Load check

Hi I love having a nosey at the forums and finding out new info but can anyone tell me what is the load check that I hear people talking about. Thanks : )

It means the number of passengers booked on any given flight.

Many V-Flyers like to know how busy their flight's likely to be.

It means the number of passengers booked on any given flight.

Discuss! That is the information most people desire, but those who know can't tell.

The load check referred to here is a simple list of numbers indicating how many more tickets the airline is willing to sell in a given fare-class -- between 0 and 9 (although 9 means "at least 9").

[Neil]

There is some information regarding load checks and their results on the lower half of the fare codes page in the toolbox.

Is the load check similar to what you can see when you manage your booking online? Or is their more people on the flight that havent chosen their seats yet? Because theres quite a few seats spare when I look at seat choice.

Yes it's different, as many seats are held back for airport check-ins.

It's when the figures drop below 9 that you get an idea that a flight is, or is expected to be, busy.

Each fare is allocated a letter, with a number beside it. That's the number of seats the airline is prepared to sell. They can only show a maximum of 9, so really, it's only when the figure falls below that can you see if a flight is really busy.

HEATHROW - NEW YORK JFK, might look like this:
LHR JFK J9 C9 S9 Y9 L9 M9 N9 O9 X9 - this means that the airline is selling seats at lots of different fares, whereas

LHR JFK J1 C0 S0 Y2 L0 M0 N0 O0 X0 - means that the airline has 1 seat left in J (or business) class and 2 seats left in economy. But as it's allocated the letter 'Y' means that it's the most expensive economy fare.

To muddy the waters, you might also see this

LHR JFK J5 C4 S4 Y4 L4 M4 N4 04 X0 - this could mean that there are five seats left on the whole flight, yet the airline "knows" it will never sell them so would rather get some revenue.

It's like looking into the Matrix isn't it?

But what you don't do is add all the numbers up

e.g. if PE showed W7 S7 K4 you don't go 7+7+4 = 18

What it means is it will sell 7 seats across the whole PE cabin of which only 4 are cheap K fares.

If VS sold those K fares then it would show W3 S3 K0

Wow I can't believe how complicated it is. How do you know what letter is what class? I will have a look when I get home although I think its going to take me a while to understand it lol. If we can check in online without any probs do we still have to be at the airport 3hours early?

If you look at the link Neil posted (or look under 'Fare Codes' in the tool box there is an explanation

But
UC = J,D,I,Z,G
PE = W,S,K,H,P
Y = (almost) all the remaining letters!

(Where an airline has first class that is designated as 'F')


No you don't - unles you want to be of course ! Just remember to leave enough time to drop your bags off and get through security.

Hi I don't know if its a problem with my computer but it wont allow me to do a load check. Would anybody be able to do it for me please?
We are flying MAN-LAS 19/07 and LAS-MAN 26/07
Thank you

Outbound: J:8 C:8 D:8 I:8 Z:8 W:3 S:3 K:3 Y:9 B:9 R:9 L:9 U:9 M:9 E:9 Q:9 X:9 N:9 O:9

Inbound: J:5 C:5 D:5 I:5 Z:5 W:9 S:9 K:9 Y:9 B:9 R:9 L:9 U:9 M:9 E:9 Q:9 X:9 N:9 O:9

Thank you so much for checking for me. Do the results look like the flight is quite empty? Im in seats 61A&C but theres a few 3seats together and didnt know whether I should change and maybe get a spare untaken seat or have someone sitting next to us if it does get taken. Im so confused

It's entirely up to you, personally if I was traveling with someone then I'd probably stick with the seats you have now and take a view on it during OLCI. It'll be more obvious about the load during OLCI, but even then that won't mean you'll be sure of not having a stranger sat next to you in a 3. There's certainly seats available on your flight, but it could be that there's just 9.

Thank you so much for your help and advice simonallardice I really appreciate it : )

No problem at all.

Outbound: J:8 C:8 D:8 I:8 Z:8 W:3 S:3 K:3 Y:9 B:9 R:9 L:9 U:9 M:9 E:9 Q:9 X:9 N:9 O:9

Inbound: J:5 C:5 D:5 I:5 Z:5 W:9 S:9 K:9 Y:9 B:9 R:9 L:9 U:9 M:9 E:9 Q:9 X:9 N:9 O:9

Upper Class has 8 seats left, Premium has 3, Economy has between 9 and whatever left.

Thank you so much for checking for me. Do the results look like the flight is quite empty? Im in seats 61A&C but theres a few 3seats together and didnt know whether I should change and maybe get a spare untaken seat or have someone sitting next to us if it does get taken. Im so confused

Am sorry but why ask for a load check if you don't know what it means?

There is a lot that can happen between now and when you travel so don't rely on their being empty seats next to you.

I would advise on not selecting a 3 seat section and keeping the middle one between you and your companion 'free' because that is no guarentee of it being kept free and if you are really unlucky the person who is allocated it won't want to swap so you and your companion can't sit together !

[Neil]

Am sorry but why ask for a load check if you don't know what it means?

I'm sorry tonty, but just because somebody doesn't fully understand the quite complex workings and results of a load check doesn't mean they aren't allowed to request one v(

One of the many things I love about this site is how it's members are willing to help and provide information to new members and those who aren't so geeky/nerdy as the more regular travellers/aviation fans.

By explaining what the results of a load check mean it helps not only the person asking the question but also the many other people who read the forum but don't post.

Do the results look like the flight is quite empty?

No -- a load check does not usually give you enough information to deduce this. From the load check for your flight, the only conclusion I would draw is that PE will be busy. If you forced me to guess, I would say that economy will be very full, and Upper will have some spare seats -- but it's just a guess.

There are two additional factors which have not yet been mentioned which may help to explain why load checks are of limited use.

Firstly, the airline oversells cabins. So they might have sold enough tickets to fill economy, but still be willing to sell another 9, because some people fail to turn up, or change their plans. It's perfectly possible to have a Y9 (etc) flight that turns out to be packed.

Secondly, a lot changes in the run up to a flight, from 7 days onwards but especially from 72 hours. People on flexible fares change their plans; inventory is released by travel agents; etc. etc.

Also note that the seat map doesn't necessarily tell you much either, because you can have a ticketed booking but not have allocated a seat for yourself -- and so on.

So personally I would take load checks with a pinch of salt. They may give you a clue -- especially if a flight looks busy -- but I wouldn't base a seating strategy on them!

Hope this helps.