Economy Skycouch™

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When can I buy an
Economy Skycouch™?

Sales commence 29 April 2010 for travel from 1 April 2011

Where will Economy Skycouch™ operate?

We have three dedicated new B777-300’s currently operating NZ1/2 AKL/LAX/LHR and vice versa and also selected NZ5/6 services between AKL/LAX and vice versa from February 2012

Can an upgrade to Economy Skycouch™ be purchased at any time?

Yes, provided it is available.  You can either book the upgrade when you purchase the base Economy fare or anytime after the original Economy tickets are issued.

Do customers earn additional Airpoints Dollars for Economy Skycouch™?

No. Airpoints Dollars accrue at the regular amount on the ticketed Economy fare, if the fare is eligible to accrue them.  Customers do not earn additional Airpoints Dollars for any vacant seats in Economy Skycouch™.

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What aircraft will be fitted with the Economy Skycouch™?

The new B777-300 will arrive with the Economy Skycouch™ already fitted.  From late 2012 we will start to retrofit our existing B777-200 fleet.  It’s expected that this retrofit program will take about 18 months to complete.

Where are the Economy Skycouch™ seats located?

The outer seats in Zone C of the Economy cabin.

How many Economy Skycouch™ units are available on each B777-300?

In total there are 20 Economy Skycouch™ units – 10 on each side of the aircraft.  The middle aisle seats are regular Economy seats.

Will the seats adjacent to the Economy Skycouch™ zone be reserved initially for spill over from the Economy Skycouch™ seating area?

Yes, initially all but 26 seats in Zone C will be blocked for Economy Skycouch™ customers.  The middle aisle seats adjacent to Economy Skycouch™ seats will be blocked from seat select as these seats are required for regular Economy class passengers travelling with passengers seated in Economy Skycouch™.  As each Economy Skycouch™ is sold with no accompanying passengers in regular Economy seats, the two adjoining middle seats will be released for normal passenger seat select.

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How much will it cost to upgrade an Economy booking to an Economy Skycouch™ booking?

The cost for the upgrade is dependent on the makeup of the original passenger group that wants to travel in an Economy Skycouch™ because to travel in the Economy Skycouch™ zone you need to hold a block of 3 seats.  Prices shown are in GBP.

- 3 passengers travelling together upgrade for £79 LHR-LAX per one way flight and £169 LHR-AKL per one way flight

- a couple travelling together upgrade from £159 per one way flight  LHR-LAX and from £359 LHR-AKL per one way flight

- a single passenger will pay an upgrade charge from £449 per flight LHR-LAX and from £899 LHR-AKL per one way flight

The upgrade charge for the single passenger and the couple (doesn’t have to be two adults) can vary depending on the projected demand for the individual flight.  As demand increases so will the upgrade charge to ensure we do not sell the additional seats for less than we could collect if each seat was sold separately.

Please note AKL-LHR is considered to be two flight sectors and LHR-AKL is considered to be two flight sectors.

Are the upgrade charges per person?

No, the charges are per Economy Skycouch™

How is the upgrade charge for an
Economy Skycouch™ calculated?

There are two elements to Economy Skycouch™ pricing.

1. An upgrade charge to sit in the Economy Skycouch™ zone.

2. There is a mechanism to price the empty seats (if a couple or individual wanted a Economy Skycouch™)

How is the charge for the Economy Skycouch™ upgrade shown on the Air New Zealand  fare finder?

It will be displayed as a Skycouch fee and separated from the base fare.

 Will a fuel surcharge also apply?

Fuel surcharge only applies to the base fare so will not apply to the upgrade charge.

Will any Economy tickets bookings be excluded from the Economy Skycouch™ upgrade option? 

Economy Skycouch™ will only be available on NZ (086) paper and will not be offered on any Economy booking made in X, P, F & N classes.

At what point in the booking horizon will we no longer allow an individual, or a couple, to purchase an Economy Skycouch™?

Economy Skycouch™ will always be available at any stage in the booking window if there are seats available.  As happens today the cost may fluctuate with demand for any given flight. 

Will any discounts apply to Economy Skycouch™?

Discounts that apply to base tickets, like child discounts, will not apply to the upgrade price to Economy Skycouch™.

If we have two customer groups with a makeup of 2 adults and 1 child – the first group are all booked in L class, and a second group are all booked in M class – will the upgrade charge be the same for each group?

Yes, the pricing will be the same. In this example there are no empty seats and only an upgrade charge will apply to sit in the Economy Skycouch™ zone. If there were only two adults in this example, the upgrade charge may be different if the second booking is made on a different date.

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When can travel agents start to book an Economy Skycouch™

Continue to book using the above method or book the Economy seat in your GDS and then via a new  agent portal which is be available at www.airnewzealandtrade.com you will be able to use the ‘Manage bookings’ window that will allow existing bookings to be upgraded.  The agent will place their IATA number in the Agency ID box provided. 

Will Air NZ Sales Support charge a service fee to travel agents?

Not at this time.

Can customers also use the new ‘Manage booking’ facility?

Yes, this facility will be available on www.airnewzealand.co.uk, however we would encourage customers to request any Economy Skycouch ™ upgrades via their travel agency to ensure that they are rewarded fully for the sale.

What will the new ‘Manage bookings’ facility look like?

Step by step guide to the booking process

Does the travel agent retain the ownership of the booking when it is either upgraded by Air New Zealand Sales Support?

Yes, if the original economy booking was made in their GDS. 

When will travel agents be able to book the Economy Skycouch™ in their GDS?

We are not able to give a timeline for this development. Air New Zealand is working with each GDS to determine when they will be able to introduce the facility to purchase other products that require an additional payment to an existing purchase (E.g. Upgrade to Economy Skycouch™ from Economy).

If an agent makes a seat request in a GDS for a seat number that is an Economy Skycouch™ seat number will it get rejected?

Yes, agents will only be able to request 26 seats in Zone C and all of Zone D (subject to NV seats). For GDS enablement we will build a new dynamic seat map so that agents will have better access to appropriate seats based on their booking and customer profile. 

Will an Economy Skycouch™ quote only be shown if seats are available?

Yes, Economy Skycouch™ will only be offered if there are seats available. 

How will the system recognise that there are no Economy Skycouch™ seats available if there are no special booking classes used?

Air NZ reservations system will manage inventory available in ‘real time’.  When Air NZ requests a fare quote from our system it will check availability and return appropriate availability and prices in ‘real time’. 

When booking an Economy Skycouch™ can customers request access to specific seats in the cabin section?

As there are a very limited number of Economy Skycouch™ seats on the aircraft, the system will reserve the best seats based on the customers travelling party during the booking process. 

A customer travelling Auckland to London wants to stop in L.A. along the way.  Can they purchase an Economy Skycouch™ for the two individual flown sectors?

All Economy Skycouch™ pricing is leg based and customers will be able to upgrade on individual legs on a journey like this.  This type of itinerary must be upgraded by contacting their travel agent (who in turn will contact Air New Zealand Sales Support) .

A customer travelling Auckland to London via L.A. but only wants to upgrade the AKL-LAX sector.  Is this possible if they are travelling all the way on NZ2?

Yes they can upgrade by sector.  This type of itinerary must be upgraded by contacting their travel agent (who in turn will contact Air New Zealand Sales Support). This will also work and applies  when connecting to another airline.  E.g. NZ1 connecting at LHR with inward travel on BD from GLA.

Will we allow the merging of two PNR’s to calculate the price of an upgrade?  For example – one adult booked in one PNR (form of payment) and a second PNR with one adult/one child.

No – you cannot merge PNR’s for the purpose of quoting for an Economy Skycouch™ upgrade.  Similarly if you originally have all passengers in a single PNR that is divided before the upgrade is purchased you will not be able to quote the upgrade charge based on the total number of people travelling together after the PNR is divided.

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What fare conditions apply to an Economy Skycouch™ ticket?

The Skycouch™ upgrade fee is refundable at any time before sector is flown

What does a customer do if they want to change an Economy Skycouch™ booking ?

The customer will have to contact their travel agent (who in turn will contact Air New Zealand trade support)

If the Economy ticket, including the Economy Skycouch™ upgrade, is later cancelled how will the upgrade charge be reclaimed?

The Skycouch™ upgrade fee is refundable but the Economy fare rules will apply to the base fare.

Reissue and date changes:

What happens if there are no longer any Economy Skycouch™ seats available– does the customer get a refund? 

What if the customer chooses not to upgrade the new booking to Economy Skycouch™ – does the customer get a refund?

What happens if there are Economy Skycouch™ seats available but at a higher price – do they pay the differential?

What happens if there are Economy Skycouch™ seats available but the price is now lower – do they get a refund of the differential? 

a. Yes – the upgrade charge will be refunded but the Economy fare rules will apply to the base fare.

b. Yes – the upgrade charge will be refunded.

c. Yes – the customer will need to pay the difference between what they have already paid and the higher upgrade charge.

d. No – this works the same way as if there was a lower class available for the base fare, the customer does not benefit from the new lower fare.

Three passengers travelling together have purchased economy tickets and upgraded themselves into an Economy Skycouch™. 

One of the passengers subsequently cancels their ticket.  Do the remaining passengers still get to travel in the Economy Skycouch™.

The system will recognise that one person has been cancelled from the PNR so the Economy Skycouch™ upgrade will be cancelled and any refunds due for the cancelled ticket and Economy Skycouch™ upgrade will be made – subject to base fare rules.

When Economy Skycouch™ bookings are changed the whole booking is recalculated so in this example the two remaining passengers will need to rebook the Economy Skycouch™ upgrade and pay any additional applicable charges because the cost may change. 

Please note that the Economy fare conditions must be complied with to ensure the refunds are processed correctly.

If the original economy ticket is reissued by the travel agent in the GDS thus creating a new ticket number - will the value of the Economy Skycouch™ upgrade automatically transfer to the new ticket number?

Yes, our systems should recognise the new ticket number.  Similarly to above the agent will need to repeat the upgrade process by contacting Trade Support to rebook the upgrade to Economy Skycouch™ and pay any applicable upgrade differential.

Three passengers travelling together have purchased economy tickets and upgraded themselves into an Economy Skycouch™. 

At a later date the travel agent splits the PNR into two separate bookings.  How does this affect the Economy Skycouch™ upgrade?

Economy Skycouch™ and associated revenue is retained by the 1^st name in the original PNR. 

If one of the passengers cancels then the booking must be cancelled and re quoted as required.

How can the travel agent tell if a PNR has been upgraded to the Economy Skycouch™?

There will be no information displayed within the PNR. Any sectors that have been upgraded to Economy Skycouch™ will be noted on the revalidated electronic ticket receipt that Air NZ Trade Support provide to the travel agent.

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When a customer purchases an Economy Skycouch™ upgrade what information about that purchase will appear on the electronic ticket?

How is the cost of the Economy Skycouch™ upgrade separated in the
e-ticket receipt?

We will display Economy Skycouch™ product under the ‘Payment’ section.

If a couple purchases an Economy Skycouch™ how will the additional seat appear on their ET receipt?

Economy Skycouch™ is clearly indicated on the flight (sector as above), and the upgrade charge is also shown in the payment section (as above).  Specific seat numbers will not be shown on the Electronic Ticket.

Can any normal form of payment be used to pay for the upgrade including Airpoints Dollars?

Air NZ Trade Support will accept either credit card or VMPD for payment of Economy Skycouch™ upgrade fees from travel agents.  Customers who have purchased Economy tickets will not be able to upgrade to Economy Skycouch ™ using Airpoints Dollars.. 

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Can we hold the Economy Skycouch™ seats for a period upon quoting?

No, as we cannot guarantee availability at a later date.

If someone purchases a Star Alliance RTW, Tiki Tour or Escapade airfare and it is issued on Air New Zealand (086) ticket stock will they be able to upgrade the Air NZ sectors to Economy Skycouch™? 

Yes, any bookings with an Air NZ PNR issued on 086 paper should be able to be upgraded to Economy Skycouch™ and revalidated.

Do we have a mechanism that will allow us to quote an upgrade price for a group and at the same time block the seats?

No, group bookings are not possible. Individuals within a group will be able to subsequently upgrade to Economy Skycouch™ providing they have a separate PNR.