Etihad Airways and Gulf Air have introduced a fee for advance seat selection in Economy Class. Emirates, the Gulf region's largest carrier, previously took a similar step, according to Travel.ru.
Free seat selection is retained at check-in. However, Etihad's online check-in opens 48 hours before departure, and free seat selection is available only 24 hours before departure. By this time, most seats may already be occupied by passengers who have already checked in—even if they haven't selected seats but were assigned them automatically by the booking system.
On Etihad Airways' only Russian flight (Abu Dhabi to Moscow), pre-selecting a regular seat costs $15, a priority seat (a few rows at the front of the cabin) $20, and a seat in the first row of the cabin or near an emergency exit $70. On the route from Abu Dhabi to Bangkok, this costs $15, $25, and $85, respectively; to Delhi, $10, $20, and $45; to Munich, $25, $35, and $145; to Melbourne, $30, $40, and $165; and to New York, $30, $40, and $180.
Gulf Air's price variance across destinations is modest, but the company has introduced different prices depending on cabin seating. On its only Russian flight (Bahrain-Moscow), as on all other flights to Europe and East Asia, a seat in the back costs 5 Bahraini dinars (€11), a seat in the middle costs 10 Bahraini dinars (€22), a seat closer to the front costs 15 Bahraini dinars (€34), and a seat in the front row or by the emergency exit row costs 20 Bahraini dinars (€45). Prices for flights within the Middle East and neighboring African countries are 4-5 times lower, while flights to India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan are 2-2.5 times lower.
Source: travel.ru
