I noticed there was something going on tonight with the EXP desk. I kept getting "American Airlines so-and-so" without any mention of the EXP Desk. That always is a red flag for me that I was being routed outside the desk.

I called in asking about bag fees for someone I booked a ticket for. She was returning to the USA and had a domestic segment. The international segment cleared via SWU but the domestic didn't, and it does not look so good. Thus, international is in J (C inventory) and the domestic is in Y.

The agent was adamant to the fact that she will be charged bag fees for the domestic segment when she arrives to the USA. When I mentioned that I had situations like this before and was never charged, she said it was because I was EXP. She refused to verify her claim. I asked her if I reached the EXP desk and she said that I did.

So I thanked her and hung up. I called back up and I got the exact same agent. Nothing more embarrassing than that, and I did not realize it until she told me. She was clearly angry that I actually called back. She said "I'm just telling you the facts, whatever happens at the airport is just that."

I thanked her and hung up. This time, I called without my AA# in and reached the regular reservations and received a very nice agent. She was not sure about the answer but offered to check with her supervisor. She put me on hold and then verified that she will be eligible to check 3 bags despite the coach domestic segment, which is in line with what I experienced.

So yes, there are great "regular" agents out there, and there are some EXP agents that make me question if the desk is really special at all. Then again, it is possible she was not an EXP agent at all. But I am sure that if there is an overflow, they roll over to other knowledgable agents with experience. But somehow I don't think AA's system is capable of handling that.