OUTWARD CHANGES?

[THE_DRUID 21]

Although having booked flights to L.O.S.many times i am aware that the outward part of the trip cannot be altered once the ticket has been issued.I was wondering that since the SARS scaremongering plus the Gulf war if the airlines(being between 50-70%capacity) are showing any leeway to this policy.I'm flying on Emirates at the begining of July from Manchester.I booked this flight through Trailfinders before the SARS/Gulf war broke out,i couldn't get on the 2pm flight because it was full so i had to opt for the 8.30pm flight.Now i have found out that due to lots of cancellations the 'early' 2pm flight now has seats available!I phoned 'trailfinders' with whom i booked the flight and they told me that once the ticket has been issued there was no chance of changing the designated flight unless i cancelled lost 50% and re-booked!It seems absurd when there's room on the flight and it's the same day just a few hours before, that a simple alteration can't be made.My other suggestion was that if i turned up at the airport for the 2pm flight would Emirates let me on the flight if their are empty seats.Trailfinders told me they had know knowledge of airlines letting customers do this.I am a member of the Emirates air miles club and am awaiting a reply from them via E-mail on my predicament. ???The Druid

[Guest]

The Druid,

 

I don't think that there has been a lot of cancellations.  What is happening is known as yielding.  The airlines release seats at given times/prices to stimulate or manipulate demand according to their load factors.  What has happened is that Emirates has replaced the afternoon Airbus with a high density Boeing 777, which offers more seats, and they are now looking to fill that aircraft and offering the prices to do that.  If you wanted to change the outbound flight you would normally need to purchase a fully flexible ticket at probably 2-3 times the price you paid for your restricted ticket.

 

Tom