GRR_Flier

Hello All,

My folks would be travelling to CDG from GRR with a 40 min connection in ORD. I slipped when I did the 8 segment reservation. I tried calling AA and requested the earlier flight and was hoping AA would change that considering my mom needs a wheel chair and both of them have status (GLD). Nope .. AA wants $165/pp for the change. I am not sure I want to cough up the extra cash. My other pro-traveller friend told me that likely scenario is my folks would miss the connection at ORD, get routed through LHR (yaaks !!) to CDG (LHR-CDG maybe BA).

Any suggestions to solve this goof up of mine would be greatly appreciated.

Regards,
GRR_Flier

bdemaria

40 minutes is pretty tight, and a wheel chair pax often is among the last to leave the plane. If it were my parents, I would pay the fee.

WalruSara

Likewise.

A misconnect doesn't normally start off a trip on the best note. Just eliminate the stress for your parents altogether.

MiamiAirport Formerly NY George

Is GRR on AE, which would mean a fairly quick deboarding. Still would be tight but doable if the AE is on time (would probably arrive at the CDG flight after boarding commenced.)

Is the GRR flight available for a same day confirmed change ($50 per pax). If you don't want to pay that, I would suggest that your folks show up early enough for the prior flight and try going standby, particularly if the weather is bad.

sadlerjon

GRR is an AE city. While being an AE flight may reduce deboarding times, it will increase the time between gates as AE operates out of concourse G while ORD-CDG tends to operate out of K12/18/20 or H15 -- the gates at the far ends of the H/K concourses.

Another consideration: AA Intl flights tend to board 45 minutes ahead of departure. Since wheelchair pax board first, this would give them -5 minutes to get to the gate (assuming an on time arrival of the GRR-ORD flight -- of course that always happens at ORD )

If you don't want to pay the change fee, can you parents show up early and standby on the earlier flight? You may want to look at the typical loads for the earlier flight to gauge past performance of this working...

JDiver

Try the old FlyerTalk remedy - when the first dose doesn't work, take another. (Call again, later, and maybe again.) You might get some help. Myself, I'd probably have called Web Services when I made the misteak, and tried to fix it that way.

But if the remedy doesn't work, the change needs to be made and paid for - arrival delays and ORD are synonymous, and as others pointed out, international boarding often begins 45 minutes prior to departure; 'chairs go on first. No way your parents will make it without lots of unnecessary stress, and it's quite possible they won't make it anyway - a ground delay, taxiing in longer than normal, no chair attendant at the arrival gate = original flight to CDG is toast, with any number of possibilities due to the missed flight.

brp

I'm usually one to say that if a connection is within the posted Minimum Connection Time (MCT), then it is doable. In this case, though, I'm going with the comments already provided to say that, chances are, they will not make such a tight connection given the extenuating circumstances. I secondjDiver's suggestion to call again (maybe even once more after that) and see if you can get a fee-free change based on the wheelchair and the notion that a misconnect is highly likely in this case. It may not help, but it won't hurt. In the end,though, pay the fee if necessary. It will avoid problems proactively.

Cheers.

GRR_Flier

Thanks a bunch from all you folks for the suggestions specially from brp and JDiver, I am honored to say the least.

I did try the standby route and the agent told me that there are no such thing at standby for an international route as my folks would be checking the bags. I checked the seat map for the previous flight and there are 8 open seats on the CRJ (52 seater). Also asked abt the same day confirmed flight change (last time I remember was $25/pp), the agent told me she does not know that existed anymore.

I think I like the idea of calling again and shall try that atleast 2 more times. The flight is on Thursday, shall let you guys know how it went.

Thanks again,

GRR_Flier

Blumie

Sorry, but this response is one of my (many) FT pet peeves. (I dont have just a pet peeve, I've got a whole menagerie of FT peeves!) Of course MCTs are "doable"; connection times much shorter than MCTs can be doable if the stars align properly (most gates at BOS, for example, are no more than a five-minute walk, making short connections very doable). That does not answer the question, though, of whether a connection that simply satisfies MCTs is a good idea. In this case, as we all acknowledge, it is not.

FWAAA

Paying to fix our screwups for wheelchair bound elderly parents is a sign of maturity. What's keeping you?

I'm not real old yet and I'd not be comfortable with a 40 minute connection at ORD to kick off a European trip in late July (think thunderstorms). As others said, misconnecting on the first connection is NOT the way to kick off an EIGHT segment trip. Especially if you're old and in a wheelchair.

I'd call RIGHT NOW before AA raises that $165 to something higher. It could certainly get worse.

Mr. Bean

I'd keep checking seat availability on the earlier AE flight from GRR and do standby at the airport if its available.

$165 is a lot of money to pay to change the first segment of the (very short) flight. You can probably book a segment on an earlier AE flight for a lot less if you don't want to go the standby route.

Blumie

There are numerous reasons why this is bad advice, not the least of which is that if the OP's parents do not fly on the GRR-ORD AE flights on which they are ticketed, their ORD-CDG reservations will be canceled.

FWAAA

The OP has already posted the AA answer to standby: not on an international itinerary.

$165 is a great deal to change an international trip. I paid $250 earlier this year to change a cheap flight to MAD.

Are you suggesting buying a different ticket on Eagle to get to Chicago earlier? Have you priced that ticket? I haven't but I'd bet $20 that it's a lot more than $165. Anyway, do you really think AA would go for that?

FWAAA

Exactly.

Even if it were possible (it's not), a one-way GRR ticket for Thursday morning is a cool $576 plus tax. Each.

The OP should ignore Mr Bean and just pay the $165 to fix their mistake.

Mr. Bean

Hmm, didn't read that when I posted. Surprised that it's not allowed for the domestic leg. I've done standby for JFK-LAX on an international itin, although no checked bags (they didn't even ask if I check any).

I did suggest that, but it was a mistake. First, didn't realize it was so soon. Second, forgot about the no-show cancellations.