Questions and Answers

I recently tried to book a Business Awards seat on a flight to Italy using points on United for next August. The site showed a flight but bumped me out of system and told me to call United. The representative said that even though the flight showed online, it was not available but to try back six months before departure because that is when business class seats become available for points purchases. Is this right?

No.

Check the flight on aeroplan to see if it shows up. If it does, call United back and have an agent check again. If it doesn’t show up, it’s phantom space.

There no right or wrong time to book, just keep checking and book when you see flights that work for you!

I looked at ORD-FCO for next August and virtually everyday had at least 2 premium class seats avail.

And I booked 2 flights through Rome next year one in may and one in July.

Whenever you get an agent that gives the wrong answer. Hang up and try again.

I used ORD-FCO as an example during my presentations last week, because there was just a ridiculous amount of award space. It should be bookable now.

In terms of when you can book seats in general, see here: [URL]http://boardingarea.com/onemileatatime/2014/03/21/when-do-airlines-open-award-seats/[/URL]