What's it like for Industry staff to travel on standby on airlines

[Musongman]

But is that because there are less flights/destos.[/QUOT

I suspect that is because of commercial and F/F upgrades, after all, staff are the bottom of the heap. In recent decades QF have become quite anti staff benefits IMHO.

 

[doczim]

Great thread. I have always wondered about how people manage with staff/standby travel and the points that have come out here are many of the things I have thought would be issues. It's clearly, like many things, a horses for courses thing. Some are quite ok not knowing the exact dates and being "flexible" as some put it. I'm not in that camp and I would certainly not cope if I was onboard and bumped, that would crush me. Great that others can and make the most of it.

 

[Isochronous]

It sounds like an awful deal. Don't think I'd ever rely on it for my travel needs!

 

[justcallmeryan]

It sounds like an awful deal. Don't think I'd ever rely on it for my travel needs!

Depends on your definition of awful. I am lucky enough to have family working for a major OZ based airline and have enjoyed many an affordable flight in J and Y across the globe. Yes you have to study the loads carefully, pick the flights that look empty, and be prepared to go home, but in practice as long as you're flexible then it's great. It certainly appeals to my personal sense of adventure..

Having said that I don't have kids so son't need to go in peak holiday season, am an expat so make frequent trips to North America and mostly travel by myself. All which does make it easier to enjoy the benefits.

 

[Happy Trails]

Last month my SIL (ANZ FA) was on an ID90 booking BKK-HKG-AKL with CX, but was unable to board as the flight was full.
She ended up going much later that day via SYD with EK.

As it happened, I was on the same flight and guested her into the EK lounge.
On leaving the dragon mentioned that she ought not to have had access due to travelling on a staff ticket.

 

[TomVexille]

On leaving the dragon mentioned that she ought not to have had access due to travelling on a staff ticket.

That's a pretty common condition across the industry

 

[peakhour]

Disagree about VA handling it well.

From the perspective of me wanting to upgrade to J from PE, seeing a very empty cabin with no upgrade availability, then on boarding seeing a heap of staff all smiles filling up the J cabin.

On other occasions in PE and J (both full fare and upgrade at different times) getting garbage service as the cabin is full of staff on leave and the cabin crew paying no attention to anyone except their colleagues.

It's interesting the manner in which US airlines handle staff STBY vs say QF/VA.

There are plenty of threads here on AFF where pax are unhappy at the perception of missing out on upgrades/awards due to staff in those seats.

(many times these are assumptions, and ignore duty/leisure travel etc etc; AND the international upgrade system at QF is much improved these days) but that's not my point.

My point is about PERCEPTION, and you always want to avoid pissing off revenue pax.

So... QF/VA handle it quite well I believe.

But the sheer numbers of STBY non-revs that AA/UA put on their TPAC flights is mind-boggling. I of course have no issue with staff getting vacant seats per se.

But the way they rub it in the face of revenue pax via the Upgrade/Standby lists is not what I would call "good marketing".

 

[Happy Trails]

That's a pretty common condition across the industry

Yes, I'm aware they don't get lounge access via class of service, but I'd have thought being guested by a revenue F pax would trump that.
There were no questions asked on entry, so maybe the dragon was just intimating she'd done us a favour.

 

[TomVexille]

Yes, I'm aware they don't get lounge access via class of service, but I'd have thought being guested by a revenue F pax would trump that.
There were no questions asked on entry, so maybe the dragon was just intimating she'd done us a favour.

As I understand it, there's no access with status either, and I'm guessing that by extension, within alliance guesting rules, those on ID tickets probably are not eligible to be in a lounge even if someone on a rev ticket guesting them in. My take on it is that QF and VA domestically are different as guests don't need to be travelling.

 

[trippin_the_rift]

As I understand it, there's no access with status either, and I'm guessing that by extension, within alliance guesting rules, those on ID tickets probably are not eligible to be in a lounge even if someone on a rev ticket guesting them in. My take on it is that QF and VA domestically are different as guests don't need to be travelling.

Many airlines allow staff to enter the lounge by virtue of class of travel and/or status. The nature of standby means you often wouldn't have a chance to use the lounge since you can be running to catch the flight.

Also qantas recently announced ex-employees now get staff travel benefits (although low priority) after leaving the company. While this is being disguised as a 'perk for years of service' it's really a way for more people to have access to otherwise unoccupied seats which boosts revenue.
The downside is less shadows for status pax.

 

[marki]

Many airlines allow staff to enter the lounge by virtue of class of travel and/or status. The nature of standby means you often wouldn't have a chance to use the lounge since you can be running to catch the flight.

Also qantas recently announced ex-employees now get staff travel benefits (although low priority) after leaving the company. While this is being disguised as a 'perk for years of service' it's really a way for more people to have access to otherwise unoccupied seats which boosts revenue.
The downside is less shadows for status pax.

lets not underestimate the earn from flying empty but with extra cargo underneath. Apparently they make more revenue from that then seats!

 

[TomVexille]

Many airlines allow staff to enter the lounge by virtue of class of travel and/or status. The nature of standby means you often wouldn't have a chance to use the lounge since you can be running to catch the flight.

Also qantas recently announced ex-employees now get staff travel benefits (although low priority) after leaving the company. While this is being disguised as a 'perk for years of service' it's really a way for more people to have access to otherwise unoccupied seats which boosts revenue.
The downside is less shadows for status pax.

Good to know. The ones that I have experienced staff travel with certainly do not allow it however.

 

[Katy]

Good to know. The ones that I have experienced staff travel with certainly do not allow it however.

The one I work for will not allow you to enter based on class of travel but will if you have access via other means (status or lounge membership).

 

[justcallmeryan]

Good to know. The ones that I have experienced staff travel with certainly do not allow it however.

+1, The staff travel I enjoy does not allow lounge access no matter class of travel. In fact it's printed on the boarding pass - 'NO LOUNGE', even when in J.

 

[ozbeachbabe]

I'm talking about TPAC situations (specifically the 7 I've recently flown on UA). It's VERY easy to see who are the elite's standing by for their GPU to clear, vs the staff who are standing by for ALL cabins simultaneously.

A little harder to discern on domestic flights as you rightly point out - but obvious as dog's balls on the internationals.

Wouldn't the elites already have their initial boarding pass and be more likely to get any GPU upgrade either in the lounge or at the boarding gate vs the staff that would still be landside at checkin.

Daughter and Son-in-law have travelled extensively together, he on staff and daughter on paid fares. Lots of times not on the same plane or even the same day, but have managed ok. Their honeymoon was the biggie, to LHR/FCO. They both finished up on the same flights for every leg, but not sure my daughter has forgiven him for the J upgrades that she did not share in.

No, she wouldn't have.

Flexibility is a perhaps a lot easier when there's only 1 or 2 pax to worry about, it's a bit more challenging when you have children and even more so when those children are school-aged.

That can be problematic when you have a young family and the last seats left of the plane are 4 middle seats all over the cabin.

I've also observed that the more senior in an organisation someone gets the less likely they are to use staff travel; time is a precious resource and the benefits of staff travel stop being so alluring when weighed against the cons.

Yes and no. There can also be senior people that don't necessarily come from an airline operational background that have no idea that subload means they may not get an upgrade, may not be seated together or may not even get on the flight.

I remember it used to be that one could buy an ID50 firm space? Taking much of the sting out of staff travel!

With some airlines ID50's are conditionally firm ie if the flight is oversold you're gonna get bumped. In most cases buying a cheap commercial fare will be cheaper than an ID50 plus you get to earn SC and points.

 

[puppysparkes]

I am soon to be added as a category A traveller in the QF program. Does anyone have any recent experience regarding lounge access? I am currently SG and would prefer lounge access while travelling. Thanks in advance.

 

[bam71]

I am soon to be added as a category A traveller in the QF program. Does anyone have any recent experience regarding lounge access? I am currently SG and would prefer lounge access while travelling. Thanks in advance.

Ex QF Staff here, if you are on a staff travel ticket you do not get lounge access, even if you are a paid up QF lounge member.

 

[puppysparkes]

How very unappealing!

Ex QF Staff here, if you are on a staff travel ticket you do not get lounge access, even if you are a paid up QF lounge member.

 

[bam71]

It never bothered us. Not sure if you qualify for J or not, but be flexible, adhere to the dress code, if you have an upgradeable ticket to J you must check in at the Y counter ( not J - that's for commercial pax), and be prepared for last meal choice on board. We only ever relaxed AFTER the door was closed and we had started to push back, prior to then you can be bumped or moved. Never happened to us, but we always chose our flights carefully. A few times we were asked to move seats by the FA's. If asked you do it quickly and without fuss, even if being told you can no longer sit together.

 

[justcallmeryan]

Ex QF Staff here, if you are on a staff travel ticket you do not get lounge access, even if you are a paid up QF lounge member.

+1 to this. In some ports the boarding pass even says 'No lounge access' on it, or has STAFF printed.

Adhere to the rules, be flexible with your travel times and enjoy the benefits. But it is a totally different experience to traveling on paid tickets.