I crapped out today, watching 3 planes leave without being able to standby.

I checked in last night on aa.com, but I can't help but wonder if I didn't get checked in on AS's system until I was in LAX.

Needless to say, I was way behind in the list - having no AS status, and the planes were very full. Not that big of a deal, but a learning experience.

My primary mission was to escape ORD prior to the inevitable afternoon delays....