On Tue, 29 Mar 2005 15:39:28 +0100, "nightjar"
wrote:




That is not the case within Europe, where the cheap tickets (normally
referred to as economy class, or unoffically as cattle class) are for a
specific person on a specific flight, neither of which can be changed
without buying a different ticket.

Firstly you need to distinguish between low-cost carriers and
traditional ones. The low-cost ones usually will not amend a booking
other than for a fee and the fare difference - which on the day of
travel may be high.

Traditional ones may allow changes, including an earlier flight,
depending on the fare paid. It's not just whether it's economy or not,
but which fare within economy. Full-fare economy (Y class?) is usually
fully flexible, other fares allow flexibility within that carrier,
others still have zero flexibility. The prices also affect your refund
rights.

So the fact that it would seem to make no difference to the carrier to
let you on an earlier flight is irrelevant. If you buy a 'cheap'
ticket that restricts flexibility as a condition, don't expect them to
allow you to behave as if you had paid more.