QR withholding award seats from Qantas?

[WLGFlyer]

Found a J Award on the AA website SYD-DOH-LHR, called QF but no luck. Not sure if Virgin has enabled QR awards yet, but it wasn't visible on their site either.

 

[rigram]

Can QF make a direct booking using flight number - I know previously, they could. Mostly agents these days display availability and take seat from list on screen - however I know they used to be able make direct flight seat request using date/flight/class etc (without looking at class availability). Is this something they can still do...?

 

[Mattg]

Qatar Airways reward seats are now available to book with Velocity points. You can book on the Virgin Australia website and QR is not systematically withholding availability in the same way that it is for Qantas Frequent Flyer members.

Virgin Australia and Qatar Announce Strategic Partnership

What a great set of quotes - Brutal honesty

www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au

 

[levelnine]

You can book on the Virgin Australia website and QR is not systematically withholding availability in the same way that it is for Qantas Frequent Flyer members.

This is truly an astonishing development if it continues this way into the future. Would be a huge coup for VFF over QFF.

 

[jase05]

Qatar Airways reward seats are now available to book with Velocity points. You can book on the Virgin Australia website and QR is not systematically withholding availability in the same way that it is for Qantas Frequent Flyer members.

Virgin Australia and Qatar Announce Strategic Partnership

What a great set of quotes - Brutal honesty

www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au

Just saw some J and F availability ex BKK to DOH
J 53k plus $327
F 78k plus $459

 

[ozflier]

Just saw some J and F availability ex BKK to DOH
J 53k plus $327
F 78k plus $459

Bad news if you are not a Velocity points holder!

 

[SYD]

Bad news if you are not a Velocity points holder!

As per the VA thread, I’m running down VFF pts. Looks like I might have a good use. So long as I can still get into OW F lounges!

 

[FlyingFiona]

This is truly an astonishing development if it continues this way into the future. Would be a huge coup for VFF over QFF.

Their partnership had already been announced a while back...

Just hope they stop blocking QF redemptions soon. Surely they can't be in the One World alliance and do that for too much longer??

 

[Princess Fiona]

 

[FlyingFiona]

View attachment 291692

Which date is this for?

 

[Princess Fiona]

22nd October

 

[FlyingFiona]

22nd October

had a glimmer of hope they'd opened something up in 2023 (no one's seen any premium reward seats available after Dec since they withdrew availability.)

 

[Withnail & I]

I see QR economy reward flights to Europe are being released one day at a time (today up to 13 May 2023).

I wonder if this will continue through to late June / early July 2023 when I wish to travel?

Perhaps not as the price jumps up for the same flights on QR's webpage which I expect is because of the high season.

 

[ozflier]

I see QR economy reward flights to Europe are being released one day at a time (today up to 13 May 2023).

I wonder if this will continue through to late June / early July 2023 when I wish to travel?

Perhaps not as the price jumps up for the same flights on QR's webpage which I expect is because of the high season.

Been looking hard myself for QR business rewards back to Australia from Europe but nil to see !

 

[Withnail & I]

I see there are weeks where there are no rewards seats on offer in between periods where they are on offer. Does this indicate that Qantas doesn‘t release rewards seats at peak travel times (as they can easily sell those seats) or that they did release them and they were quickly taken?

 

[AFF Editor]

This article summarises the current situation with Qatar Airways award availability:

Qatar Airways Reward Seats: Velocity Members Get Priority over Qantas

This week, Qatar Airways launched a new strategic partnership with Virgin Australia. But as a member of the Oneworld alliance, Qatar Airways already

www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au

 

[drron]

And even if you could see a QR J award on QFF would you be game enough to book it?

 

[levelnine]

This article summarises the current situation with Qatar Airways award availability:

Great article, Matt.

I think this situation, particularly if it continues, could be a game changer in the Australian frequent flyer landscape.

Business class redemptions to Europe are one of the most popular reasons why people collect frequent flyer points.

If Qantas loses Qatar as a partner to Europe, that leaves very limited options — Qantas flights to London (currently as rare as a unicorn), Emirates with sky high surcharges and a few much smaller players (JAL, Cathay, Malaysia etc).

This will prompt a lot of savvy frequent flyers to switch to Velocity given it now has two great options (Singapore and Qatar), which might prompt Qantas to start releasing a lot more seats to London to remain competitive.

 

[aikman]

which might prompt Qantas to start releasing a lot more seats to London to remain competitive

If Qantas made all of its unsold business class seats to London for the rest of the year as classic award seats, I suspect it will sell out within days.

A few days later we will be back to the same position as we are now where people who missed out are complaining that they can't get any seats.

Qantas needs to reduce the demand somehow or the number of points out there in people's accounts.

 

[levelnine]

If Qantas made all of its unsold business class seats to London for the rest of the year as classic award seats, I suspect it will sell out within days.

That might be the case, but at the moment it is releasing approximately 0 seats on its LHR flights (apart from the apology release).

My point was not that Qantas can completely fix the problem, but that this situation is going to force Qantas' hand one way or the other. Its reputation is already at probably the lowest point in its history (perhaps except for when AJ grounded the airline). People are looking at alternatives. Once they start noticing bloggers/friends/journalists/forum posters redeeming for business class to Europe with VFF points while they are stuck with incompetent call centres and useless points, their golden goose (the FF program) is going to be on the line.