Originally Posted by
MorganB
Price the one way that you are wishing to travel. The price will be much higher than the round trip ticket you booked. It's to avoid people booking a cheaper alternative and then just skipping the flights they dont want. AA has different price structures based on where you are flying, when , return or one way etc. You do have a 24 hour grace period to cancel your booking however so if you have noticed the flight time error within 24 hours of making the booking.
That initial information is incorrect for most domestic and near international flights, though it often does apply to longhaul (e.g. transatlantic) flights.
But the OP made several errors here:
Purchased PM instead of AM and failed to take corrective action within the 24 hour cancellation period.
Purchased Basic Economy tickets, which are extremely restricted and are not refundable nor changeable.
Resists being told how the airline works with these and believing the terms and conditions of the fare as well as the Conditions of Carriage apply. They may well be unfair, but they 100% do apply.
I understand the pain. I’ve booked travel unaware of the restrictions, etc. governing my tickets; it’s a common amateur mistake, and one of the reasons for the existence of FlyerTalk. I learned a lot, and keep on learning, because I’ve paid the price. I’ve learned airlines are ruthless to boot, so learning, reading over detailed fare rules, terms and conditions, pouring over the resultant ticket are forms of necessary self-defense.
The OP might price a one way trip if the spouse really needs to be there, but the return will certainly be cancelled if the outbound flight is a no-show.
The OP might purchase a new round trip ticket.
The OP might call and try to change the ticket, though it will probably be pricy to do so because B tickets are subject to
No flight changes or refunds and if today will likely require lengthy phone wait times.
It sounds to me like a painful lesson...