Bulk blocked seats on seat maps.

Gloomendoom · 15 January 2019 at 11:06AM

Having a minor irritation with Singapore Airlines following what I thought was a successful booking yesterday.

I received an email this morning saying that the seats we booked yesterday are unavailable. They were extra legroom seats. They have now moved one of us to another seat. It's not that clear from the email, but I think it is an extra legroom seat but are in a different cabin. We would rather sit together.

The reason given is a change of aircraft from a 777 to an A380.

When checking the seat bookings for the flight, a lot of the seats, including all the extra legroom seats are blocked. in a regular pattern.

Does anybody know the reason for the blocking and if the blocks likely to be removed in future?.

TIA

Edit: I've just done a bit research on this and learned that the seats are blocked for a variety of reasons including leaving room for families with children, passengers with frequent flyer status etc. and they can remain blocked until a few days before the flight.

In any case, we have managed to get ourselves sat together in similar seats, despite them showing as blocked on Seat Expert. Further down the plane but not quite so close to the dreaded wall of screaming babies as we were.

Let's hope it stays that way until we fly.

Murphy_The_Cat · 15 January 2019 at 12:05PM

Try phoning them and suggesting that they unblock the seats and assign them to you and your reason for asking them to be reassigned. You've already paid a premium for securing the legroom seats, so you're just asking for what you originally selected/paid for, rather than just being a chancert, trying it on.

Alternatively, if 2 legroom seats together aren't available, they may be receptive to a suggestion of bumping you along to PE, especially if you have some Kris points/regular customer of theirs - plus, you've prepaid to far ahead of time and it is SIA that has changed the arrangements, not you.
Or, asking if they have availability on SQ321 which is a 777-300 that goes 90 mins later (assuming that if you've got an onward connection, your connection can be met)

If you have the seat layout of the plane that you are flying on to hand, it may be useful for you to give them suggestions as to which seats are "most suitable" to your requirements.

good luck and if it doesn't work first time HUCA.

p.s. they could be bassinet seats that have the block on them, or reserved for flyers with higher "status"

Gloomendoom · 15 January 2019 at 12:43PM

Thanks Murph

As you can see, I've edited my post as the situation has been resolved. I would have preferred the original aircraft and seats but these things happen, although I wasn't expecting such a fundamental change a day after the flight was released.

As far as the blocking is concerned, interestingly, it now looks like seats that are available for us are showing as blocked to others.

That's what I hate about economy air travel, until your bum is in the seat and you are rolling down the runway, you cannot be absolutely certain where you will sit.

Murphy_The_Cat · 15 January 2019 at 12:57PM

Gloomendoom wrote: »

Thanks Murph

As you can see, I've edited my post as the situation has been resolved. I would have preferred the original aircraft and seats but these things happen, although I wasn't expecting such a fundamental change a day after the flight was released.

As far as the blocking is concerned, interestingly, it now looks like seats that are available for us are showing as blocked to others.

That's what I hate about economy air travel, until your bum is in the seat and you are rolling down the runway, you cannot be absolutely certain where you will sit.

I'm glad that it was sorted for you.
Were they at all receptive to the suggestion of opening the seating with bassinet to you ? - I have a flight with them later in the year and the bulkhead seats would very much suit my more than ample backside !

Gloomendoom · 15 January 2019 at 2:26PM

Murphy_The_Cat wrote: »

I'm glad that it was sorted for you.
Were they at all receptive to the suggestion of opening the seating with bassinet to you ? - I have a flight with them later in the year and the bulkhead seats would very much suit my more than ample backside !

I think the bassinets were the problem. When they switched planes our seats at the front of economy became a bassinet row and weirdly they moved one of us back into the extra legroom seat on its own (51D). They said we could move ourselves from where they had put us if we wanted and they would refund the supplement. What they also appear to have done is unblock the extra legroom seats.

Incidentally, based on our experience, the Singapore bassinet seats are no wider than a standard seat and legroom in the centre row isn't great because you (I) can't stretch out under the seat in front. If you are travelling near Christmas and New Year they are heavily oversubscribed on the London/Singapore legs. A lot of young families travel then so I doubt they will be unblocking them for bookings without infants. No harm in asking though.

That said, we have been "upgraded" to them from a standard seat at check-in (didn't ask) in the past on overnight flights from Singapore to Perth. Once got a whole centre row for the two of us.

Bulk blocked seats on seat maps.

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