International ID90/ZED vs Jumpseat
01-22-2015, 09:28 AM
#1
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International ID90/ZED vs Jumpseat
My family is taking a trip to Australia in a few months and I was curious to know from those of you who travel quite a bit internationally on other airlines your thoughts on how to travel when there is more than one person going. Through my airline I will only have the option of United to get my wife to Australia so it will be out of LAX most likely, but possibly SFO. Should I simply purchase an ID90 ticket for myself or try to jumpseat and save the $300. What are the advantages for both? Is jumpseating back from Australia an option or will I need to buy an ID90 ticket for the return flight from Sydney. Thanks in advance for any help with this.
01-22-2015, 10:44 AM
#2
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My family is taking a trip to Australia in a few months and I was curious to know from those of you who travel quite a bit internationally on other airlines your thoughts on how to travel when there is more than one person going. Through my airline I will only have the option of United to get my wife to Australia so it will be out of LAX most likely, but possibly SFO. Should I simply purchase an ID90 ticket for myself or try to jumpseat and save the $300. What are the advantages for both? Is jumpseating back from Australia an option or will I need to buy an ID90 ticket for the return flight from Sydney. Thanks in advance for any help with this.
01-22-2015, 10:46 AM
#3
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My family is taking a trip to Australia in a few months and I was curious to know from those of you who travel quite a bit internationally on other airlines your thoughts on how to travel when there is more than one person going. Through my airline I will only have the option of United to get my wife to Australia so it will be out of LAX most likely, but possibly SFO. Should I simply purchase an ID90 ticket for myself or try to jumpseat and save the $300. What are the advantages for both? Is jumpseating back from Australia an option or will I need to buy an ID90 ticket for the return flight from Sydney. Thanks in advance for any help with this.
01-22-2015, 11:56 AM
#4
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I don't see any advantage to using a zed over jumpseating. I have jumpseated while my family travelled on a zed overseas a number of times. Zeds are basically on the bottom the list anyway. Because we have young children, I am picky about which flight I choose. Even when we caught a flight with only 20 seats open, the gate agent still worked to get us all seats together.
The only times I have ever used zeds have been when an international carrier is the only option on a particular route.
The only times I have ever used zeds have been when an international carrier is the only option on a particular route.
01-22-2015, 01:59 PM
#6
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Zed or jumpseat won't change his chances much for sitting next to his wife. Only other zeds would go between him and his wife on the standby list. Simply letting the agent know they are traveling together should be enough to assign them seats together (when available)--zed or not.
01-22-2015, 07:51 PM
#7
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Cesnacaptn, that's kind of what I was thinking. I figured if I showed up to the gate with some Starbucks cards and chocolate it will help my odds too. My biggest concern was the return flight. I hear lots of stories about trying to Jumpseat home when the gate agents and even managers don't quite understand what a pilot is trying to do. I assume with Australia an it being a US carrier the odds are much higher that they would understand though.
01-22-2015, 08:27 PM
#8
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I have jumpseated on both UA and DL from numerous countries and only once have I had a problem. It was out of MXP and AF was working the flight. They were puzzled by the fact that I wanted to ride for "free without a ticket." More explaining and a check with a manager cleared the air on that trip.
I don't anticipate you encountering any problems asking for the Jumpseat on the return, especially since you are traveling out of an English speaking country.
I don't anticipate you encountering any problems asking for the Jumpseat on the return, especially since you are traveling out of an English speaking country.
01-22-2015, 10:51 PM
#9
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Dozens and dozens of international JS travel and the only "flack" I've ever gotten was from a UA agent - ironically in SFO.
JS is essentially the same as a ZED - with the possible exception of getting a better seat. Some carriers specify BZ or better for JS'rs while ZED is the bottom of the barrel.
JS is essentially the same as a ZED - with the possible exception of getting a better seat. Some carriers specify BZ or better for JS'rs while ZED is the bottom of the barrel.
01-23-2015, 05:10 AM
#10
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I would buy a zed fair on the way back to the states as a backup. Some airlines have different rules for jumpseating internationally, such as only allowing one jumpseater even if it is a wide open flight. You get your money back from ZED if you don't use it. Check here for all airline jumpseat protocol: Jumpseat Information > Home
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