What does “phantom availability” mean?

“Phantom availability” happens when a flight shows up as bookable with points or miles, but when you try to reserve it, no seat is actually available.

Why it happens

This usually comes from inaccurate or outdated airline data. Common causes include:

• Cached results: A program displays availability that has already been booked. Check when it was Last Seen on our site to see if it is potentially stale.
• Syncing delays: Seats were taken or pulled, but airline partner systems haven’t updated yet. Some airlines cache availability for several minutes or hours and don't immediately reflect changes in inventory.
• Partner feed glitches: Some programs incorrectly display award space on partner airlines as available even when it's not.

How to protect yourself

• Check the airline’s site directly: If the seat isn’t listed there, it’s likely phantom.
• Compare multiple sources: Look at multiple mileage programs in the same airline alliance to see if the availability is visible everywhere.
• Call to confirm: A loyalty program agent can often verify real availability and hold it for you while you transfer points.
• Wait to transfer points: Only move flexible points after confirming the seat on the airline’s own site.

Seats.aero works to display accurate, real-time data, but phantom availability is a limitation of how airline systems sync. Always verify before transferring points or canceling backup tickets.