Originally Posted by
richarddd
I didn't think you could call an airline directly to deal with a ticket issued by a travel agent such as Amex, unless you were close to the day of departure. Is that incorrect?
You absolutely
can call the airline to deal with an agency ticket. Different carriers have different policies and experiences when attempting this; IME the US carriers will usually help you out if you ask nicely, sometimes admonishing you for attempting this. Status helps in this regard though.
Reports upthread was that there is no longer a fee to book with real Amex agents instead of Expedia, so that seems to be the better route for the future.