This is my first posting. Hopefully the following never happens to anyone again.

I arrived at YHZ this A.M. to check-in for my flight to YYZ-ORD-FLL with two tickets in hand (one issued by AC and one by United) and upgrade confirmed YYZ-ORD. The AC SE/E check-in agent checks my ticket and advises that the only reservation they have for me is a routing through Tampa into FLL - even though I have a printed ticket and confirmed upgrade seats on my itinerary from the travel agent. The reservation that the agent has was an itinerary that I was working on with my travel agent earlier in the week which was cancelled.

The agent proceeded to change my reservation as per the ticket and confirmed the upgardes to YYZ-ORD. Upon arriving in ORD I checked-in for the United flight in the RCC and there was no problem with the United reservation.

Has this ever happened to anyone before? How is this possible?

PS. I learned of flyertalk through the "Perfect Airline" article in the Globe and have been hooked ever since. I am a former SE and EXP member currently Elite and Gold.

Most likely scenario would be that the agent had both PNR's on the go when you were reserving, closed them to ticket the one you thought you had, and then wound up cancelling the wrong one, later.

Fortunately, with a paper ticket, what the ticket says trumps what the computer says. You have clear evidence of buying a ticket, subject to the fare rules in place at the time, for the routing appearing on the face of the ticket. With an e-ticket, you don't have that same level of certainty, since what is in the computer may 'change.'

Thanks for the insight AC*SE.

The problems continue with this itinerary.

My travel agent confirmed my upgrade with AC on Aug. 6 for my return from ORD to YHZ. The travel agent noticed today that somebody had accessed my reservation and cancelled the upgrades which the travel agent had to confirm again with AC.

AC appear to be having problems with their reservation system - my travel agency noticed that two more of their reservations were incorrect in AC's system.

Did any of the sectors involve CP operated flights? (I am thinking particularly of the ORD-YYZ)? CP has different rules for releasing upgrade inventory, which complicates life.

Does your travel agent use Sabre (AA's CRS which CP used) or ResIII (AC's system)? The two systems don't communicate very well, which could have caused a problem.

Is you agent covering up a, "whoops?"

Another possible explanation is that you travel agent might have booked the U/G more than the 48 or 72 hrs ahead. If they are breaking the rules, AC has the right to send them a debit memo for the full fare executive class ticket. But I have heard of the computer cancelling it.

Sorry for the delay in reposnding I was travelling.

My travel agency is using Apollo. The upgrade was confirmed within the 72 hour period for Elite members and then was cancelled the next day.

I do not believe the travel agency is covering as I ok'ed an e-mailed copy of the itinerary and the ticket was issued as per the itinerary.

TOSOTG probably has it, then.