Japanese airline ANA is making negative changes to its seat selection and online reservation process, introducing the option to pay for seat selection in select fare classes.Starting May 29 passengers purchasing tickets in V, W, S, L and K fare classes will have to pay additional fees to select certain seats for flights departing from August 19th and onward.Image courtesy of ANA.The seats to be selected for a fee are marked in yellow and red in the image below. They are composed of window, aisle or bulkhead seats and mostly in the front half of the economy cabin. The change could be worse, as there still are window and aisle seats toward the back of the coach cabin that can be chosen for free, as well as middle seats toward the front (shown in blue).Image courtesy of ANA.The seat map appears to resemble one of ANA’s Boeing 787-8s, but it’s unclear what seats will require an extra fee to select on other aircraft.ANA says that the change came about “based on customer feedback” and that it will help passengers who book their tickets closer to departure (read: business travelers) a chance to select a better seat. Really, it’s just another way for the airline to increase revenue on ancillary fees.While it’s unfortunate to see this change, especially considering the airline is known for its great economy product, it follows in the footsteps of many large airlines who are starting to charge for seat selection in economy even on longer international flights.Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.
