So, I booked an award trip a couple months ago. It looked like a great redemption: Three legs, starting with a short-ish connection in "domestic first" to DFW (AA metal), then the long trans-Atlantic leg in business class to LHR (AA metal, in "Flagship Suites" seats), connecting to a regional BA "business class" leg to my destination. I was excited. It looked like a great deal. Today I get email from AA about a change to my flights...
It appears they pulled the 78P off the DFW-LHR (middle) leg I had booked, and put me on a 77W instead (no "Flagship Suites" in that plane). The first and third legs are unchanged. Of course it was that middle leg that I had wanted most (I don't sleep well in 777s and prefer Dreamliners).
Now, I've had award flights changed in the past, on AA and other airlines. So I don't panic. I go look for "better options" that I might ask them to put me on. After a schedule change, I've generally had good luck when I call them and ask for flights that may be even better than my original (eg originally booked an itin with 2 stops, and ended up asking for - and getting - a one-stop), even though the "better" option would cost more (or was originally not offered at all). Sometimes this requires calling and asking nicely, sometimes the agent needs to get a supervisor to OK it, but I've typically had success with this kind of change request (at least at other airlines...). The guidelines that I've always believed to be operative were the following:
Origin city and destination city can not change - but the connecting city/cities CAN change. The NUMBER of connecting cities can also change, as long as the origin and destination don't. New flight departure must be within 24 hours of the original departure; same for the destination arrival.
So I clicked the big, obvious "Change Trip" button. Then I got a dialog that says this:
Unable to change trip
This trip cannot be changed. In most cases, you can cancel your trip and get your miles reinstated right away. Then, you can book a new trip with your miles
So they want me to cancel the trip, and then I am welcome to rebook myself. Hmmm.
Before I cancel, I take a look at available award options. Of course, all the options available now suck: they're WAY more expensive (in both miles and fees) than what I booked originally (and none offer the 78P).
Is it even worth bothering to call and ask them to put me on a different itinerary? I've found one (on a 78P) going through ORD rather than DFW...but of course, it's not available as an award flight. So I can't book it. THEY could switch me to that flight (it's AA metal).
I'm just AAAdvantage Platinum, which I would not expect to carry much weight. Based on recent experiences with AA, my expectations are low. Worth the call and time on hold, or is it just a wasted effort?