Economy (V) etc., what does it mean?

[Earthworm Jim]

Looking at flights on the ITA Matrix I see they all seem to say economy with a letter in parenthesis afterward. Economy (L), Economy (V), Economy (O), etc. What does the letter mean? Is it anything I should be paying attention to?

[FlyerTalker]

That letter indicates the fare basis bucket that is being used for that ticket on that flight. It is the first letter of the actual "fare" that is used for your purchase.

 

In a dummy search that I did from SFO to FLL, I found this on American - outbound in "O" and returning in "Q". When you get to the complete itinerary page, look into the blue "How to buy this ticket" box. You will see something like this:

Make sure to provide the exact booking and fare codes shown.

Fare 1: Carrier AA OA14ERY1 SFO to FLL (rules)

Passenger type ADT, one-way fare, booking code O

Covers SFO-DFW (Economy), DFW-FLL (Economy) $143.26

Fare 2: Carrier AA QA14ERY1 FLL to SFO (rules)

Passenger type ADT, one-way fare, booking code Q

Covers FLL-ORD (Economy), ORD-SFO (Economy) $160.00

As you can see, the "fare basis" for the outbound is OA14ERY1 - the "O" is the inventory bucket that this seat comes out of. The "Q" references QA14ERY1 - the fare basis for the return. Although both are in economy, they are separate and distinct "fares", and have separate and distinct rules (which you can read through the hyperlink on ITA). Different fares have different rules, including advance purchase, minimum stay, maximum stay, stopover, connection, endorsement, combinability and other factors.

 

One thing that is very useful is that it can help explain why some flights are more or less expensive than others. Aside from PFC and other fees, the same "fare" costs the same between the relevant city-pair for any flight where it is available. And having different "fares" means that the cost will likely be different. (In this case, $16.74).

 

LOTS and lots more that I could get into. Does this basically answer your question or do you want to delve further?

 

PS: Using the "time bar" feature rather than "complete flights" gives you a much better picture of the pricing and availability structure for any given day. YMMV.

[TruckerDave]

Another thing to consider (If you get into the freq flyer game) is the different fare buckets will give you different amounts of elite qual miles/points. If you never plan on getting elite status on an airline this won't matter but if you do it can make a big difference in how many elite miles/points you get for each flight and how fast you get to the different elite levels.

[Zach1213]

Another thing to consider (If you get into the freq flyer game) is the different fare buckets will give you different amounts of elite qual miles/points. If you never plan on getting elite status on an airline this won't matter but if you do it can make a big difference in how many elite miles/points you get for each flight and how fast you get to the different elite levels.

 

It really depends. I would say that different fare buckets may (not necesarilly will) result in mileage differences. In the US, with the major carriers, you almost always get 100% mileage for all economy class fares (at least those booked through the airlines...perhaps not consolidator/heavily discounted tickets that you buy via places like the cruise lines, Vayama, etc.). If you do something like a full-fare economy class ticket ("Y class"), you may usually get bonus miles. However, in the example given above of O and Q fares on American, both receive 100% mileage.

 

Here's a list from AA to give an example: http://www.aa.com/i18n/AAdvantage/earnMiles/travel/airlines/american.jsp

 

When you get in to codeshares, that's where things get really tricky. For example, if I flew Cathay Pacific or Qantas (with a Cathay or Qantas flight number) and wanted those miles added to my American account, and I were flying economy class, it would pretty much need to be a full-fare Y class fare (which are often just as expensive as discounted business class). HOWEVER if I flew those exact same flights (say LA to Melbourne on Qantas 94) on an American codeshare (AA flight number, but Qantas plane), I would earn AA miles for even the discounted (O, Q, etc.) fare codes.

 

I am sure I just caused more confusion than clarity...I shall step back now in shame.

[Earthworm Jim]

LOTS and lots more that I could get into. Does this basically answer your question or do you want to delve further?

 

I think you answered my question, thanks. I sounds like it is a code that explains how the fare for that flight was arrived at, which you may not absolutely need to know unless you're having trouble tracking down the flight prices ITA shows. But it may be wise to look into, so you know all the restrictions and miles implications of that fare before you book.

[TruckerDave]

It really depends. I would say that different fare buckets may (not necesarilly will) result in mileage differences. In the US, with the major carriers, you almost always get 100% mileage for all economy class fares (at least those booked through the airlines...perhaps not consolidator/heavily discounted tickets that you buy via places like the cruise lines, Vayama, etc.). If you do something like a full-fare economy class ticket ("Y class"), you may usually get bonus miles. However, in the example given above of O and Q fares on American, both receive 100% mileage.

 

Here's a list from AA to give an example: http://www.aa.com/i18n/AAdvantage/earnMiles/travel/airlines/american.jsp

 

When you get in to codeshares, that's where things get really tricky. For example, if I flew Cathay Pacific or Qantas (with a Cathay or Qantas flight number) and wanted those miles added to my American account, and I were flying economy class, it would pretty much need to be a full-fare Y class fare (which are often just as expensive as discounted business class). HOWEVER if I flew those exact same flights (say LA to Melbourne on Qantas 94) on an American codeshare (AA flight number, but Qantas plane), I would earn AA miles for even the discounted (O, Q, etc.) fare codes.

 

I am sure I just caused more confusion than clarity...I shall step back now in shame.

 

American is the goofy one. They use 3 different ways to get status (miles/points/segments) You always get 100% miles on flights (there are no bonuses for higher fares). It is the points (normally 1:1 with miles) that have the different levels. The "deep discount" fares will give as little as 50% while the full fare/business/first will give 1.5 points per mile. (Plus if you book premium econ on BA/CX/QF/JA you get 1.5 points per mile as well.) You do have to watch the other carriers because you don't always get 1:1 on normal econ tics. some fare buckets only give .5. The only good thing is with American all miles count towards the million mile total. (flight miles that is). Now of course this could all change when/IF the merger with US goes through :eek: