-
Hello,
I recently booked a BAH as follows:
Flight 1: LHR – Stop 1 with BA on Day 1
Flight 2: Stop 1 to Stop 2 with another OW airline on Day 1 (~8hrs later)
.. return flights not relevant …This was booked using the BAH custom holiday maker and as you can see I did NOT book LHR – Stop 2 with a stop over on stop 1.
Instead, I booked 2 flights on the same day: 1st one LHR – Stop 1, second Stop 1 – Stop 2
With 8hrs between flights I am pretty certain we can make the change, but what would happen if the first flight is delayed or cancelled? Would BA say these are 2 separate flights and I simply missed the second one and should have planned for a larger buffer? Or will they try to get me to my final destination as this is part of a package?
Also, I don’t really mind grabbing the luggage and checking it again (I have to distract myself for those 8hrs). But how does interlinking works in this cases ?
This got me thinking, if BAH allows you to do very short stops between flights on their own custom holiday makers, what are your rights?
This may look like a one way but it is 2 separate flights and I have no idea what protections one would have under normal UK261/BA T&C or BAH t&C/package holiday regulation. Any ideas from the group?
Do you have one or more ticket numbers per passenger on the booking?
I’m pretty sure the BAH custom tool maintains the minimum connection times, so if it lets you book something then the usual rebooking terms apply in the case of a missed connection. In your scenario you are still travelling LHR – xxx as a single journey.
In April I did a BAH custom trip LHR – JFK – LAX – HNL and return. After AA almost inevitably changed the times of all four of their flights BA quite happily rebooked the transatlantic legs as necessary (and I ended up coming back via DFW!).
I’m pretty sure the BAH custom tool maintains the minimum connection times, so if it lets you book something then the usual rebooking terms apply in the case of a missed connection. In your scenario you are still travelling LHR – xxx as a single journey.
In April I did a BAH custom trip LHR – JFK – LAX – HNL and return. After AA almost inevitably changed the times of all four of their flights BA quite happily rebooked the transatlantic legs as necessary (and I ended up coming back via DFW!).
Hi; did you create the trip as:
– LHR-JFK on day 1
– JFK-LAX on Day 1
– LAX-HNL on Day 1
(or maybe JFK-HNL on day 1 with a LAX stop over) .. ?Meaning it looks like 3 distinct one legs with just a few hours or so between them?
In your case it seems like even if you sort of booked 3 separate flights BAH “understood” you were flying LHR to HNL and kept the itinerary whole when some of the legs changed. (which is good .. unless your actual plan was somehow to visit JFK/LAX for a few hours haha)
If all sectors are on one ticket number, then UK261 applies.
Package travel regulations also apply.
Atol protection also applies.I’m pretty sure but not 100% that anything booked under 24hrs is considered a stopover, they’re going to tag your bag to your final destination, rebook you there if you misconnect etc anyway
Why did you book it like this out of interest? I’ve definately seen stories where someone built in X hours at the intermediate point and there was disruption so the airline just looked for a way to send to the final destination skipping the stop point altogether
BA IT often necessitates inputting individual legs separately in a custom trip booking. All flights on a BAH should have the same ticket number though. I had a similar booking LYS-LHR-MAN last year – the LYS flight was cancelled and BAH re-routed me automatically LYS-CDG-MAN on AF.
*Moreover – if you select each leg separately you often get more options so I tend to do this anyway.
So, following some comments I put the booking ref. on Royal Air Maroc and then it shows:
Flight 1: LHR – Stop 2
LHR – Stop 1
9hrs wait
Stop 1- Stop 2Flight 2: Stop 2 – LHR
Stop 2 – Stop 1
17hrs wait
Stop 1 – LHRSo, on BAH custom trip I had 4 individual flights. But then BA produces an itinerary with technically 2 flights with a layover each.
(This makes me think I could have reduced that first layover, but it is ok … would rather spend time on the lounge than miss my whole first day of holiday because delays making me miss the second leg)
Your UK261 rights are without prejudice to your package holiday rights and vv.
As above , one ticket number isn’t what creates a connecting flight for the purposes of 261. It could do, but certainly doesn’t follow automatically.
BAH shouldn’t create an itinerary that doesn’t meet MCT but equally booking two consecutive flights inside 24 hours doesn’t make them connecting ones any more than having a no stopover fare basis. That would be determined at check-in for you and your bags.
So, on BAH custom trip I had 4 individual flights. But then BA produces an itinerary with technically 2 flights with a layover each.
That is what I would expect. They aren’t individual flights as such, but a set of flights making up an outbound journey and another other set making up the return.
I think it needs a 24 hour gap to become a ‘separate’ journey.
What’s important is if you have more than one ticket number for each passenger on the e-ticket receipt that should’ve been on an e-mail from BAH.
….one ticket number isn’t what creates a connecting flight for the purposes of 261. It could do, but certainly doesn’t follow automatically…
Does “connecting flight” then depend on how the separate airlines interline at the connecting point?
Or are you thinking of some IATA ticketing rules?….one ticket number isn’t what creates a connecting flight for the purposes of 261. It could do, but certainly doesn’t follow automatically…
Does “connecting flight” then depend on how the separate airlines interline at the connecting point?
Or are you thinking of some IATA ticketing rules?Potentially, yes. For a journey to consist of connecting flight(s) to your final destination it needs to be checked in as (or at least be capable of being) checked in as one journey.
One (conjunction) ticket can consist of up to eight sectors and might or might not contain any connecting flights.
What’s important is if you have more than one ticket number for each passenger on the e-ticket receipt that should’ve been on an e-mail from BAH.
On the Royal Maroc website (man it is so much more detailed than any other). Each passenger has simply 1 ticket number. This doesn’t help much as I have 4 separate flights so I would still not know if it is 4 separate flights or 2 flights with 2 legs each, etc.
Where are you going? Whenever I book MAN-LHR-XXX and stop overnight at LHR, the luggage is checked through at MAN to the end destination and it’s treated as one journey. I was also under the impression that the onward connection being within 24 hours is what counts.
I think the ticket numbers are a red herring. As JDB has said one ticket number may not necessarily mean connecting flights, and conversely you can have connecting flights on separate tickets.
..conversely you can have connecting flights on separate tickets.
With interlining?
What’s important is if you have more than one ticket number for each passenger on the e-ticket receipt that should’ve been on an e-mail from BAH.
On the Royal Maroc website (man it is so much more detailed than any other). Each passenger has simply 1 ticket number. This doesn’t help much as I have 4 separate flights so I would still not know if it is 4 separate flights or 2 flights with 2 legs each, etc.
Thanks for the reply.
There might be somthing in the fare rules.I think the ticket numbers are a red herring. As JDB has said one ticket number may not necessarily mean connecting flights, and conversely you can have connecting flights on separate tickets.
Correct! The bottom line is that with the information provided by the OP it’s not possible to be sure if the flights booked will constitute a connection or not and the question of one or more tickets also wouldn’t be relevant to that.
I have booked dozens of BA holidays using the custom trip option and within that searched flights as separate segments and never had any issues with ticketting.
Not once has any of the airlines providing the flights said ‘you have separate tickets for each leg so we can’t interline so you’ll need to collect and recheck with the next airline’
And even when searching for separate flights within the trip MCT is taken into account.
They are not counted as two separate flights. Unlike if you did book them that way.
I have booked dozens of BA holidays using the custom trip option and within that searched flights as separate segments and never had any issues with ticketting.
Not once has any of the airlines providing the flights said ‘you have separate tickets for each leg so we can’t interline so you’ll need to collect and recheck with the next airline’…
Same here.
But generally, I do think it is worth checking bookings to see if there’s more than one ticket number, fare rules and slightly imperfect interline situations.
I do look at these things on the complex trips I’ve done.I think the ticket numbers are a red herring. As JDB has said one ticket number may not necessarily mean connecting flights, and conversely you can have connecting flights on separate tickets.
Correct! The bottom line is that with the information provided by the OP it’s not possible to be sure if the flights booked will constitute a connection or not and the question of one or more tickets also wouldn’t be relevant to that.
You are correct, I just described what I built on BAH custom tool: 4 1 way flights.
Flight 1: A –> B
Flight 2: B — C
Flight 3: C –> B
Flight 4: B –> AAfter booking this BA simply gave me 1 ticket number for each passenger. But on BA there is is not much information to infer if the bookings are linked or not.
I didn’t know if Flight 1 had a large delay and I missed flight 2 I would be protected or not (as in, told “sorry, you should have built a large buffer).
But checking on Royal Air Maroc the itinerary shows as:
Flight 1: A to C
leg 1 A –> B
leg 2 B –> cFlight 2: C – to A
leg 1: C –> B
leg 2: B –> ASo this makes me believe the flights are indeed linked which is great (no reason to stress if the first leg gets delayed). I think the conversation then changed to trying to better understand when does BAH links your flights and when are they considered separate ones.
I have booked dozens of BA holidays using the custom trip option and within that searched flights as separate segments and never had any issues with ticketting.
Not once has any of the airlines providing the flights said ‘you have separate tickets for each leg so we can’t interline so you’ll need to collect and recheck with the next airline’
And even when searching for separate flights within the trip MCT is taken into account.
They are not counted as two separate flights. Unlike if you did book them that way.
This is very good information thanks.
That means if I build A –> C with a stop in B I don’t need to put a big buffer as I would be protected in case of delays (and no need to pick up luggage and check in again!)
….That means if I build A –> C with a stop in B I don’t need to put a big buffer as I would be protected in case of delays (and no need to pick up luggage and check in again!)
Depends where airport B is and what how big/ what type it is.
I did MEX-DFW-MSY with a big buffer at (B)DFW, I only made it to MSY because I allowed lots of time and didn’t have any checked luggage. I also had about 20mins in a Flagship lounge which was needed.
I have booked dozens of BA holidays using the custom trip option and within that searched flights as separate segments and never had any issues with ticketting.
Not once has any of the airlines providing the flights said ‘you have separate tickets for each leg so we can’t interline so you’ll need to collect and recheck with the next airline’
And even when searching for separate flights within the trip MCT is taken into account.
They are not counted as two separate flights. Unlike if you did book them that way.
That last statement I don’t get!
I booked:
Flight 1: A –> B on Day 1
Flight 2: B –> C on Day 1And I see that what I go was Flight 1: A –> B –> C (with B as a normal stopover)
This is great obviously, as it provides more protection.
As somebody said before, does it becomes 2 separate flights if the stop over is more than 24hrs maybe? (because it is not by date, I have a 17hrs overnight stopover on the way back and it is also booked as C –> B –> A even if I selected 2 separate flights when constructing the itinerary).
So as far as I can tell, YOU CANNOT separate the flights, they will get merged into a single trip if you keep the stopovers below a certain time. (how long, I don’t know!)
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
Popular articles this week:
