QR withholding award seats from Qantas?

[acinod]

One of my Qatar legs in Feb 2023 has straight up disappeared from my booking. Call centre has no idea why and can't find any seats...

EDIT: Apparently the flight has been 'downgraded' so there are no business class seats. But that doesn't make sense since the business seats are being sold on Qatar's website. They also managed to find a business class seat for the day before so it seems like they can still see award availability in Feb 2023.

 

[Mattg]

EDIT: Apparently the flight has been 'downgraded' so there are no business class seats. But that doesn't make sense since the business seats are being sold on Qatar's website. They also managed to find a business class seat for the day before so it seems like they can still see award availability in Feb 2023.

Interesting that they can still see availability for Feb 2023 at the QF call centre. Do you know which call centre it was (Hobart?) and is the seat showing on the QF website?

 

[acinod]

Interesting that they can still see availability for Feb 2023 at the QF call centre. Do you know which call centre it was (Hobart?) and is the seat showing on the QF website?

Can't see it on the website but I think it was Hobart.

 

[Danger]

As discussed up-thread, QR availability does appear to be back now for travel dates up to around 18 November 2022. But nothing later than this.

I can see some availability in February.

 

[Mattg]

I can see some availability in February.

I can now see some QR award seats on the QF website for travel dates up to 10 April 2023. But I cannot see a single J or F seat available between mid-November 2022 and 10 April 2023, nor can I see any QR award seats at all for travel dates beyond 10 April 2023.

This just gets stranger by the day.

 

[snakenlibra]

Hi all, I did some quick tests - from Paris to Sydney, I can see only Y availability for 11 April 2023, nothing after that date. From Sydney to Paris, last day that QR appears for Y is 2 April 2023.
Looks like something is in the air !

 

[gazza48]

I'm thinking (hoping) it's just a Qantas website error......which is pretty standard!

Was working fine last night around 7pm but re-checked about 9 and errors ever since as soon as Doha is included in any search....

Don't believe it is a QF website issue. I check regularly for FF seats and there have been plenty in J cabin on CX, QR,JL when first released and now there is nothing coming up but the odd BA flight where it shows J but it is only PY on the long haul. Even EK beyond DXB comes up as an error. I really wish I was not locked into QF as they are becoming a useless commodity if looking for premium cabin. They want all these members to earn points but they don't want you using them on other airlines, just them in Y class because that is all they release for the bulk of their members.....

 

[Zanzara]

Probably mentioned previously, but does it have anything to do with availability that QR ffs have to QF premium cabins?

QR are a bit rogue sometimes and quite unlike any other Oneworld airline. An insider would know if it is just a financial transaction of what QF are willing to pay for QR for them, QR earning more elsewhere or QR simply being unwilling to make them available to other airlines in favour for their own ffs.

QR premium cabins are highly regarded by many. QR may now be morphing a bit like like how SQ guard their ff seats for their ‘own’ rather, than get them all snapped up by less favourable vultures from other Star Alliance airline ffs.

 

[worldholdonn]

Agree with Zanzara. I am a lowly silver with qantas and was able to snap up an F on QR A380 from Sydney to Doha and then J to Amman.

 

[Pom-DownUnder]

I really hope this gets sorted, trying to get to the uk in business with EK and Qatar both not playing the game is going to be a real messy situation

 

[gazza48]

Think there are many airlines that are not coming up available anymore in premium cabins so think this is a QF issue not allowing access to those seats that other airline members can see...wish they could be taken to the ACCC!lol

 

[Berlin]

I bet it’s just Qantas being afraid of a muuuuuch better airline offering rewards seats.

Especially in anything but Economy, Qantas international rewards are suddenly so super hard to find that, for me personally, it totally devalues the entire frequent flyer scheme.

 

[Danger]

Think there are many airlines that are not coming up available anymore in premium cabins so think this is a QF issue not allowing access to those seats that other airline members can see...wish they could be taken to the ACCC!lol

Why would it be an ACCC issue?

 

[levelnine]

If QR J seats go, that takes out a major leg of the value proposition for earning QF points in Australia.

We've already seen the loss of CX as a partner (for all practical purposes). If QR also go, that really only leaves QF & JL as the premium options out of Australia (I don't really consider UL & MH premium options, especially with solvency issues around UL).

 

[jase05]

If QR J seats go, that takes out a major leg of the value proposition for earning QF points in Australia.

We've already seen the loss of CX as a partner (for all practical purposes). If QR also go, that really only leaves QF & JL as the premium options out of Australia (I don't really consider UL & MH premium options, especially with solvency issues around UL).

MH premium product is streets ahead of QF IMO.

 

[jgm]

The only thing premium about QF is the price.

 

[DC3]

Think there are many airlines that are not coming up available anymore in premium cabins so think this is a QF issue not allowing access to those seats that other airline members can see...wish they could be taken to the ACCC!lol

However, the carriers (and not QF) decide on how many award seats, if any, that will be made available to oneworld partners. Partners may receive a different allocation than other partners.

Some flights may have no award seats released at all. Some routes may have none released at times. The carrier may prioritise award seats being released to members of their own FF program at times.

 

[Pom-DownUnder]

If QR J seats go, that takes out a major leg of the value proposition for earning QF points in Australia.

We've already seen the loss of CX as a partner (for all practical purposes). If QR also go, that really only leaves QF & JL as the premium options out of Australia (I don't really consider UL & MH premium options, especially with solvency issues around UL).

Agreed, Qantas need to address this for real.

 

[aikman]

Agreed, Qantas need to address this for real.

Emirates premium seats has pretty much all but disappeared but Qantas hasn't done anything.

The public will learn to accept it and adjust.

There might be more rants of how difficult it is to find seats to Europe but that's about it.

 

[Mattg]

Emirates premium seats has pretty much all but disappeared but Qantas hasn't done anything.

The public will learn to accept it and adjust.

There might be more rants of how difficult it is to find seats to Europe but that's about it.

Ultimately, if Qantas Frequent Flyer members are finding that they can't use their points as they had hoped (and as Qantas has advertised), they'll stop collecting points and/or switch to a different loyalty program. This hurts Qantas in the long run because it makes a lot of money from selling points.

The whole business model of Qantas Frequent Flyer relies on the points being an attractive currency that people believe they can use for something that they value.