Originally Posted by
shd9
I believe AA creates the PNR in between the pax info page and the selection page (special meal page for long haul). That locks your fare.
If the seat is unable to be confirmed (for example, when someone snagged the seat before you, or weird married segment logic), you get kicked out to the flight selection page with a 'chosen fare no longer available' banner.
After the PNR is created, you have at least 15 mins to make the payment, provided you move your mouse every now and then to stop the page from timing out. If the page times out, or if you click choose another flight, the PNR is canceled. Otherwise it could actually stay live for a while in the background
Correct — this happens when credit card info bounces back as well or when the “this page has taken flight” error pops up. As others have noted, there is a PNR created and the seat / fare is held for a short period of time to either book online or via an agent.