Thanks, all. I figured the extra $30 price difference for American was worth it for peace of mind (and for the miles).

I assume that a three hour layover in LAX is sufficient. What do you think? It will be on a Sunday in April. (The other option would have me in LAX for almost five hours...ouch.)

I am new to Flyertalk but a very experienced international traveler. This trip is throwing me for a loop because I booked a package through a deal I found and ended up having a travel agent. Those apparently still exist. I also never check luggage but I figured for such a long trip I may as well.

Happy to discover this site, especially since I have 100K Delta miles and live way outside the hubs these days.