So Frustrated!

jmt1030

Level 2 Member
So i spent hours a couple months ago planning my airfare on AA from MIA- SFO. I really wanted to fly on the new A321T, so I found MIA-JFK-SFO which worked perfectly with us getting to SFO at 2:00pm. I also had a return flight LAX-MIA in F on a 777. I recently logged into my account and see that they changed the flight times and now I would be getting in to SFO at 7pm which sucks. Now, I just got an email that they changed my LAX-MIA flight and now it's on a 738.

Has this happened to anyone else? I'm assuming this is the pitfall on booking so far in advance?
 

Matt

Administrator
Staff member
So i spent hours a couple months ago planning my airfare on AA from MIA- SFO. I really wanted to fly on the new A321T, so I found MIA-JFK-SFO which worked perfectly with us getting to SFO at 2:00pm. I also had a return flight LAX-MIA in F on a 777. I recently logged into my account and see that they changed the flight times and now I would be getting in to SFO at 7pm which sucks. Now, I just got an email that they changed my LAX-MIA flight and now it's on a 738.

Has this happened to anyone else? I'm assuming this is the pitfall on booking so far in advance?
When you get a change like this (mainly on the time side, not the equipment) you get the chance to adjust your ticket for free, as @PainCorp says, call and see.

I actually got bumped from a Biz 738 (with 2 transfers) to a First A321 LAX-JFK (award ticket) last year. I enjoyed the crappy 738 more, good attendants and fun, vs a 321 with crap attendants, and weird AV issue. However, they gave me 10K miles on top of the bump, and I am taking the last leg (JFK-MAD in IB J) next week, so I mustn't grumble.
 

PainCorp

Level 2.14 on Dining/Travel until 12/15
When you get a change like this (mainly on the time side, not the equipment) you get the chance to adjust your ticket for free, as @PainCorp says, call and see.

I actually got bumped from a Biz 738 (with 2 transfers) to a First A321 LAX-JFK (award ticket) last year. I enjoyed the crappy 738 more, good attendants and fun, vs a 321 with crap attendants, and weird AV issue. However, they gave me 10K miles on top of the bump, and I am taking the last leg (JFK-MAD in IB J) next week, so I mustn't grumble.
You got an upgrade then. You're booked on a J award, but agents keep booking that flight wrong since domestic 3 class is so rare.
 

Matt

Administrator
Staff member
You got an upgrade then. You're booked on a J award, but agents keep booking that flight wrong since domestic 3 class is so rare.
Well, both the 738 and 321 had 3 class, but yeah, it was a hell of an upgrade. 40K net including IB next week :)
 

smittytabb

Moderator
Staff member
So i spent hours a couple months ago planning my airfare on AA from MIA- SFO. I really wanted to fly on the new A321T, so I found MIA-JFK-SFO which worked perfectly with us getting to SFO at 2:00pm. I also had a return flight LAX-MIA in F on a 777. I recently logged into my account and see that they changed the flight times and now I would be getting in to SFO at 7pm which sucks. Now, I just got an email that they changed my LAX-MIA flight and now it's on a 738.

Has this happened to anyone else? I'm assuming this is the pitfall on booking so far in advance?
AA changes planes and schedules a lot lately. It is good to keep an eye on it because it does give you the chance to make changes. I had a time change on an ORD to LHR trip and I was able to rebook it through JFK and snatched some J seats using systemwides on the lie flat business in the 777-300ER.
 

knick1959

Level 2 Member
So i spent hours a couple months ago planning my airfare on AA from MIA- SFO. I really wanted to fly on the new A321T, so I found MIA-JFK-SFO which worked perfectly with us getting to SFO at 2:00pm. I also had a return flight LAX-MIA in F on a 777. I recently logged into my account and see that they changed the flight times and now I would be getting in to SFO at 7pm which sucks. Now, I just got an email that they changed my LAX-MIA flight and now it's on a 738.

Has this happened to anyone else? I'm assuming this is the pitfall on booking so far in advance?
I got an email 2 days ago. My April flight to Lima, which was an all-day affair with 1 long stop-over (but in Business, so not too bad) just got switched to an overnight redeye that makes no sense. So, I will be following all of the same advice you've received here to switch this out. There's a huge difference arriving between somewhere at midnight (which is late for us old-timers :) and now at 5:08am. I'll have to study other options and then call in, as this doesn't work well for me at all. This flight was booked many months ago on BA miles.
 

jmt1030

Level 2 Member
They'd only be able to put me on other mile saaver flights, right? I found other flights that I would like but there's no mile saaver seats open for them.
 

Matt

Administrator
Staff member
They'd only be able to put me on other mile saaver flights, right? I found other flights that I would like but there's no mile saaver seats open for them.
It depends. I'd engineer it to focus on the time of arrival not the metal, I think that they would be less inclined to open up space just because you'd like to experience the plane, but if you focus on needing to be there at a certain time you might get more joy. It's not something you would be entitled to per se, but it is something you could achieve with proper manners and a bit of good fortune.
 

tmount

Administrator
It was 3 class transcon JFK-left coast. Frankly I could care less about the 'bird'. I'm such a bad travel blogger :(
It was a 767 -- I remember your tweets. I recall because I was so surprised at how much you enjoyed it.
 

MickiSue

Level 2 Member
Remember that a lot of the employees at airlines are equipment geeks. So if you comment that you really wanted to fly the specific plane, because you've heard so much good about it, as well as that the new times just don't work for you, you may get somewhere.

Also, if they offer you something for more miles, politely point out that you didn't change the plane/flight, they did and you had only planned to spend X amount of miles.

We booked flights for Italy within about a month of learning our daughter was pregnant. Mine kept being changed nearly weekly, but never by more than a minute or two. My husband, who was traveling later than I, got a notice that his flight to Rome was changed, and he would be landing about an hour after his flight to Milan left. Clearly, that wasn't going to work.

When I called to change, they had flights that would work, (I'd already looked), but for more miles. The CSR agreed that they should honor the saver cost, as the changes were their choice, not ours.
 

jmt1030

Level 2 Member
Sorry for the late reply!

I was able to get us on a different flight MIA-LAX-SFO in a 777 and a 738 both ways in F. Not the a321t, but better than a 738 the whole way.

Thanks for all the suggestions! Agents were really nice and accommodating.
 

jmt1030

Level 2 Member
So, I noticed something weird today when I logged into my AA account. It seems they never charged the miles for one of my flights when I made the change. Both of the flights show as ticketed, but the miles were never taken out of my account?

Anyone have this happen to them?
 

PainCorp

Level 2.14 on Dining/Travel until 12/15
So, I noticed something weird today when I logged into my AA account. It seems they never charged the miles for one of my flights when I made the change. Both of the flights show as ticketed, but the miles were never taken out of my account?

Anyone have this happen to them?
Mind if I ask what change was made? Might make explaining what happened a little easier.
 

Vince

Level 2 Member
Hey, currently I have 212,413 miles with American airlines. What I am trying to accomplish is to go from boston (Bos) to Greece (skg). They say they have no availability for 4/13/2015 however have availability on 4/9. Trying not to pay an arm and a leg for these tickets and my wife is like bugging out because I don't want to drop cash on plane tickets. Am I asking for too much?
 

raenye

Lever 2 Membel
Looking for int'l award space 5 weeks before may prove tough.
Is this a non-stop? would you consider a connecting flight?
 

MickiSue

Level 2 Member
If your dates are the least bit flexible, I'd jump on the open seats for the 9th, because they won't last, either.
 

tmount

Administrator
Hey, currently I have 212,413 miles with American airlines. What I am trying to accomplish is to go from boston (Bos) to Greece (skg). They say they have no availability for 4/13/2015 however have availability on 4/9. Trying not to pay an arm and a leg for these tickets and my wife is like bugging out because I don't want to drop cash on plane tickets. Am I asking for too much?
So I guess my first question is: what class of service are you looking for? Second: Are the current flights available via BA? if so, and you are flying premium cabins, it could be costly (~$500 per person).

One alternative that I might offer depending on how you feel about making multiple connections as a way of saving money, might be to look for Air Berlin flights (ex JFK or ORD perhaps?), or AA or US metal, perhaps CLT-FRA, to get you close, and then either pick up revenue flight to get the last bit?

I just offer these options if you're saying that it would cost and arm and a leg with the awards, making an assumption that you mean the UK airport fees and British Airways fuel surcharges.

One final piece of advice - always look for one leg at a time, and choose your hardest leg first. For example, I'd guess your hardest leg will either be the transatlantic (assuming you want to avoid LHR), or figuring out who flies from where to SKG. Air Berlin for example flies from TXL, STR, DUS, HAM, NUE, MUC, and VIE. So if you could find a flight ex-US to TXL, that would be an ideal matching. I think AA or US also fly direct to MUC, and I think AB may fly from Florida to DUS, but it may be seasonal.
 

Vince

Level 2 Member
I wish I could do that flight on the 9th. I'm unable to do the 9th due to schedule purposes. Thanks for those responses it certainly helps with the process.
 

jmt1030

Level 2 Member
So I had ANOTHER schedule/airplane change. Was scheduled to fly LAX-MIA in a 767 and it was changed to a 757.

Thankfully the very nice AA phone agent was able to put me into a later flight that is on the 767.

All these schedule changes are kicking my ass!
 
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