Originally Posted by
G-CIVC
I called EP desk again to try my luck. A competent agent was able to apply the SWU. But she said this ticket could not be reissued as RTW desk didn't allow it. Instead, they would grant the SWU by notating on my PNR, but I would have to stop by JFK ticketing counter to pick up the BP and she said this is called a 'grab and go' in AA speak
"Grab and go" is non AA-specific, it's a general term used internally within the airline industry. It refers to a gate agent allowing you to fly a segment that doesn't actually match your ticketed coupon. Normally, each segment of a PNR is matched to a corresponding e-ticket coupon. Part of the check-in process (either online or in person) verifies that the PNR segments being checked-in match e-ticket coupons. When an SWU upgrade clears, a confirmed PNR segment is present in an upgraded inventory (A or C). Normally, your ticket is then reissued, with the corresponding segment given a fare basis that has "/VIP" appended. If the ticket can't be reissued for whatever reason, a gate agent can manually mark the e-ticket coupon as used, manually deduct the SWU from your balance, and print you a BP in A or C. Grab-and-go is also sometimes used for involuntary reroutes and other unusual circumstances.
Originally Posted by
G-CIVC
Just for the sake of consistency, I'm happy to report back that I was able to fly in AA F using an SWU on an ex-CAI DONE without the need of ticket reissue ^
Very glad that it went smoothly! Just curious, were you able to check-in online? I'd guess not, since the online checkin system wouldn't be able to match your PNR A segment to a e-ticket VCP (virtual coupon).
Originally Posted by
HypnoticSpecter
indeed if Swu can be applied without "taking over" then it could be a good news afterall.
It's risky, because if other changes occur that require ticket reissue, the upgraded segment is at risk of being dropped. I had this exact issue on an ex-CAI DONEx, where AA could clear me into A on the AA segments but couldn't reissue the ticket. When other schedule changes forced RJ to reissue the ticket, they couldn't do so with the upgraded segments. (In theory, it should be possible for AA to put the upgraded segments at the end of the PNR, leaving the non-upgraded segments in the correct sequence, allowing RJ to reissue the ticket up to the upgraded segments, but in reality RJ can't handle duplicate segments.)