How do I check in for an Air New Zealand operated flight if it was booked through Qantas?

Question

I used Expedia to book a flight itinerary. It contains the following flights:

Departing flights:

• QF8488 PMR to AKL code-share flight operated by Air New Zealand
• QF146 AKL to SYD
• QF73 SYD to SFO

Return flights:

• QF74 SFO to SYD
• QF141 SYD to AKL
• QF8482 AKL to PMR code-share flight operated by Air New Zealand

After I paid for the flights, Expedia provided me with an e-ticket. It contains an Expedia Itinerary Number, Qantas booking reference, Qantas e-ticket number, passenger info and a listing of all the flight legs.

I understand that when checking in for a code-share flight, you check in with the operating airline of the first flight - which in this case is Air New Zealand. (QF8488 is operated by Air New Zealand)

However, if I try to check in online through Air New Zealand using the booking reference provided by Expedia - I get an error saying the booking reference is invalid:

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If I try to do an online check-in through Qantas, it accepts the booking reference but tells me that I need to check in through Air New Zealand:

My question is:

• Should I have been provided with an equivalent Air New Zealand booking reference so I can check in with Air New Zealand?
• If yes, who would be best to contact to get this booking reference? (Expedia / Qantas / Air New Zealand)
• If no, how do I go about checking in to this flight without a valid Air NZ booking reference?

Answer 1

Sometimes a codeshare has the same PNR for all airlines, sometimes it doesn't. Since Air New Zealand and Qantas are different alliances, most likely these are different PNRs.

In order to check in online, you need the Air New Zealand PNR. That should have been in your original booking receipt but can be hard to find. You can check both Expedia and Qantas website in the "manage your booking" section.

Here is an example how this would look on the United website. The United PNR is NWNBW7 but the PNR for the other airlines is 4GL2B3

If it's not in there or you can't find it, you need to pick up the phone. Call Expedia, Qantas, and/or New Zealand. Either one should be able to produce the PNR based on your e-ticket number. If that's too tedious, you just need to check in at the airport. The check in agent can look it up.

Tip: always book directly with the airline if any possible. Booking through a 3rd party like Expedia make managing a trip and getting information a lot more difficult.