Removal of pre booked seats

[honey lamb]

Originally posted by wood07


I don't mind where I sit as long as I can sit with or be within reach of my children. Imagine a six and a three year old having to sit alone through heavy turbulence without a parent next to them to offer reassurance.

Reminds me of the time Aer John and I were flying from Chicago to LAX some four years agoon United. I was sitting in a middle seat (albeit in a bulkhead row in Econ+) between Aer John and a girl in her late teens early 20s. The flight attendant wanted me to change seats with the girl's older sister so that they could be together. She was a bit narked when I politely refused, indicationg Aer John beside me. [:0]

Originally posted by DaveVal

On the above flight, I was allocated the middle of three seats, my son on the opposite aisle. My fellow passengers were a couple, and were most put out to be asked to sit together so I could be next to my son, albeit with an ailse between us.

Travelling with the kids is hard enough, wihtout having to worry that you won't be sitting next to them on the plane!

Presumably they preferred the aisle seats to each other's company or gambled on the seat remaining free...

[Neil]

Originally posted by Monkey
I do appreciate that you want to sit together but my point wasnt as clearly made as it could have been. I meant specific seats.

Which leads me to ask if you were given the choice of A) sitting together or B)Sitting where you requested. ie middle of 4 or not an aisle.

A) Sitting together without questions - but remember this whole topic was started when the OP's group of 4 was split up into 4 single seats!. I still think with the technology available today you should be able to do both, but maybe I'm just to demanding [:w]

Neil:)

Originally posted by Attitude23

Originally posted by Monkey
I do appreciate that you want to sit together but my point wasnt as clearly made as it could have been. I meant specific seats.

Which leads me to ask if you were given the choice of A) sitting together or B)Sitting where you requested. ie middle of 4 or not an aisle.

A) Sitting together without questions - but remember this whole topic was started when the OP's group of 4 was split up into 4 single seats!. I still think with the technology available today you should be able to do both, but maybe I'm just to demanding [:w]

Neil:)

It would be possible to get so far, but a combination of party sizes, preferences, strength of preference, treatment of frequent vs infrequent flyers and (on non holiday routes) potential shows / no shows would seem to me to make it almost impossible to achieve an optimum that pleases the most and disappoints nobody.

Paul

Hi,
I did an online seat request several months before our flight lgw to mco and return in PE. Outbound was fine but on the return flight we checked in at the Downtown Disney check-in and were 4th in the queue before it opened. When we got to the counter I noticed my requested seats were not one's I had been allocated, when I checked with the assistant and showed her my copy of the request she threw it to one side and said "we don't take any notice of these I don't know why they allow you to do it" No amount of asking would change her mind all she said was "you have been allocated different seats" when asked why I couldn't have my requested seats she refused to answer. I spoke to her supervisor but it made no difference.
Sent an e-mail to customer service on my return and got a "standard" reply, so sent another and also complained about the "standard" nature of the 1st and we got 5000 miles each.
I realise seat requests are just that, requests, but what annoyed me was the attitude of the check-in staff when with just a little more effort she can have probably sorted it.
Mick.

Originally posted by g7dyd
at the Downtown Disney check-in and were 4th in the queue before it opened. When we got to the counter I noticed my requested seats were not one's I had been allocated, when I checked with the assistant and showed her my copy of the request she threw it to one side and said "we don't take any notice of these I don't know why they allow you to do it" No amount of asking would change her mind all she said was "you have been allocated different seats" when asked why I couldn't have my requested seats she refused to answer. I spoke to her supervisor but it made no difference.

Is it possible that the DD check-in opens after other check-ins so actually you were further down the queue than 4th? If not it seems a strange way for any system to behave to say that you get no benefit from either doing it months before on line or turning up early!

Either way it doesn't excuse a shabby attitude on the part of the agent. Also, to begin the interaction in such a way seems frankly bizarre, and certain to colour the entire transaction.

Perhaps they were on loan from immigration.

Is it possible that the DD check-in opens after other check-ins so actually you were further down the queue than 4th? If not it seems a strange way for any system to behave to say that you get no benefit from either doing it months before on line or turning up early!

Either way it doesn't excuse a shabby attitude on the part of the agent. Also, to begin the interaction in such a way seems frankly bizarre, and certain to colour the entire transaction.

Perhaps they were on loan from immigration

DD check in opens either 8 or 9 am I think. So technically after OLCI but before the main check in at MCO.

I think that an honest explanation of why the seating requests had been changed in a professional and friendly manner would help.

I guess if the reason were because someone "more important" wanted the seats that might not help. But if it were to allow, say, a family to sit together, or someone with a mobility problem or the like to sit with a travelling companion, it could be more easily understood.

When we were moved last, I couldn't see any obvious reason why the passengers were in "our" seats. However, as has been said before, maybe they just asked for them and as we hadn't turned up yet were given them.

Does anyone know within what time frame this would be allowed to happen? Would OLCI or checking in at the 3 hours prior increase one's chances of getting the chosen seats?

[Neil]

Originally posted by DaveVal

Does anyone know within what time frame this would be allowed to happen? Would OLCI or checking in at the 3 hours prior increase one's chances of getting the chosen seats?

I doubt that anybody actually knows this for certain, there have been a lot of conflicting reports and it just seems like a bit of a lottery, best thing to do is to keep checking the "manage my flights" section regular before the flight then try and use OLCI as soon as possible and of course hope for the best, because at the moment VS doesn't seem to have a system that suits the pax ultimate requirement,

Neil:)

If you have pre-booked seats and you are a VH customer then point out the following statement to the check-in staff.

"Window or Aisle?
Don't fight for decent seats. Pre-book the ones you want for FREE- and be sure your whole family will be sitting together."

This was in a letter from VH (received this week) advertising their 2007 Florida brochure.

Originally posted by Tim
If you have pre-booked seats and you are a VH customer then point out the following statement to the check-in staff.

"Window or Aisle?
Don't fight for decent seats. Pre-book the ones you want for FREE- and be sure your whole family will be sitting together."

This was in a letter from VH (received this week) advertising their 2007 Florida brochure.

Judging by DaveVal's experience this would probably have induced the agent to tear up the letter, soak it in lighter fluid, set it afire and grind it under their heel.

As DaveVal says though "an honest explanation of why the seating requests had been changed in a professional and friendly manner would help."

Just as an aside on the whole service issue, I witnessed a strange occurence at Kings Cross station this evening. Some poor soul (well, not the term I thought at the time, but somebody is mourning tonight) decided to end their life in front of a train on the East Coast mainline this afternoon. Coupled with warped rails etc, this caused severe delays. The station announcer - usually the most placid of voices - was virtually pleading with people to behave; I get the impression that one set of passengers was near mutiny and refusing to let a train go unless extra stops were made. In doing the pleading, he was, however, giving clear and precise reasons why the whole thing was in chaos; trains and drivers in the wrong place, needing to alter schedules so later on everything would work better...Seemed to me to make sense to say "hey, we have a problem, here's what's happening" rather than simply to say nothing..

I dont think it is a case of an honest answer I think it might be more a case of a long winded complicated answer that might sound like you are being fobbed off.

(Just my opinion)