greg0ire

Reservation is on hold. I plan to book it today.
LAX-MIA 777 Booking code U
MIA-BGI 757 Booking code T
BGI-MIA 757 Booking code T
MIA-LAX 763 Booking code Z

Can I ask that the BGI legs be booked in Z even if I am assigned in Y cabin?

greg0ire

I just asked the award travel CSR about classifying me as DSR, but she wouldn't, stating that I am on an award business class ticket. She says that designation only applies to paid business tickets.

I then asked her about my ability to get business class seats the day of travel, and she made it clear that I would be on a different list than those wishing to upgrade from their paid Y seats. When prompting her which list has priority she refused to answer, sounding more like a politician, repeating that they are different lists.

vasantn

I'm pretty certain that DSR is purely a PALL List designation and, as such, is not something that can be applied in advance.

AZbba

This happened to us on a LAX-SFO segment connecting to HKG on CX F. F wasn't terribly full a couple days out, but no award inventory opened up.

The day of the flight suddenly F was full. I asked a bit in the flagship lounge and they said that since I was gold I'd be way down the upgrade list.

Moral of the story, you better get the award changed or your chances of sitting in F are pretty slim.

greg0ire

They don't seem to release bus awards for MIA-BGI in both directions save for a random Tuesday. There seems to be plenty of availability on both flights each day. My planes should be more likely since they are the 757 as opposed to the other time slot on the 75L.

I guess I won't hold my breath so I can be surprised if it works out.

Apieinthesky

You shouldn't have been classified as an upgrade though.

greg0ire

Thought I would update the thread in case anyone is out there...

I had been checking multiple times a day to see if AA might release the Business Saver awards for my Feb 1st flight Mia-Bgi departing at 6:25pm EST. They hadn't however within the Lax admirals club on Jan 31st at 1pm PST, I was told there were 2 open seats in J, but they could not put me on a DSR standby list because I was more than 24 hours out. They told me to check with Mia admiral club when I landed at 10pm EST. I did just, and they informed me that because the agent ticketed me in T for the Mia-Bgi segments, I could not be designated as DSR. I plead (nicely) that I paid 60k r/t per ticket, entitling me to an open J seat as explained by the AAdvantage desk. They agreed and put me on that list.

The next morning, I checked my AA app, and my pass read that my "upgrade" had cleared and that I should see the gate agent for a new ticket. Later that day at the airport our names were called for the change to business class. She asked my for my certificate however I didn't have one since this wasn't an upgrade. The agent looked into it further and told me that I couldn't sit in J because this portion of the trip was only booked as T.

Knowing I was in the right, I huffed and puffed (still politely I might add) and called the AAdvantage desk as the final boarding call wad announced. Finally reaching a human, I was denied on the phone because the two open seats could not be released to me as a Business Saver award. I needed to pay the extra miles for Aanytime. That rule does make sense somewhat, but I did pay for a J seat (albeit a saver award) and I had been told for months over the phone that I could standby for J if seats remained open before departure. The agent on the phone escalated it twice and was denied each time. I told the gate agent that it should show approved, and pointed to my mobile app that said cleared (since the morning). She smiled, gave me new J tickets, and sent me on my way.

So here's my question. What do I do form my return to Mia from Bgi? It is also ticketed in T. If a J seat is open, should I be listed as DSR? My months of speaking to AA folks tell me I should be. The ones I spoke to in the past 48 hours clearly told me I shouldn't. I checked my mia-Bgi segment this morning, and my reservation shows the booking code was changed to R. Can I argue at the airport that my first segment was listed as U, the second changed to R to fix the T error, and that my final leg is listed as Z therefore if a seat is open they should change it to R like the last one?

Thanks for reading. All advice is appreciated...typing on a phone so proofreading is tough.

DFW1972

Hi,
I have a ticket on hold for my mom (DFW - LAX ; then LAX - HKG).
It's a business class award, and she's in business class on Cathay LAX - HKG, but the DFW - LAX portion is currently in economy (no first class award seats currently available) and is booking code T.

When we get this reservation ticketed, should I ask for them to book her under another booking code other than T? It appears to have required a lot of pleading to get the 1st class seat on the day of travel when booked in T. My mom will be traveling alone, and English is not her first language and she doesn't understand this enough to be able to plea for a 1st class seat. Since she's using a business class award, is there anything I can do to help her?

Thanks!

PainCorp

Try to get a gate pass so you can escort her. Just explain she doesn't speak english and you don't want her to miss her flight if there is a gate change or if there are any questions. Then, when you get there, you can explain.

DFW1972

Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately, I have to work the day she's traveling and won't be able to go with her to the airport.

I was wondering if there was anything I could do other than keep checking to see if any award seats become available before her flight. I was hoping, since she is using enough miles for a business class award, she would have priority in getting a first class seat over someone trying to upgrade? But this does not seem to be the case based on what I'm reading.

As always, I appreciate whatever advice you all have! Thanks to you all, I was able to find her a seat in business class outbound and first class inbound on Cathay!