how come i can't pre-select row 4 on a lightly loaded plane? QFF gold

[haggiscat]

Greetings,

flew Y last night for the first time in ages. I was blocked off from pre-selecting rows 4-7, all seats showing as occupied. Once aboard, I noticed that very few of these seats were occupied. The Purser suggested that the computer might have been trying to spread the payload around the plane but that I could move.

Today, flying Y again unless I can upgrade it, and same deal - first three rows blacked out to me and the rest of the plane is lightly loaded, so I'm assuming the same thing is going to happen again.

If I don't get an ODU, then I'll just get on last and sit in an empty seat in Row 4, but I'm curious as to what benefit Gold actually gives you when using advanced seat selection?

Seating available on an international Y flight next month is appalling, too, and I booked well ahead of time.

 

[TheInsider]

If I don't get an ODU, then I'll just get on last and sit in an empty seat in Row 4, but I'm curious as to what benefit Gold actually gives you when using advanced seat selection?

Seating selection is based on your status and other passengers status' for every flight. If there are a high load of CL's and WP's the theory is they will generally have their choice of seat first (which is generally front of the aircraft), and then will block off these seats to other passengers.
It's all based on a series of business rules and calculations.

Is that what you were wanting to know?

 

[markis10]

Seating available on an international Y flight next month is appalling, too, and I booked well ahead of time.

If you look again at seating at T-80 you will find the blocks in general removed!

 

[ozmille]

Greetings,

flew Y last night for the first time in ages. I was blocked off from pre-selecting rows 4-7, all seats showing as occupied. Once aboard, I noticed that very few of these seats were occupied. The Purser suggested that the computer might have been trying to spread the payload around the plane but that I could move.

Today, flying Y again unless I can upgrade it, and same deal - first three rows blacked out to me and the rest of the plane is lightly loaded, so I'm assuming the same thing is going to happen again.

If I don't get an ODU, then I'll just get on last and sit in an empty seat in Row 4, but I'm curious as to what benefit Gold actually gives you when using advanced seat selection?

Seating available on an international Y flight next month is appalling, too, and I booked well ahead of time.

If space allows CL and WP get a shadow as well I think blocking the seat next to them...

 

[haggiscat]

hey thanks for replies
i figured as much with platinum, but there were rows with only 1 passenger- i mean i don't want to sit in anyone's pocket so i wouldn't squeeze between two people on a flight with few passengers, but just wondered if gold was automatically locked out from even pre-selecting there. anyway we shall see what tonight's looks like.

have also, to my great annoyance, paid for many J fares and found myself sitting in row 3 while upgraded others and been sitting in row 1 - this without any status at all.

 

[markis10]

hey thanks for replies
i figured as much with platinum, but there were rows with only 1 passenger- i mean i don't want to sit in anyone's pocket so i wouldn't squeeze between two people on a flight with few passengers, but just wondered if gold was automatically locked out from even pre-selecting there. anyway we shall see what tonight's looks like.

have also, to my great annoyance, paid for many J fares and found myself sitting in row 3 while upgraded others and been sitting in row 1 - this without any status at all.

As I said, be it J or Y cabins, recheck your seating at departure time - 80 hours, and you will get Row 1 in J etc.

 

[NM]

If you look again at seating at T-80 you will find the blocks in general removed!

T-80 hasn't worked for me for tomorrow's flights. EF still showing front rows as blocked and I still can't access them even now that OLCI has opened. Not sure why they didn't open up at T-80 as they usually do.

 

[markis10]

T-80 hasn't worked for me for tomorrow's flights. EF still showing front rows as blocked and I still can't access them even now that OLCI has opened. Not sure why they didn't open up at T-80 as they usually do.

That does happen with an actual CL has booked, and may clear at OLCI or earlier if they are moved, it worked for my Thursday flight yesterday although I noted 23jk were occupied at 80 hours.

 

[NM]

That does happen with an actual CL has booked, and may clear at OLCI or earlier if they are moved, it worked for my Thursday flight yesterday although I noted 23jk were occupied at 80 hours.

I am not talking about an individual seat.

For the first flight, in the cabin into which I am booked, there are 8 seats remaining blocked, 8 setas allocated (including mine) and 10 showing as unallocated.

For my second flight, 12 seats remain blocked, 17 are allocated (including mine) and 11 remain available for selection. This flight is showing exteremly full in the Y cabin (likely oversold) so maybe they are keeping some "desirable" PE seats reserved for op-ups. But I would have expected by OLCI that as a OneWorld Sapphire I with a paid PE fare I would be able to select some of those "blocked" seats. A lot of the J cabin is still showing blocked as well. And tehse are not just blocked seats next to an allocated seta. They are AB, DEFG, JK pairs/rows etc that remain blocked. So something is unusal for this flight. I highly doubt they remain blocked for CLs in this case.

 

[NM]

Well at T-22 or so, they finally unblocked some of the blocked seats for my secind flight tomorrow. Received the email alert from ExpertFlyer, jumped onto QF site and selected one of the previously blocked seats. That is what has happened at T-80 previously, but was at T-22 today. I wonder if this coincided with process upgrade waitlists?

 

[drewbles]

I've often seen lightly loaded flights like this.

The OP would be wise to check what seats are showing in EF for a WP (if they know someone that can take a look for them) and see what the situation is.

Would not be the first time i've not seen forward seats open at T-24; Yield management have been known to spread the load out over an a/c for trim/weight requirements etc.

 

[Groundfeeder]

For my flights last week, I went from row 26 on B738 to 4A outbound and 23 to 4F inbound. At T80 they open up considerably and T24 OLCI can usually secure row 4 in my experience. Keep checking in the QP.

 

[avi8or]

Managed to snag 23A (767-300) on a Saturday morning SYD-BNE a T -72 but I guess not too many WP/CL fly on saturday mornings.

 

[JohnK]

I have been holding a boarding pass for 23J (767) and last to board given a boarding pass for 53A! Most people were moved down the back as there was a lot of freight which is located around the middle of the aircraft where the front rows of economy are situated.

I have also been on other flights on 767s and 737s where the load was light and everyone was spread around the cabin.

 

[QFMEL]

If space allows CL and WP get a shadow as well I think blocking the seat next to them...

Agree, but WP status alone is not a panacea wrt this particular issue.

Guaranteed seats in Y for CL members (which ordinarily works out to first/second/third row depending on how many are travelling, and type of a/c) are a variable on certain routes in and out of CBR in particular, at peak times- that's also increasingly the case for PER given the proportion of J and to a lesser extent Y that are high value corporate clients for QF.

Convertible J on 734s as well is a regular culprit, with last minute changes (including where QF have failed to make the change even after you've boarded as a Y pax in 4/5/6 Alpha, Charlie, Delta or Foxtrot- and then Bravo or Echo come along) often making the exit row the more attractive- insofar as it's predictable- option.