Jan 1, 2015, 8:43 pm
Last edit by: JDiver
MODERATOR GUIDEPOST
This is the ARCHIVE through 2015 for older posts from the MileSAAver / SAAver Award Availability - Help, Assistance & Discussion (consolidated) thread.
This wikipost can be edited by members with 90 days' tenure and 90 posts; wiki contents may be printed by using the
(lower right wiki corner).
Other useful resources include:
MileSAAver / SAAver award reduction / scarcity >= Aug 2011 onward (consolidated)
oneworld and Other Airline (Partner) Awards info, rules 2014 on
Help with British Airways / BA surcharge / YQ (AA award on BA, consolidated)
UK APD / Air Passenger Duty charged for UK departures
This is the ARCHIVE through 2015 for older posts from the MileSAAver / SAAver Award Availability - Help, Assistance & Discussion (consolidated) thread.
Some of you might have found your thread merged into this "consolidated" thread. If your desire is to become thoroughly familiar with the knowledge that has been accumulated about the process for acquiring MileSAAver awards feel free to read this entire thread. If you only want the assistance from those who have the knowledge your request has been merged at the end. Feel free to wait for a forthcoming answer.
If you have reached this thread by using the search process you have the same choices as above. Read the thread and become knowledgeable or post at the end and wait for a forthcoming answer.
thanks
~magic111
If you have reached this thread by using the search process you have the same choices as above. Read the thread and become knowledgeable or post at the end and wait for a forthcoming answer.
thanks
~magic111
This wikipost can be edited by members with 90 days' tenure and 90 posts; wiki contents may be printed by using the
(lower right wiki corner).Other useful resources include:
MileSAAver / SAAver award reduction / scarcity >= Aug 2011 onward (consolidated)
oneworld and Other Airline (Partner) Awards info, rules 2014 on
Help with British Airways / BA surcharge / YQ (AA award on BA, consolidated)
UK APD / Air Passenger Duty charged for UK departures
ARCHIVE: 2009-2015 MileSAAver / SAAver Award Availability Help etc.
Dec 5, 2015, 5:36 pm
#7501
Join Date: Jan 2012
Programs: AY+ Plat, Marriott Plat, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 2,846
The route is MSP-MUC on 9/15, return on 9/26. AA.com shows AY10 and AY 807 and a number of connecting flights from MSP to ORD, on the return it shows AY 804 and AY 9 as available in J. I haven't called AA yet, wanted to know whether there is a trick to booking online first.
On the return, there are 2 J seats on IB MAD-SJU on 9/25 an 9/26. IB has surcharges but they are much less than BA. You could do MUC-MAD-SJU-MIA-MSY.
You can probably put the outbound on hold on AA.com using a multi-city search and call in and have it repriced, but no way to book IB online at AA.com
Dec 6, 2015, 6:58 am
#7502
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: BNA
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 766
(when booking, the system crashed a few times and she had to go all the way back to beginning - and I was positive the sAAver seats were going to vanish)
Dec 6, 2015, 7:39 am
#7503
Formerly known as jlars77
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: ORD
Posts: 361
You should be able to change w/o issue as long as O/D remains the same...and AA actually opens up sAAver space for 4 on preferred direct flights!
Question: my domestic legs have a connection. I was thinking I could call over the coming months to try to swap to non-stop domestic. Does that mean the agent needs to cancel and re-book the international segments? I'm a little paranoid about losing the sAAvers.
(when booking, the system crashed a few times and she had to go all the way back to beginning - and I was positive the sAAver seats were going to vanish)
(when booking, the system crashed a few times and she had to go all the way back to beginning - and I was positive the sAAver seats were going to vanish)
Dec 6, 2015, 12:53 pm
#7504
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Boulder
Programs: AA Plat, CX Silver
Posts: 2,361
I'm planning a trip to Japan with a friend of mine, he's trying to use his AA miles on CX and JL but the AA agents keep insisting there's no award inventory even though it appears on ba.com. NRT-LAX on JL F and HKG-DXB on CX J—both show awards on ba.com but multiple AA agents say it doesn't exist. The CX award also appears on the JL site, so that one isn't a BA problem.
Weekend maintenance, phantom inventory on BA or is AA blocking awards?
I may try going through the Australian call center, since that's been working with EY.
Weekend maintenance, phantom inventory on BA or is AA blocking awards?
I may try going through the Australian call center, since that's been working with EY.
Dec 6, 2015, 1:13 pm
#7505
Join Date: Sep 2014
Programs: AA Platinum, Marriott Platinum, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 136
Yeah I think the "phantom inventory"-- which -does- exist in some contexts, might be being used too often or too interchangeably in cases where there clearly is something else going on-- to that it's ever all that clear!
Can't say for sure at this point, travelingbetter supposed to be getting back on it's feet this weekend, maybe, and till that happens, don't have access to my best AAnswerers.
Can't say for sure at this point, travelingbetter supposed to be getting back on it's feet this weekend, maybe, and till that happens, don't have access to my best AAnswerers.
Dec 6, 2015, 1:26 pm
#7506
Suspended
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: FIND ME ON TWITTER FOR THE LATEST
Posts: 27,730
Dec 6, 2015, 1:32 pm
#7507
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Boulder
Programs: AA Plat, CX Silver
Posts: 2,361
I'm planning a trip to Japan with a friend of mine, he's trying to use his AA miles on CX and JL but the AA agents keep insisting there's no award inventory even though it appears on ba.com. NRT-LAX on JL F and HKG-DXB on CX J—both show awards on ba.com but multiple AA agents say it doesn't exist. The CX award also appears on the JL site, so that one isn't a BA problem.
Weekend maintenance, phantom inventory on BA or is AA blocking awards?
I may try going through the Australian call center, since that's been working with EY.
Weekend maintenance, phantom inventory on BA or is AA blocking awards?
I may try going through the Australian call center, since that's been working with EY.
Maybe they are just having IT trouble today.
edit: Found an agent that could see the NRT-LAX inventory on JL but he's saying a one-way in F NRT-LAX-SAT comes to 112k miles! What on earth is going on at AA today?
Last edited by txflyer77; Dec 6, 2015 at 2:32 pm
Dec 6, 2015, 3:10 pm
#7508
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 92
I'm planning a trip to Japan with a friend of mine, he's trying to use his AA miles on CX and JL but the AA agents keep insisting there's no award inventory even though it appears on ba.com. NRT-LAX on JL F and HKG-DXB on CX J—both show awards on ba.com but multiple AA agents say it doesn't exist. The CX award also appears on the JL site, so that one isn't a BA problem.
Weekend maintenance, phantom inventory on BA or is AA blocking awards?
I may try going through the Australian call center, since that's been working with EY.
Weekend maintenance, phantom inventory on BA or is AA blocking awards?
I may try going through the Australian call center, since that's been working with EY.
Dec 6, 2015, 3:16 pm
#7509
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 92
I just signed up on Expert Flyer for a trip from TPA to FCO next October I checked available first and business seats for 10/24/2016, and the only business seats according to EF were through ORD. AA, OTOH, had 4 pages of such seat, mostly through MIA and LHR, but a few were through CLT-LHR-FCO. Who am I to believe - EF or AA?
Dec 6, 2015, 3:16 pm
#7510
Join Date: Jan 2012
Programs: AY+ Plat, Marriott Plat, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 2,846
It is award inventory that appears available when you search (on BA, AA, etc.) but is not actually available. AA has been having issues on its website with phantom inventory lately, e.g. Finnair flights will appear to have avilable award seats when in fact they do not.
Dec 6, 2015, 3:19 pm
#7511
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Boulder
Programs: AA Plat, CX Silver
Posts: 2,361
Well, that was odd. I called to try placing a hold on a CX J segment and when they tried to verify my address, they didn't match. The AA number was correct and the address I gave matched the address on my profile.
Maybe they are just having IT trouble today.
edit: Found an agent that could see the NRT-LAX inventory on JL but he's saying a one-way in F NRT-LAX-SAT comes to 112k miles! What on earth is going on at AA today?
Maybe they are just having IT trouble today.
edit: Found an agent that could see the NRT-LAX inventory on JL but he's saying a one-way in F NRT-LAX-SAT comes to 112k miles! What on earth is going on at AA today?
So nothing too unusual about it, just a string of lousy agents.
Dec 6, 2015, 3:27 pm
#7512
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 92
It is award inventory that appears available when you search (on BA, AA, etc.) but is not actually available. AA has been having issues on its website with phantom inventory lately, e.g. Finnair flights will appear to have avilable award seats when in fact they do not.
Dec 6, 2015, 3:41 pm
#7513
Join Date: Jan 2012
Programs: AY+ Plat, Marriott Plat, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 2,846
I, erroneously, booked 2 seats on the 10/24/2106, which AA confirmed as "Hold." I cancelled the Hold because I actually want the 31st. But if I had left the Hold on for the specified period, what could I expect that AA would have done? Advise that it was not available or let me confirm the booking?
Dec 7, 2015, 7:38 am
#7514
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 92
Thank you. I guess it was a real availability. Now I will hope that the same availability comes up for a week later. But why are there no seats shown on Expert Flyer for the TPA-MIA-LHR-FCO route? I did just book one seat for the 31st on that date? AA does show some availability, just not on the particular flight that I want. (I need two seats) It makes me wonder about the use of Expert Flyer.
Dec 7, 2015, 1:00 pm
#7515
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 1,900
So I booked this award.
BKK.. HKG... NRT... ORD
On JAL and cx first.
I need to get from ord to San. There was no reward seats available. There are now.
The AA agent said they need to redeposit the moles and book again. Is this true? The tax went up 5 which is fine.
BKK.. HKG... NRT... ORD
On JAL and cx first.
I need to get from ord to San. There was no reward seats available. There are now.
The AA agent said they need to redeposit the moles and book again. Is this true? The tax went up 5 which is fine.