MJonTravel

Someone used to have to do that manually....it's a good thing that it's automatic.

SimonsMiles

Actually I agree. In my defense, it was actually the platinum desk that booked me onto the flights originally, and I stupidly didn't ask how long the connection was. Usually going outbound from the US I'd allow a minimum of two hours and inbound a minimum of three.

Actually it would have been worse - the earlier flight was cancelled, and the standby list for the flight I ended up taking was *huge* (another reason why I was surprised they didn't want to offload my luggage and be done with me!).

I still think it was unfair of AA to check me in when my connection was reduced to -5 minutes *and* not let me get my checked luggage back four hours before the flight. But hey, that's me.

Also, there is no Admiral's Club in ORD - I was in the plastic seats along with a couple of other plats and an executive platinum (who were also quite aghast that I couldn't either get my bags back or a promise that AA would deliver them to me in London).

Oh well. How's everyone enjoying the long weekend? :-)

-simon

SimonsMiles

Yup, arrived on Sunday, kids now playing with funky new toys :-)

-simon

andrzej

huh???

Are you smoking something?

vasantn

There are two.

JonNYC

So-- in a sense-- he was accurate.

vasantn

Indeed.

qwe9999

That damn stupid lying check-in lady fooled you a second time...

gemac

I normally find that any assumption that an AAgent knows more about AA operations than I do is unfounded. I like the results better when I book myself. The telephone AAgents often don't actually fly much, and they assume that if a connection meets minimum connect times, it is OK.

Retrieval of one bag seems like it should be easy, but in reality it is not. The baggage area of a modern airport is a sea of baggage, and locating one bag is not at all easy. Have you ever been on a flight where a bag had to be pulled because that passenger did not board? It takes a long time.

Again, it seems you were relying on the AAgent to do for you what you were unwilling to do yourself (look at the flight departure time prior to your checkin). I know that I would never work for what AA (and other airlines) pay their telephone reps, check-in agents, and gate agents, so I do not expect them to be as competent, careful, and caring about my specific flight as I am. When I rely on my own efforts, I am rarely disappointed.

Well, I have found plats (and even EXPs) who believe the most amazing things. Just because they fly a lot doesn't mean they are knowledgable.

As for the concept that AA should carry your bag from ORD to LON while you fly on another carrier at your own choosing, I'm don't think their responsibility extends that far.

Note that if you had flown to ORD and missed your connection, your request would have been much more reasonable - especially if AA had no further flights that day to put you on.

Lastly, a quick peek at aa.com would have shown the location of the Admiral's Club. Did you rely on someone else again?

jordyn

This seems like a very strange attitude. Usually, when someone works in a specific area or industry, I'd expect them to know more about that area than I do regardless of our relative pay.

For example, I suspect that many carpenters earn less than I do. I would not for a moment assume that therefore if I want the frame of a house expertly hammered together that I should just do it myself because clearly my high salary makes me more capable than carpenters. In fact, I would expect that the carpenter would be much better at this regardless of his or her pay. After all, they spend most of their time doing carpentry and I spend most of my time in front of a computer. (Similarly, I suspect my computer skills are much better than Kobe Bryant's despite the fact that he might not be willing to settle for my salary.)

Based on many stories here, airlines like American seem not particularly interested in actually providing a reasonable level of expertise amongst their employees. This seems much more of a failing by American (and the employee in question) than the OP, though.

SimonsMiles

Hahaha, superb - I *read* ORD, but somehow understood ORlanDo (MCO).

My apologies. What I *meant* to say is that there is no Admiral's Club in MCO! Of course that's no longer relevant to the discussion, but hey ;-)

-simon

gemac

You seem to be discussing the way that the world should be. I am discussing the way that the world is.

jordyn

So is there some part of the last paragraph I wrote that you'd disagree with? I agree that American seems uninterested in providing the level of service that we'd expect in most industries. I'm just unsure as to how this becomes the OP's fault.

It becomes a bit of a fool's errand to have to figure out all of this stuff yourself when incorrect responses are provided to direct questions. OPs only hope to have avoided his bad situation would have been to have some special insight into American's operations that the TA apparently lacked. He did his due dilligence by explicitly asking whether the flight was on-time or not. Once he discovered there was a problem, he notified the airline quickly. I suppose there's a chance the monitors in the terminal could have displayed the new time, but they are so often incorrect that it seems like quite a leap of faith to assume that there was a better source of information for the OP to rely on in this case.

gemac

1. This situation is not unique to American among airlines, nor is it unique to airlines.
2. If all one had to do to get perfect, well-informed answers to all one's questions was to ask an AAgent, then why are we all asking (and answering) questions on FT? Just ask one of those perfect agents.
3. It is not the OP's fault that AAgents are imperfect (indeed, often far from perfect). But, as an AA elite, the OP should fly enough to realize this already. If he realized it, then why does he entrust his fate to these flawed minions? The triumph of hope over experience?
4. FT is all about learning about the ins and outs of airline travel, so that we control our own destinies, rather than being subject to the whims and fancies of the misinformed AAgents. OP chose to act otherwise, despite having been here long enough, and having been active enough, to have known better. That is his fault.
5. Mewling on FT is unlikely to change AA (and other airlines). OP (and the rest of us) have but two choices. We can accept the torrent of misinformation that comes from airline employees (and accept the consequences in our lives), or we can become informed, so that we can avoid most pitfalls and know our options for those we cannot avoid. We each make our choice.

mvoight

They can't offer to fly your luggage on a plane that you aren't on.

Could you have used the BA lounge at MCO, since you are PLT on an internation itinerary?