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Frequently asked questions

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General
 

  • Why is Cathay Pacific introducing New Economy Fares?

    The New Economy Fares will broaden the choice and flexibility of fare options for our customers. They can choose the brand that is most tailored to their needs.​ Each fare brand comes with clearly defined attributes which increases transparency for our customers who will have better visibility on what they are paying for.​

 

Shopping and Booking
 

  • How to identify the New Economy Fares?

    You may refer to the 3rd and 4th digit of the Fare Basis Code. New Economy Fares will be either “21” (Light fare), “31” (Essential fare), or “41” (Flex fare).

  • I observe a fare brand called “Basic” in the GDS but no fare is available. Is it an error?

    This is a fare brand reserved that will not be used at the moment. Our New Economy Fares will be either “21” (Light fare), “31” (Essential fare), or “41” (Flex fare).

  • Can I book a Light fare for outbound, and Flex fare for inbound for my customers?

    Yes, it is possible to price as per your example. It allows to mix within Light/Essential/Flex.

  • What will be the rule for subclass combination?

    Same as today and this is controlled by fare rules. For fare brand combination, you are freely to combine within Light/Essential/Flex.

    For example, you can price as below:
    BOM-HKG on V class Essential fare
    HKG-BOM on M class Light fare
     

Benefit Attributes
 

  • I have booked a Flex fare for my customer and it says ‘standby for earlier flight' is allowed. Is he allowed to standby for a later flight on the same day? What about an earlier flight on the previous day or later flight on the next day? 

    Flex fare passengers can only standby for earlier flights within the same calendar day.

  • What is the checked baggage allowance for Infant in the New Economy Fares? 

    Infant with seats: Same as adult ticket, allowance is based on fare brand.

    Infant without seats: 1 piece with max weight following the standard Economy Class checked baggage allowance.

  • According to the faresheet, there will be an extra baggage allowance for specialty segments e.g. student with 3 bags, but why can I only see 2 bags on the attribute summary? 

    The attribute summary shown on GDS reflects the generic benefits of a fare brand filed in ATPCO S8 records. For exact baggage allowance of a specialty fare product, please refer to fare rule details in the filed fare, or the value displaying on ticket image after ticketing.

  • The Corporate contract rate my client negotiated with your airlines comes with special T&Cs (e.g. free cancellation) but why the product attribute shows refund is "offered for a charge"?

    The attribute summary shown on GDS reflects the generic benefits of a fare brand filed in ATPCO S8 records. For exact T&Cs of the specialty products, please refer to fare rule details in the filed fare.

  • I have reserved the flight and seat for my client but have not yet issued the ticket. The Flex and Essential fare products should include free advance seat reservation. Why does the PNR show the reserved seat as chargeable? 

    If an agent holds an inventory without pricing the itinerary or issue a ticket, the system is not aware of which fare brand (Light, Essential, or Flex) the passenger will be booked in. Therefore, the seat map will reflect the standard chargeable price. If you book a seat in this scenario, an EMD issuance deadline for seat will be triggered.

    As a best practice to avoid confusion and managing multiple deadlines, it is advisable to reserve a seat only after ticketing for the flights.

  • I have reserved the flight and seat for my client and ended the transaction. Why are there two time limits shown in the booking? 

    Both flight inventory and seat have their own ticket time limits which agents shall observe to. As a best practice to avoid confusion and managing multiple deadlines, it is advisable to reserve a seat only after ticketing for the flights. Free Regular seats for Essential/Flex fare brands and selected frequent flyer members, and free Extra-legroom seats for Flex Fare brand will not trigger the seat deadline and standard chargeable price if you reserve the seats after flight ticketing. If your client is booked on Light or Essential fare brand and is eligible for free Extra-legroom seats (e.g. selected frequent flyer members), please advise your client to sign in Manage Booking on our website or contact our Customer Care hotline for arrangement.

  • Would subclass Y Light fare have different benefits comparing to subclass Q Light fare?

    Attributes of a particular fare brand are the same across subclasses. i.e. a Y Light and a Q Light would enjoy the same benefits; likewise a Y Flex and a Q Flex would enjoy the same benefits.


Servicing
 

  • Will upsell be permitted between fare brands on the same or different cabin without penalty?

    For bookings with tickets issued, this is treated as ticket change and customers are required to pay the change fee (if any) as per fare rules.

  • I have booked a Light fare for my customer and paid for advance seat reservation. Now, he would like to change to an Extra Legroom seat. Can he just pay for the fare difference? 

    Yes, for upselling from a Regular Seat to an Extra Legroom Seat, refund of the original electronic miscellaneous document (EMD) is permitted. You may issue a new EMD for the new seat.

  • I have booked a Light fare for my customer and paid for advance seat reservation. Later on, he changed the plan and rebooked an Essential fare which comes with free seat reservation. Can he get a refund? 

    Yes, refund for the paid advance seat selection after upselling to a fare that comes with free advance seat reservation is permitted.

  • A ticket was purchased before the New Economy Fares launch. Now, my customer requests to rebook and reissue the fully unused ticket. Will baggage allowance remain with weight system or follow the piece system? For example: an unused V class on ICN-HKG to V Essential fare 

    It depends on the repricing result. The baggage allowance will be determined by the new reissued ticket. As per your example, the customer was originally booked on V class before the New Economy Fares launch which is in weight system, then repriced to V class Essential fare after the New Economy Fares rollout. The baggage allowance of the new ticket will follow the new fare, i.e. V class Essential fare, which is in piece system.

  • After the New Economy Fares launch, repricing results for unused ticket issued prior to rollout will only show fare rules of the new brand structure? Whereas, repricing with partially used ticket issued prior to rollout will show historical fare rules?

    Repricing logic is the same as today. For a fully unused ticket, it will refer to both the historical fare and the current fare, then take the lowest available fare, i.e. it is possible to reprice and reissue in old fare structure. For a partially used ticket, it always refers to the historical fare structure. 

 

Loyalty Members
 

  • My client is a Cathay high tier member eligible for free advance seat reservation. Why the seat map is shown as chargeable? 

    The system recognizes fare brands and frequent flyer benefits after itinerary pricing or ticketing. Therefore, standard chargeable price of ancillaries (e.g. seats) and document issuance time limit will appear if ancillary booking is done prior to flight ticketing. As a best practice to avoid confusion, it is advisable to reserve a seat only after ticketing for the flights. Free Regular seats for Essential/Flex fare brands and selected frequent flyer members, and free Extra-legroom seats for Flex Fare brand will not trigger the seat deadline and standard chargeable price if you reserve the seats after flight ticketing. If your client is booked on Light or Essential fare brand and is eligible for free Extra-legroom seats (e.g. selected frequent flyer members), please advise your client to sign in Manage Booking on our website or contact our Customer Care hotline for arrangement.