Fare Codes?

I'm trying to understand the fare codes. Earlier there were around 8 'Z' seats showing available for my selected flight. I called to book and they've all gone.

When people are getting quotes online, does it 'clog' up seats? Giving an incorrect availability. Say someone gets a quote for 5 U/C seats on the flight will it take them away from anyone else? When do they come back i.e. if not booked?

Trying to make sense of it all! Called the helpline and they said all the Z fares had sold out, but i'm wondering if this is correct. Can anyone help or offer advice?

yes doing a dummy booking will temporarily remove them from the inventory available for other people doing bookings but won't take them from someone else already in the process of booking (or doing a dummy booking).


Z is not a seperate allocation - they are a subset of all the seats in UC so if there are 8 seats in UC available 4 might be in Z but if 6 J seats are sold then the Z's will drop out of the system.

e.g. J8, D6, Z4 and 6 J's are sold the inventory will change to

J2, D0, Z0

[honey lamb]

Also remember that Z fares are an advanced booking bucket and if the cut-off date has arrived they will cease to exist unless the cabin is empty and VS decide to re-introduce them in a fare sale

[preiffer]

Careful - until you're actually at the *real* booking page (not the availability search / flight options page) they're not held back from the inventory.

I have previously had to wait about 20 minutes before availability returns when checking fares online even if I haven't got any further than the first grid sometimes. If I have looked a few times, the fare has gone up and up.

I too have been told by reservations the Z and R fares I had checked a few hours no longer exist even though they confirmed they hadn't been sold (and have been quoted hundreds of pounds more v( ) only to find later that day they were back on the system. I think possibly people are looking at them at the same time or even have them hold with VS for 48 hours.

What I can't understand this year is that I have managed to bag the last two UC seats on the VS73/74 (confirmed by the seat map and dummy bookings for 1 more pax) but have got Z fares both ways. y). I am delighted with this but how can this be?