AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elites

[serfty]

I was doing a booking today for an AA segment in coach. While booking I entered my Qantas (WP) FF number.

After placing it on hold I noticed I had been allocated 10A (MD80); this is different from prior experience where a 'random' "nonpreferred" seat has normally been allocated.

Going into the seat selection function I noted that Exit Row seats and other defined "preferred" seats were available for selection.

This has changed from previous experience where selection was only available from standard seating.

It seems AA.com is now recognising the status of other oneworld partner members (or at least QF's).

To test this I did a dummy booking, putting my non elite AAdvantage number in - sure enough, I had no access to those seats.

 

[Dave Noble]

Re: AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elit

I just did a dummy booking and was able to get access to the preferred seats. It does seem that the exit row preferred seats are still unavailable without AA status

Dave

 

[serfty]

Maybe they had already been preselected.

I guess in the example as mentioned in my OP may be a case of one "Swallow does not a summer make".

 

[Dave Noble]

Re: AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elit

Maybe they had already been preselected.

I guess in the example as mentioned in my OP may be a case of one "Swallow does not a summer make".

Nope. I checked the seat map to see whether the exit seats were taken. All bar one was available.

I could select from the so called premium seats at the front of the plane but not the key useful exit rows

Dave

 

[serfty]

Still curious about this, I did a 'dummy' booking for Mrs serfty (QF PG) on a 757 DFW-LAX in March.

All 12 rows 17 & 18 exit row seats were available to select as well as all seats in rows 9 and 10.

I will reiterate - the Qantas ff number was entered at the time of booking. (6 digit, I used a leading 0 to make 7)

 

[straitman]

Re: AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elit

serfty,

Certainly a good one to store away and try. If it works then great and if not then nothing lost.

 

[serfty]

TO follow up on this; in March I travelled SFO-LAX in a coach exit aisle seat. This was selected online with my QFF number in the booking.

[aside]As it was a Q class fare, I changed the to my AAdvantage account at the A/C before boarding - this printed on my BP. It did not take and credited as a 0 to my QFF account.[/aside]

 

[mick]

Re: AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elit

TO follow up on this; in March I travelled SFO-LAX in a coach exit aisle seat. This was selected online with my QFF number in the booking.

My experience matches yours, serfty. I'm only QF PS and I was travelling on AA SFO/JFK/LAX with a mate in Jan/Feb of this year who had no QF status. I tried to allocate seating so we'd be sitting next to each other, but he couldn't see the "premium" seats when he tried to allocate seating that did show up for me when I brought up my booking (booked separately) on the same flights, even though our itineraries were linked. I had to call AA to fix this.

 

[MelUser]

Re: AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elit

Other than an exit row seat which is obvious, what is a "preferred seat" on AA - I know where they are as I can see them on seat map but what exactly is one?

 

[serfty]

A "preferred" seat is generally one toward the front of the cabin and are reserved for elites etc. The actual seats so defined vary by route/time.

e.g. an MD80 is 2x3 configuration in WHY and for the first several rows most are generally so designated.

e.g. ([] = a normal seat, {} = a preferred seat)

 9 {}{}  {}{}{}
10 {}{}  {}{}{}
11 {}{}  {}[]{}
12 {}{}  {}[]{}
13 {}{}  {}[][]
14 {}{}  {}[][]
15 [][]  [][][]

Row 7 and 8 are generally Blocked for airport allocation on MD80's.

 

[JohnK]

Re: AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elit

I have 5 AA flights (2 MD80/83, 1 737 and 2 CRJs) coming up in August and the best I could get on the MD80/83 is 16AB, on the 737 is 16CD and the CRJs I could get 4BC. On the bigger aircraft there was hardly any aisle/window seats available forward of row 16 and there was a few forward middle seats available. All so-called preferential seats were blocked off for me.

And yes my QFF number is in the booking but this is also part of a QF Oneworld award for 2 people.

 

[serfty]

I suggest you remove your QFF number from the reservation, check to ensure it really is removed and then re-insert it using AA.com.

Within ~¼ hour after doing so, preferred seating generally becomes available to you.

 

[JohnK]

Re: AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elit

I suggest you remove your QFF number from the reservation, check to ensure it really is removed and then re-insert it using AA.com.

I have not been able to find a way to remove the FF number online from the reservation. I can add a FF number for my father but mine is hard coded and I cannot change it. I must be missing something....

 

[MelUser]

Re: AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elit

I think removing a frequent flyer number takes a phone call to the airline through whom it was inserted and asking them to remove it in ALL parts of the reservation in which it appears.

Then you can start again.

I found that with BA, changes in QF status copy over into existing BA reservations so there is no need to do this.

AA is a completely different ball game (in many respects).

 

[serfty]

You will probably need to call AA (07 3329-6060) to get your FF number removed.

 

[JohnK]

Re: AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elit

You will probably need to call AA (07 3329-6060) to get your FF number removed.

I am not convinced a phone call and the tinketing around with the Oneworld award booking is worth the effort. Not the end of the world sitting in row 16 on the MD80's and 737....

 

[JohnK]

Re: AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elit

I called the AA help desk today and they were hesitant to remove my FF number from the booking.

Apparently "premium seats" are only available for AA Platinum and AA Executive Platinum members not Oneworld Emerald. I was told a number of times that this is AA policy and they cannot do anything about it and if I want to do anything about it to send an email to AA. I thanked them for being extremely unhelpful....

 

[Dave Noble]

Re: AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elit

I called the AA help desk today and they were hesitant to remove my FF number from the booking.

Apparently "premium seats" are only available for AA Platinum and AA Executive Platinum members not Oneworld Emerald. I was told a number of times that this is AA policy and they cannot do anything about it and if I want to do anything about it to send an email to AA. I thanked them for being extremely unhelpful....

That is indeed the policy as far as I am aware. What more would you want the agent to do and is there any need to be rude to the agent doing their job ("thanked them for being extremely unhelpful")

The ability for others to be able to select premium seats does not seem to be available generally when using a non AA number and I have not seen it available in most cases

If you have seats together inside the plane, just relax and fly... just keep an eye in case they make any changes to flight and seats get lost

Dave

 

[jpk]

Re: AA.com "preferred seat" selection now available online for Qantas (oneworld) Elit

Any recent experiences on this?

I booked some international flights (SFO-LHR-SFO) on the Australian AA site, entered QF WP number. Selecting seats via aa.com I am limited to middle row back of the plane, cannot select preferred seats.

 

[serfty]

With the OZ portal it seems a litlle flakey; sometimes yes, sometimes no.

Sometimes it can be rectified by removing and re-instating your FF number. (It can be done using the OZ portal). I have contacted AA in a situation where it was not working and they allocated the seats for me (eventually).

It seems fine when using the USA portal.