Originally Posted by e_chappy

There's a chance of me going to CDG from MSN. Itinerary is MSN --> ORD --> CDG on the way out; and CDG to ORD on the way back.

Normally, 1-stop flights flying from region airports would be cheaper, but not this time.

Also, b/c of a need to purchase refundable tickets, it turns out that it would be much cheaper for me to separately purchase 1) refundable roundtrip reservation from ORD to CDG (J outbound/ PE return) and 2) single-legged trip from MSN to ORD.

Renting a car and driving over would cost more than a refundable first-class seat (I will be checking two bags). So the only issue is which flight to take.

There's a AA flight arriving at 5:50 PM, which gives me ~1 hr 50 minutes to check in for the 8:40 PM departure for CDG, but I'd have to pick up luggage and re-check them again. While having Global Entry and a J ticket should expedite things, is this too tight of a connection? I called AA and was told that there would be no way for my luggage to get forwarded to the flight to CDG, but I don't know if an exception could be made.

I can pay for an earlier flight that arrives at 12:45 PM, but two bags in MC will cost more than the ticket in domestic F.

I can also pay for an UA flight arriving at 2:20 PM. For some reason, this appears to be the best option, but it just feels a bit odd.

Would like to get a confirmation that through-checking of luggage won't be possible, which means that the UA flight would be my best option.

Many thanks in advance!