Qualifying Fare Base Booking Codes
 

We had our UA milage credit denied for flights taken on Swiss Air because according to Swiss Air our booking codes did not qualify for milage credit through tme - even though UA gave us credit on the same ticket for the flight we flew on their carrier. I can't seem to find anything on Swiss Airlines site re required Booking Codes. We're looking for milage to be posted to our UA acount, not to Swiss Air milage account. Anyone have any knowledge where I would fine Swiss Air's requirements.

They are claiming we flew with tickets on their segments in fare base codes K and L.

Thanks

Credit depends on the booking class. There are some booking classes that yield no FF miles.

See the chart at http://www.united.com/page/article/0,6722,51397,00.html

If your booking class is one that should yield miles and you have not received them, you will need to file a claim with United.

K and L are two of the no-United-mileage booking classes on Swiss.

Well I have now gone back and gotten actual copies and it appears we were booked in S and T which means we SHOULD be eligible for the milage credit in reading the above chart.

Unfotunately United is referring us to Swiss. I'm going to call Swiss tomorrow. Thanks for pointing me at least to right chart!

That is a frequent issue with code-share. When you buy a UA ticket with UA fare code, that code may match to a non-earning one on LX (and other partners). These matches are not published on website, and one has to call to find out, or trying asking on Flyertalk.com and see if anybody knows.

Here's what UA says on this issue on their website:

<i>Mileage earn and use is possible only on scheduled flights operated by the airline partner. Flights and routes may be changed by the airline partner at short notice. The miles earned are determined by the operating airline. Please note that the booking code shown on your ticket may differ from the booking code relevant for mileage earn. Please retain your boarding pass and a copy of your ticket until the mileage credit is reflected on your Mileage Plus statement. The general terms and conditions for the Mileage Plus program will apply.</i>

I hope you're only not getting miles for a short intra-Europe trip and not a longhaul one.

What rkkwan said. May he correct anything in the following run-on paragraph that is incorrect

In this case, the S and T fares for a ticket on Swiss purchased/issued from Swiss might match (map to) L and/or K fare codes on United and not be eligible to earn miles. The chart in the link above shows the UA fare codes. If the S/T ticket was on Swiss but purchased from/issued by United, then (I think) the table in that United link applies and a UA MP account would earn 100%.

FWIW, the following was easy to find from the Swiss website:
http://www.miles-and-more.com/online...l=en&cid=18003

They they are flying on LX-metal with a LX fare-code of S or T, then they should be able to get 100% miles on Mileage Plus. No matching involved, as one simply look at that link on united.com's. Which is why I strongly suspect the OP was on an UA ticket instead. It's the <b>operating carrier</b> that determines the actual fare class. LX is determining that the ticket is a UA S or T, which matches to LX's L or K. LX's L or K does not earn Mileage Plus miles. UA's L or K earns 100%.

rkwan is correct that it was through a United ticket. I spoke to Swiss Air this morning who disputes it's their issue and bounced me back to United. I'm speaking to United Milage Plus Customer Service as I type this entry. The rep checked with her supervisor who said because it was originally a United ticket then we should get credit. She is doing a "Disputed partner denial request" and now claims we should have the milage credited to our account within 30 days.

Not a short haul trip so hence my battle to get the miles. We're talking flights Zurich to Nairobi and then Nairobi to Zurich and Zurich to SFO.

rkkwan, I think I understand that you are saying that 1) the table for LX at united shows LX fare codes and 2) the OP would get 0 miles.

If I get an LX-issued ticket on LX, then I have the LX code on my ticket and I look up that LX code in the United table?

If I get a UA-issued ticket on LX then I have a UA code on my ticket? I contact LX to find out what the LX code is and I look up the LX code in the United table?

OP got a UA-issued ticket on LX with a United S code. LX tells the OP that the LX code is K/L (that is how I read the last sentence in the OP: They (LX) are claiming that the OP flew with tickets on their (LX) segments in (LX) fare base codes K and L). So 0 miles.

So now UA MP issued a "denial request" [maybe it should be called a "denial investigation request" or "denial review request" (they already got the denial) but their term is more fun]. Either UA MP is confused or they are just checking to see if LX got it right.

patandhank, please let us know what the result of the denial request is.

Yes, that table on UA's website is definitely for LX-issued ticket for LX code on LX metal only. Anything else, it all "depends", and can get complicated.

But my guess is that the OP will and should get his mileage, as I had no idea what the S/T codes actually match to. Things like this can take a while. My mom was missing miles from a UA-operated flight for her CO account and it took me 3 months and 4 emails to get those stupid miles. Just saying...

I'm not so sure the OP will get the miles, although we can hope. Here is what United's website says about UA-marketed flights:

http://www.united.com/page/article/0,6722,3122,00.html

If you purchase a ticket on a flight that is marketed by United but operated by another airline (known as a code-share flight), the operating airline determines how many miles you earn for your flight.

Note that the booking class that appears on your ticket may differ from the booking class that the operating airline uses to determine flight miles earned.

Yes, it can get complicated!

patandhank, you wrote: "They are claiming we flew with tickets on their segments in fare base codes K and L"

Who are the "they"? Whose segments? Whose codes? (why do i care?)

I'll keep you all posted. The couple who flew with us submitted their U.S Airways milage numbers and Swiss denied them too. They just e-mailed me the lettr they received from U.S. Airways:

"Thank you for contacting US Airways.

We received your mileage request for your recent flight activity on Swiss Airlines. Eligible fare classes are determined individually by each airline partner. The flights you referenced for travel on 9/6/2011 & 9/7/2011 were issued against a L fare, which is not eligible for credit; therefore, we are not able to credit the flights to your
Dividend Miles account.

Find detailed information on Star Alliance carrier eligible fare classes
at:
http://www.usairways.com/en-US/divid.../airlines.html

Code share flights with United Airlines flight numbers but operated by another airline will accrue miles based on the operating carrier?s agreement with US Airways. The booking class that appears on your ticket may differ from the class used to calculate your mileage earned. Please
check with United Airlines if you have questions about your booking class."

So it's frustrating as it would seem the carrier (in this case Swiss Air) can simply decide which booking class they want to apply a ticket against regardless of the class of ticket paid for at purchase. Shsh!

Please accept our sincere apology for any inconvenience this may have
caused.

Sincerely,

Mary Aaron
US Airways Dividend Miles

>>>>>patandhank, you wrote: "They are claiming we flew with tickets on their segments in fare base codes K and L"

Who are the "they"? Whose segments? Whose codes? (why do i care?)>>>>

"They" are Swiss Air and it is regarding the 3 segments flown via Swiss Air of a 6 segment trip; the other 3 segments were United flights - all on one Etkt number.

Can't help you on the why do i care part.

Thanks. Then Swiss says they are Swiss L/K fares and you look those codes up on the United table for Swiss and they earn 0 miles. But, I hope you get your miles. I just don't understand why you would.

<<So it's frustrating as it would seem the carrier (in this case Swiss Air) can simply decide which booking class they want to apply a ticket against regardless of the class of ticket paid for at purchase.>>

Not exactly. You actually DID pay for a Swiss L class ticket at purchase - you just didn't know it. I imagine if you had called them to inquire before you left you would have been told so then.

Check out this chart from Flyertalk:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/star-...g-classes.html

Look at the lines marked *E for Swiss and United (I've inserted spaces so you can see your fare classes more clearly).

*E : YBMHQVWNUG KL TES X (Swiss)

*E : YBMHQVWNEU ST LKG X (United)

As I understand it, this shows that S on United is equivalent to K on Swiss, and T on United to L on Swiss. So although it might be confusing, there is nothing malicious or arbitrary about it.

Nothing malicious or arbitrary, but the main problem is that the matching table is not transparent or easily accessible to regular flyers (who don't spend time on Flyertalk).

OP got that info by calling LX.

Yes, but that means when someone see a fare on united.com with a UA code, on a UA-issued 016 ticket, one still has to call LX to find out what that fare matches to. Most casual flyers won't know to do that. They think since it's on a UA code on a UA-issued ticket booked on united.com, one can at least find that info on that website.

I just checked my ticket with Swiss for November 15 and it is a L Class ticket. No miles. The first part of the ticket was a Q Class where I did receive miles back in July. (Also a free upgrade to Business)

Can I call Swiss and upgrade my L ticket to a Q ticket before the flight?