This Saturday I am flying DCA-CLT-GCM. When I booked this on CheapTickets the cheapest fare had a long layover in CLT 2h43m.

So I get to CLT at ~0730
My 1030 GCM flight is currently overbooked by 11, 119 tickets/108 seats.

US has an 0830 flight, that has room, will someone in CLT 'bump' me with compensation onto the 0830 flight? Is the 0830 gate, President's Club, or Cust Svc Counter the best place to try to talk sense into them?

Or will they wait 'til the last minute when they will have to send the bumpees to Miaimi then on AA or CaymanAir to get us there?

I am CP.

My son is flying NWA and they've already bumped him on his 3Jan return for $400 in vouchers!!

[This message has been edited by Spence (edited Dec 15, 2003).]

My experience has been that the bumps are almost always handled by the gate agent. Your best bet is generally to greet them as soon as they arrive to start working the flight and offer to be bumped. If you offer before they make an announcement, you'll usually get the first spot in the bump line.

I'm not sure what the "President's Club" is, but assuming it is what I just call "the club", I haven't had much luck with them. I offered to get bumped yesterday at the club for FREE and they wouldn't do it. So I wandered down to the gate and got two free tickets instead.

I'm no expert in bumps, but I'm not sure a flight that is oversold by 10% will need volunteers.

MikeLaw: Normally I would think the same thing, but this is to GCM, which isn't as much of a business destination as it is pleasure this time of year. I would get to the gate ASAP and volunteer. The fact that you're CP will get you to the top of the list (unless another CP is ahead of you). The Club probably is of no help since the gate agents are the ones maintaining "The List" and are the ones handing out vouchers if they get to that point.

All in all, I would estimate your chances at 50/50 given the destination.

Good luck!

The flight still has two seats in FC, meaning that really the flight is 129 passengers for 120 seats ... not sure I see a huge opportunity for a bump there myself, even to such a vacation destination.

Unless they sell a few more seats I really doubt you'll be able to get compensation to take the earlier flight.

Call me crazy, but I'd be happy if they just let me take the earlier flight so I could get to Grand Cayman two hours earlier ... but that's just me.

Your only shot for getting this done is at one of the customer service counters, but I seriously doubt it will happen.

Thanks for the quick feedback!

Yesterday, there was only one in the F bucket, now there are two so maybe I'll get upgrades for half my party and the other half can take a bump and join later as I think the chances of going on the early flight with compensation are minimal.

I agree that this is not a business destination for Xmas week, so I would expect everyone ticketed to show. Anyway being there way before the gate opens and being CP would bode well for being at the top of the list.

You might be able to get on the earlier flight, if the later flight is that oversold.

The one risk you do run is not being able to get to GCM for hours, if not days. Before you take the bump, I'd would ensure that US has confirmed alternate transportation.

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Don't feed the trolls.

Would they really owe you compensation for taking the earlier flight? I can see asking for compensation if you get bumped from your flight. But if you offer to take an earlier flight, isn't that a fancy way of asking to stand by?

I took a bump last year in CDG (this was on Delta). On a hunch I asked the agent if the flight was oversold and he said "yes." $400 Delta Dollars later, and I was confirmed on the next flight to the states before any announcement was even made to the rest of the boarding area! So, yes, they will bump you early if it is the right circumstance.

I think the trick is to use language with the gate agent that sounds like you're thinking of their situation..."Would it be helpful to you If we took the earlier flight..." something along those lines.
Good luck!


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"A mile of highway will take you a mile,
but a mile of runway will take you anywhere."

hmmmm....
now it's back to F1

There's a difference between being "bumped early" and "bumped to an earlier flight." You might be able to talk some sense into someone (although I doubt it) but IMO there's no way you'll get bump compensation for it.

If I am looking for the bump voucher, I would try not to volunteer until any earlier flight to my destination has departed. Otherwise the GA would be able to suggest I take the earlier flight for no compensation.

It gets tricky. If I wait too long, someone else may be in a better position in the gate check in line to get the first spot on the volunteer list.

Also, if you volunteer before the GA asks and the GA immediately gives you your voucher, that means that the GA thinks the flight is way overbooked. After you have taken your voucher and supposedly departed, the GA might be offering greater compensation to others following his announcement for volunteers.

Again, this is tricky. Wait too long and someone else may beat you to the volunteer list.

Travel tips:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/travel.htm


[This message has been edited by AllanJ (edited Dec 19, 2003).]

Well, had a wonderful time in GCM, made 1st with companion on every leg down and return GCM to CLT, no one was bumped. Got to CLT last night and there were no upgrades available and flight CLT-DCA was full, volunteered and was told I'd be 'protected' on last flight of the night at 10:10pm. My party of four seats were given away and then they called me up and tried to weasel out giving me a hotel and meals and first flight in the morning (that's what the other 4 bumpees got), I said, no, I'd take the 10:10pm that I was promised. By the time they did the paperwork for the 4 RT vouchers and I walked to the next gate they were open for check-ins and asking for volunteers. My party of 4 were only ones bumped, a nice night in a very nice airport Sheraton with meals and entire party in 1st on first flight this a.m. Nice end to a nice Caribbean Xmas! Didn't realize that CP gets 150% of meal allowances.