transatlantic seat allocation

[essouira]

UA tell me that they can't allocate seats on all the legs of my journey as they say that they hold the bulk of them back for allocation on check-in. I've neveer flown with UA before but this has never happened with any other airline. The guy in reservations told me it was a lot more convenient for the check-in staff. I think it's pretty inconvenient for the SLF - has anyone run into this before ?

[PAXboy]

On long haul? It often depends upon how much money you are paying!! Some carriers will only accept a 'request' for a particular seat location and that is often limited to simply Aisle, Middle or Window.

The closer to the pointy end you are sitting, the more choice you get. :rolleyes:

[MarkD]

I book via britishairways.com, and I have my profile set up for window seats. I know one Aer Lingus Gold Card member who was able to specify both position in cabin [as far forward as poss] and in row [aisle].

When I booked to YYZ recently, I could see my seat allocation in my booking online [47K and 33K out and back].

[Confirmed Must Ride]

Carriers can allocate seats on transatlantic flights up to a certain percentage. When they get to this figure (for example 60-70%) The computer system then restricts the ability to allocate certain seats so airport staff on the day are still able to try to sit families etc together. Hope this answers your query..