Impossible connection time: will AC deny borading?
 

Here's the situation. I booked the famous SAW lifemiles redemption several months ago, in business class, with the following upcoming itinerary:

Canada - LHR AC
LHR-FRA LH
FRA-SAW TK

All connections were fine at the time of booking. Now, because of schedule change, the connection time in FRA is 0:00 - arriving and departing at the same time.

Big question: will AC let me fly to LHR with this ticket as is? I have no checked luggage. I don't want to call TA at all due to obvious reasons. And I am OK if I miss the flights after LHR.

Or, will AC deny boarding?

Sometime between now and your flight date you will almost certainly get notification of a scheduling change for your connection or the original flight. At that point you can probably speak with AC and get whatever flights best suit your schedule.

If your hope was to bail on the two connecting flights, stay in LHR then grab your return from LHR; don't do it - you will almost certainly have the remainder of your ticket cancelled.

To clarify:

It is one way ticket.

Ticket issued by TA, not AC.

Ticket issued to SAW because of TA award pricing error, which is now fixed.

I need to go to LHR.

Impossible connection is LH-TK in FRA.

I don't want to call TA because they may cancel the ticket, or reprice it to correct mileage, or reroute me away from LHR.

My worry is that AC will deny me boarding in Canada.

What will likely happen at AC check in? Will AC transport me to LHR on this ticket as is?

I had something like is happen to me. AC let me fly the first leg. My second leg boarding card would not print. When I arrived in FRA, LH booked the next avail fight in the class of service ticket was booked. That being said, LH was the airline that changed there departure time. not AC.

If you don't get notification of a schedule change, I'd suggest doing OLCI at ~T-24 hours. As long as you get a boarding pass, you should be fine.

If and only if for any reason you can't get your boarding pass, call AC.

Strange question...

They sold you a ticket so they can't just say sorry you're boned. Either they let you on board with this ticket or else they will adjust the ticket to fix the connection. If you want to just say in LHR anyway and you have no luggage you can agree to anything they propose for the adjustment of the connecting flights.

So you're in the lucky position of having no problem.

His only risk is if the "fix" bypasses London and has him fly directly Canada to FRA or say IST.

His ticket is to get him from his place of departure (YVR) to Istanbul - the carrier is under no obligation to fly him via LHR or any other particular waypoint where it just so happens he'd like to deplane.

When do you fly? The schedule may change again between now and departure date. I would suspect it will get autofixed by the computers closer to the departure date.

If it does not on its own, I wonder why the OP does not call them to have this fixed.

I definitely do not want to deal with lifemiles about this ticket. My questions is what will AC do when I show up at the airport check in. AC part of the ticket is fine. The problem connection has nothing to do with AC. Is there a chance that AC will tell me my ticket is bad and deny me boarding?

OK, I think I understand. Why should they deny you? You did nothing incorrect.

However if this is a return ticket and you skip the legs in the middle (rather than having them reschedule you on a later flight upon arrival at FRA) they'll cancel your return.

OP said it's a one way.

My gut feel is you'll be ok, but I have nothing to base that on. From AC's perspective you're fine, it's LH that will have to rebook you on the next available flight from a ticketing perspective.

I have had a flight where I had another flight on a seperate ticket followign the first flight. My first flight was delayed and the also changed the second ticket for me. This was on BA, but LH should do that same.

I assume this is all under one ticket number, not two? If so, then it will be taken care of because you didn't make any changes, it was an airline schedule change.

Not long ago, on a revenue ticket, we had booked YYZ-FRA-VCE. I checked online YYZ-FRA, could not check on the second leg. Eventually I found the flight had been cancelled and later I found why, because of an Italian ATC strike of a few hours.

I had no problem flying the first leg. Actually no one at YYZ could help rebooking the second leg. Which ended up dealt with at FRA.

That a connection no longer works is not a reason for cancelling anything. Why should it be? They might not even notice. A case for rebooking at FRA, yes. If anything, it is the airlines' fault. If doing their job right, they should rebook ahead of time actually.


however dealing with Aeroplan is going from bad to worse. More layoffs won't make them any better.

Lucky you! Never got a chance to use that SAW deal even though I did GUM a couple of times.

My concern would be that you might not be able to do OLCI for your first segment if your ticket is in limbo due to invalid connections. I have nothing to base this on, but just pointing out a possible problem.

I don't believe that sort of things happens. If there is an issue with the rest of the ticket, simply you can only check in for the first legs which are fine. Actually, might even be possible to check in for the leg that should misconnect... These are ticketing issues; tickets cannot be issued with invalid connections. But once issued, as long as the ticket in in place it is in place.

No such a figure as "a ticket being in limbo."