中国航协就“锁座”征求意见：国内航班免费可选座不低于经济舱总座数70%

Core Viewpoint - The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has released a draft for public consultation regarding the "Rules for Reserved Seats on Public Air Transport Flights," which outlines new regulations for seat selection and reservation practices in the airline industry. Group 1: Seat Classification - Airlines must categorize economy class seats into two main types: free selectable seats and reserved seats. Reserved seats are further divided into operationally necessary reserved seats and value-added service reserved seats [1]. - Value-added service reserved seats are classified into two categories: rights-based reservations (using points/miles) and paid reservations (limited to international and regional flights). Domestic flights are restricted to rights-based reservations only, prohibiting paid seat selection [2]. Group 2: Free Selectable Seat Requirements - The draft mandates that the number of free selectable seats on domestic flights must not be less than 70% of the total economy class seats. Specifically, for flights with fewer than or equal to 160 economy seats, the free selectable seats must be at least 70%; for flights with more than 160 but less than or equal to 200 seats, at least 75%; and for flights with more than 200 seats, at least 80% [3][4]. Group 3: Seat Release Timing - The draft also specifies the timing for releasing reserved seats to prevent last-minute availability. Rights-based reserved seats for domestic flights must be made available for online selection no later than three hours before the scheduled departure time [5]. Group 4: Information Disclosure Requirements - Airlines are required to clearly inform passengers about the distinctions between free and reserved seat categories, the standards for points/miles redemption, paid seat selection prices (for international and regional flights), and the timing for releasing reserved seats during online ticket purchasing and check-in processes. Seat maps must use clear icons to differentiate between "free selectable," "member selectable," "not selectable online," and "selected seats" to avoid ambiguity and misleading information [6].