I was booked on AC8671/AC159 tonight, BOS-YYZ-YEG.
The BOS-YYZ flight arrived at 19:51, about 45 minutes after the 19:07 scheduled arrival time. YYZ-YEG was scheduled for a 20:40 departure, but on arrival was delayed to 20:50. I therefore had about an hour to make the connection.
Minimal wait at CBSA, a bit of a longer wait for my checked bag, and I threw it on the transfer belt and headed to domestic security. Arrived at the gate no later than 20:35, where the crew was just boarding the aircraft, and an announcement was made that boarding would begin a few minutes later.
Went to board at 20:45, but the BP was rejected... spoke to the lead agent, who told me that they didn't think I would make the flight, and thus removed me from it. As it was full (and apparently my bag had also been rerouted) I wasn't able to get on. The next two flights tonight were also totally full. There were at least seven other passengers in the same situation, although I think that one or two of them might have been put back on the same flight and others rebooked for one of the later flights. I think that the agents were surprised that we were there - and at no time was an announcement made asking for volunteers.
So off to customer service and rebooked for the morning. After initially refusing a hotel they offered one, but it was the Holiday Inn (no thanks) so my insurance will pay the bill for a night at the Westin.
Question, though... isn't this actually an involuntary denied boarding situation? I presented myself at the gate well in advance of the cut-off and was denied boarding (although scheduled for a 20:50 departure, the flight had barely been boarded then and actually departed at 21:16). I kind of think they owe me the $200 travel credits - but would appreciate the opinions from here.
"spoke to the lead agent, who told me that they didn't think I would make the flight, and thus removed me from it." - IN MY OPINION SINCE IT WAS THE AGT DECISION TO REMOVE YOU FROM THE FLIGHT EVEN KNOWING YOU WERE CHECKED FOR IT (DESPITE THE PREVIOUS DELAY), YOU SHOULD GET THE DENIED BOARDING COMPENSATION. I SAW MANY TRAVELERS IN A SITUATION LIKE YOURS WHERE THE AGENTS DECIDED TO WAIT FOR THE PASSENGERS. BY THE WAY YOU SAID, IT WAS THE AGENT ACTION TO DENY YOU ON THE FLIGHT, SINCE YOU WERE THERE.
"There were at least seven other passengers in the same situation, although I think that one or two of them might have been put back on the same flight" - COULD BE THE SITUATION WERE THEY DIDN'T HAD CHECKED BAG, SO THE AGENTS DON'T NEED TO LOAD ANYTHING ON THE PLANE?
AFTER GETTING HOME, I WOULD MAKE A COMPLAIN AND ASK FOR COMPENSATION (INCLUDING THE HOTEL EXPENSES).
Hotel is a separate issue (delay was not related to weather in either Toronto or Boston), so they should cover this. But I have insurance as well - so two avenues to go down.
As for arriving at the gate, they clearly didn't even check if I was there - just assumed that I would not be. They also announced that flight departure time would be between 21:10 and 21:20, as opposed to the 20:50 indicated. I was there by 20:35 latest (bag hit the transfer belt at 20:22 and there were only three-four people ahead of me at security).
It is t-15 of scheduled departure, not actual departure.
+1 - A common FT misconception. The carrier is free to offload at its specified deadline based on scheduled not actual departure time. Doesn't mean they won't acommodate you, just that it is by no means an IDB situation.
This misconception also fuels some of the poor results people see in their complaints. It's important to know what you are entitled to vs. what a carrier might do for you as a gesture. If the former, being firm and demanding (although never rude) is fine. If the latter, explaining what happened and asking the carrier to help out, is the route to go.
Fine, but the airline pushed the scheduled departure to 20:50 and then 21:10. Airlines change schedules all the time... So if a flight is pushed back the day before, they can still offload me if I'm not there in advance of the original departure time?
I suppose it comes down to the definition of departure time/scheduled departure in the contract of carriage.
And further, how do they know I wasn't there at 20 minutes prior if they didn't make an announcement asking me to present myself at the gate?
I arrived in yyz at 19:51. It's def possible to get through CBSA and back to domestic departures in 30 minutes.
I suppose the issue I have is that they made a commercial decision to remove me, and made no effort to see if I had actually arrived. In other words, head in the sand so we don't have to deal with an oversold situation. Kind of crap really.
Valid point. If they would have called your, they would for sure have told you later. So they will not know ... unless you tell them - not knowing the rules - by accident. But now you know :-)
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2013 Miles: 25,365
2013 Cities: TPA - EWR - HAM - ORD - FRA- ZRH
I don't understand - if you are already checked in, checked the baggage straight through, had your BP already, and you make it to the gate by the scheduled required time and see the delayed departure time posted and people are still seated in the lounge, what additional duties does one have to the airline other than board before the door closes? I would have thought if I was in OP's situation, I would breathe a sigh of relief to have made it and turn my attention to overdue business in the powder room and/or snack bar. Does the passenger have to re-check in or something? Because I am deaf, I normally DO present myself and warn them ominously not to forget me because I won't hear them, and they normally sigh at me like I have wasted their brain cells, and it seems 90% of the people in the gate lounge do not greet the agent at the desk. How would they know you were there or not at the cutoff time? How would they know you had not just ducked out to the powder room or other facility nearby? If you were in one of those places, is it possible to hear your name called by the desk agent at the gate from there?
I had a similar experience last Tuesday.I was flying YOW-YYZ-YXE. with 47 minutes to transfer in YYZ
The flight arrived 45 minutes late in Toronto. There were at least 10 of us on the plane going to Saskatoon. When we arrived in YYZ, the next plane was at the gate beside us. Hurried off the plane as they were just starting to close the door to the jetway and "final boarding" was flashing. They din't hold the plane or let us on. It was clear that this was preplanned, as AC already had hotel vouchers (Holiday Inn) and next morning boarding pass all prepared for the ten of us. This hotel voucher included $7 for breakfast at the Holiday Inn, where breakfast was $17. Why wouldn't they just provide a voucher for the breakfast?
Also, I didn't realize my credit card (AMEX GOLD) would cover a different hotel. How does that work?
