availability and pricing accordingly. So sometimes it can make TA’s look stupid and expensive, others times the TA can come out better and we can be cheaper (along with the service element hopefully).

On the point of corporate travel, this is a classic point (especially I have found of US organisations) who book all travel in the “US” where booking locally could be much more effective cost wise and possibly from a User perspective as well. Not always the case – every scenario with flights seems to be different. For the sake of saving $1500+ you would hope the company travel policy is flexible enough to allow people to book “outside” the policy allowing for Duty of Care etc.

[capetonianm]

” ……..you would hope the company travel policy is flexible enough to allow people to book “outside” the policy ……….”

You’d think so Tim, but the reality is that many company in-house travel departments or agents who have to blindly follow a policy laid down by bean-counters who are devoid of contact with, or understanding of, the real world, or who are getting a kick back. Or they use a programme like SAP for travel management which has a badly designed and inflexible user interface designed by programmers trying to be smart but having no understanding of the real world.

Some years ago when I was working for a multinational I ended up with three choices to get back to my work location. A ticket from LHR on BD for £400, LHR on BA for £600, or LGW on EZY for £50. I chose the last, hired a car (another £20) had Sunday lunch with my sister, and drove to Gatwick.

Put in my travel expenses the following week and was given a bollocking by travel manager (someone who had never even worked in an agency), head of department, and director, for travelling outside policy (which was to use only legacy carriers). When I pointed out that the fundamental and stated purpose of said travel policy was to save money, they said I was ‘disrespectful’. Fuggem.

[Be_Nice]

Captonianm at 12.32pm

Please can you delete your last f word. Lots of us know urban slang as do my teenagers who read here.

Thanks

Marlene

[capetonianm]

‘Urban slag’?
Do you mean urban slang? I don’t know urban slang, it’s just an expression we use where I come from.

If they know it, you’ve educated them well, congratulations on that, and I see no point in deleting it.

[Be_Nice]

I have no doubt you do, but it’s offensive on a public forum irrespective where you come from.

BT
As not one to complain, posts which are offensive in language can be just as destructive as personal attacks and devalue any professional value.

[lloydah]

Thank you, capetonian, for seeing no point in deleting your comment. I know we’re being good – not that I’ve ever been otherwise – but this isn’t a revivalist church meeting and if someone doesn’t want their teenagers seeing words such as yours then I suggest they tell them not to read this blog.
Come on – this is an adult site for goodness sake.

[capetonianm]

I’ll let BT decide if it’s offensive or not in the context. I know we’re being good and not making personal attacks, but this is a site for grown ups, it’s not Children’s Hour.

[AnthonyDunn]

@ capetonianm – 20/06/2013 12:51 GMT

As a veteran of “The Wire” – which had to be watched with the sub-titles turned on – I have not come across such terminology before. Without the sub-titles on BT, I am positively at a loss to understand what the fuss is about.

[Swissdiver]

I have to say I don’t give a f-word about how fuggem is interpreted nor I believe anyone could be shocked given the language used in songs and on TV. For me, sorry Be_nice, your comment is only disgretional!

Back to the topic.

It seems the file has been escalated, the TA (a large one in the US) not being happy not to be able to access P booking class! Wait and see…

[AllOverTheGaff]

Be_Nice – 20/06/2013 12:48 GMT
but it’s offensive on a public forum irrespective where you come from.

Not to me.

I’ve read and heard a lot worse – daily.

Particularly from teenagers.

[TimFitzgeraldTC]

Swissdiver

I’d be curious to see if anything comes back from the escalation. I have had similar in the past and they just say it is down to different pricing in different markets and nothing they will do about it.

Did you have the dates/route you were looking at as I’d be interested to see what it prices at on a UK GDS set – may be of little help to you?

[Author]

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