Originally Posted by
FrankMorris
The only downside I can think of is the trip credit system and that being cumbersome - specifically, if I book through the Chase portal, then cancel, I would have a trip credit living within the Chase system rather than the AA system. I can't see any specific downside to this other than flexibility of then needing to use that credit via Chase.
Last I checked, AA charges to move a "group travel" reservation into your own name, and therefore changeable within the AA system. Does this affect either upgrades, free same day changes, etc?
Not sure if Chase charges a fee to handle changes, but that would be a potential downside in addition to the flexibility. Amex has resumed charging for phone assistance, I believe.
As far as the nature of the reservation, these are really travel agency tickets--AA's charge to take over the ticket is entirely arbitrary and there is really no "moving" of the reservation taking place, as the reservation lives in both the travel agent's GDS and American's in-house reservation system from the outset.
Upgrades, same day changes, etc will not be affected by a Chase or Amex-issued ticket (in fact AA will take over the ticket if your ticket needs to be reissued due to an upgrade without charging you a fee).