Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan - Help - Situation Occurring Right Now

Okay, here's the deal, my girlfriend is joining me in Anchorage, from San Francisco, for the Memorial Day Weekend. She's on Southwest Flight 840 from Oakland to LAX and then AS 157 direct from LAX to Anchorage.

As of right now, 840 is delayed by an hour, it was originally supposed to arrive at LAX at 740p, and now it looks to be, ironically, arriving at 840p.

AS157 departs LAX at 855p

I've already called and had a note inserted into her reservation with the Southwest flight number, and the fact that it was going to be late, in hopes that the gate agents would see it when doing their last boarding calls before giving her seat away to a standby passenger, and we are obviously hoping that either her flight gets out a little earlier, or AS157 is delayed by even 15 minutes, but if neither of those things happen..

I've already booked her on a flight out of LAX tomorrow morning using miles, in case she does end up missing AS157 tonight, and in case they won't move her onto one of the flights tomorrow morning without charging a change fee, because I'd rather use the miles and save the ticket value for later than pay over $300 in fee and fare difference, especially since this isn't Alaska's fault at all.

So that's where you folks come in..

What else can I do?

Is there any way to contact the LAX gate agents and inform them that her flight is going to be late?

What are the odds Alaska will book her onto a flight tomorrow morning?

Anything else that will help me?

Thank you!

This is the risk of booking with two separate carriers on separate itineraries :( Unless AS157 is delayed, she has no chance of making her flight since she will have to exit T1 and go through security in T6, etc.

Not much you can do, but hope it all works out somehow in the end.

There is a delta flight from OAK-LAX that arrives about the same time. Maybe it would be a better option than Southwest but I would say that is cutting it close. Isn't there a redeye from SFO-ANC?

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There is a delta flight from OAK-LAX that arrives about the same time. Maybe it would be a better option than Southwest but I would say that is cutting it close. Isn't there a redeye from SFO-ANC?

AS hasn't operated SFO-ANC for the past two summers :(

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And it seems that the late-night combi will be full too:



AS 349 OAK 8:10p → SEA 10:04p
F0 U0 A0 Y2 S0 B0 M0 H0 Q0 L0 V0 K0 G0 T0 W0
AS 121 SEA 11:45p → ANC 2:17a
F0 U0 A0 Y0 S0 B0 M0 H0 Q0 L0 V0 K0 G0 T0 W0

Yeah, and I wouldn't put her on the Combi anyway. I don't even like flying on them and I'm used to it on the milk run.

Anyway, the mileage ticket we got out of LAX was in the 12.5 and there was only one 12.5 ticket in the entire bay area tomorrow and that was tomorrow evening out of OAK and she didn't want to do that. We have friends in LA, so she had preferred to stay in LA tonight, if necessary, than in the Bay Area.

Anyhow, she is on the Southwest flight now, and they said 52 minutes in the air, but now I'm worried about them even letting her back through security. I don't know if she has the attitude necessary to push your way to the front of the security line, as she would need to do.

So I'll probably just book her a room for the night near LAX on priceline, unless we get lucky and there's an equipment change, or some other form of irrops, to delay her flgiht out of LAX.

I was hoping she'd be able to talk to the gate agents in LAX, to see if they could accommodate her on the flight tomorrow morning, but now I'm unsure if that will even be possible.

Does anyone know if security will let you through if the doors have already closed?

Does anyone know if security will let you through if the doors have already closed?

I don't think security knows or cares about which flight departs when. The only thing to be concerned about is when they actually close the terminal. If that's the last flight out, then they could close security right after it departs, but I doubt that's the case.

Just tell her to run like heck, and if she misses it, to talk to the GA about moving to tomorrow's flight.

Read that wrong. Beers go the nest of me! Haha

Keep us posted and good luck.

Looks like 840 arrived at 8:41 pm and AS 157 left at 8:50 so don't think this had a happy ending.

I've already called and had a note inserted into her reservation with the Southwest flight number, and the fact that it was going to be late, in hopes that the gate agents would see it when doing their last boarding calls before giving her seat away to a standby passenger,
Is there any way to contact the LAX gate agents and inform them that her flight is going to be late?


Thank you!most likely the GAs dont read these kinds of things in any notes so they wont even know WN is running late. They'll just page over the intercom a few times them give away the seat...

Even if you do reach LAX gate agents I doubt that matters. AS once and a while will hold a flight for a late arriving flight if its 10 or 15 minutes AND operated by them or a partner booking...not for southwest.

Thats the risk of booking seperate flights...its a gamble. I always leave about a 4 hour plus cushion when doing so to reduce any risk

I always leave about a 4 hour plus cushion when doing so to reduce any risk

+1 ^

I would never have this itinerary with only an hour connection times. Almost sounds like the GF WANTED to visit her friends in SoCal. :D

I don't get why you booked the itin like this? Why not do SFO/OAK->SEA/PDX/LAX->ANC all on AS instead of splitting between WN and AS? Was price that much of a difference?

Seems to be inviting disaster...

I don't get why you booked the itin like this? Why not do SFO/OAK->SEA/PDX/LAX->ANC all on AS instead of splitting between WN and AS? Was price that much of a difference?

Seems to be inviting disaster...

Can't speak for the OP, but i did something similar.
Yes, it was cheaper to fly out of LAX to ANC, since there's cheap flights for the summer from LA area, probably due to summer competition (about $150 OW).

And there's often cheap flights from SF/OAK to LA area, like $60 or so.
So assuming you'd prefer saving money for the added time and convenience cost, it can make sense to go out of your way to fly to ANC from the LA area.

Can't speak for the OP, but i did something similar.
Yes, it was cheaper to fly out of LAX to ANC, since there's cheap flights for the summer from LA area, probably due to summer competition (about $150 OW).

And there's often cheap flights from SF/OAK to LA area, like $60 or so.
So assuming you'd prefer saving money for the added time and convenience cost, it can make sense to go out of your way to fly to ANC from the LA area.

It sure can. My brother just booked an Alaska Airlines ticket from Southern California to Anchorage for mid-June. He originally wanted to use the Burbank airport and connect in Seattle or Portland for the flight to Anchorage but the fare difference between a BUR or LAX departure was nearly $300.00 one way! Therefore, it's an airport shuttle to LAX vs. a 15 minute drive to Burbank. Thank you Jet Blue!;)