FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - AA Guide: ORD / Chicago O'Hare International Airport - MCT, Connection, etc.
Old Aug 15, 2022 | 7:43 am
  #1438  
iplaybass
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Originally Posted by Ziz
But I think that the airlines should not be booking connections that are impossible to make. I rushed us through each point and my son was in the stroller the whole time so our time through wasn't related to toddler slowness.
Unfortunately, I don't think airline connections allow for environmental conditions. They are counting on all other parts of the connecting paradigm to function perfectly. So if on an international flight TSA, passenger-side baggage handling, or customs & immigration are slow, they consider these out of their purview, and the traveler's risk. They let you book these because under near-perfect conditions, a seasoned traveler can make these connections. In your case, the alternative would have been an extra 6 (?) hours added to the layover, so it was worth (?) the risk, but only because you had a plan B.

Ever since COVID, I've heard a lot of, "but the airline said we could make this connection... what do you mean you won't pay for a hotel?" For me, I have low risk tolerance. I won't book I->D with anything less than 2 hours, and D->D under an hour. If the options are D->I under 2h, and the alternative is spending the night, I'll book a hotel, spend the overnight, and get a flight at a decent hour the next day. I can always try to standby if I make it, otherwise, there's no stress or anxiety involved. And if you're traveling with someone who gets anxious (or a young child), this is much better on your nerves. I've already canceled and rebooked one trip this year on DL when they cut my connection to 31 minutes, and the next flight out was at 7 am the next day. (MCT is 30 minutes at this airport.) I ended up rebooking on AA.
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