msv777

+1.

Also, nobody wants to delay a flight because of GA's chasing down people to clear upgrades. The GA's work hard enough clearing upgrades, boarding passengers, and helping to ensure flights get out on time!!

It's our responsibility to be around when it's time for our name to be called.

Cheers.

swm61230

So my only question on this is if you are making a connection and are late making the connection because of the airline should they hold the upgrade for you or pass you by.

I would rather AA issue the upgrades as they should be and then at T-10min bump up that one flyer or have the FA move up the flyer.

Being bypassed on the list because your not at the boarding gate is a little bit of a slap in the face especially if your late because of the airline.

In the OPs case well he was late to the gate because of his own poor time management and planning.

<redacted>

Exec_Plat

Bingo.

Yet people will continue to harangue OP over his being 'late'.

The important issue here is 'when do you need to be at the gate to not miss an upgrade?' .. as in WHAT TIME.

AA-Flyer-SAN

It's been my experience that the GAs hold the last UPG until T-15 - usually when ZONE 2 or higher has already been called. I've loitered at the counter when I knew I was #1 and there may be an F no show or misconnect. Or they will do the UPG call right before boarding.

gemac

Asked and answered upthread:

whimike

Another point is that OP was traveling with someone else. So, if he was walking at a snails pace, he could have always had his traveling companion go to the gate ahead of him to deal with the GA/Upgrade.

glostik

OP was never late to the gate. I arrived as first class was boarding.

Since the person travelling with me is new to travelling, no point in sending them ahead as they would not have known what to do.

The whole point of this is that AA should issue the upgrade and then wait to see if that person accepts it in time or not. They shouldn't be skipping people in advance because they don't hear their name over the loud speaker or make it within the GAs time frame.

Microwave

Some unwelcoming and rude content has been removed. I've also removed some discussion around what's on the FT homepage as that's not germane to this thread.

Please consider this a bow shot. Discuss the questions at hand without getting personal, or risk more formal action.

~Moderator

msv777

Can you help us understand a discrepancy in your info please?

The title of the thread says late for gate, and the above reply says you weren't late to the gate.

I also can't figure out how you could possibly hear your name called @ lax while standing at or around gate 41 (info you gave in your first post) -- gate 48 is very far away and pages over head in that area (gates 46-49) of the terminal are normally isolated in that area. Gate 41 is right after TSa checkin. 48 is at far end of terminal.


Where exactly were you when your heard your name called?

You arrived at first class boarding? Where exactly? into the terminal near 41 or actually at gate 48?

If you were indeed at gate 41 when your name was called, forget it. You'll never make it in time - ankle injury or not.

Cheers.

Microwave

@:-)

~Moderator

Dallas49er

"As it is written, so it shall be."

Is it still ok to express an opinion that the OP is more than likely entirely in the wrong (on this one), and should perhaps get a better understanding of how things work BEFORE he/she/it overreaches and over embellishes the next imaginary crime and tries to throw their imaginary weight around, again?

FWAAA

The OP did not write the thread title - JDiver did.

The OP's original thread title was "Denied Upgrade Because of Disability," which caused a hue and cry because some deemed it misleading, inaccurate and inflammatory.

The OP wasn't "late" to the gate meaning their seat assignment and reservation were subject to cancellation, but the OP was "late" to the gate in terms of claiming their upgraded boarding pass.

I don't know what AA's rules and policies are in this area, but in my extensive experience, if you're hoping for a battlefield upgrade, it behooves you to be near the gate when your name is called. Not in the club. Not in the bathroom. Not at the other end of the terminal when an injury means you "walk at a snail's pace."

if you're really hoping to exchange your boarding pass for an upgraded seat at the gate, the best advice is to be at the gate about when the agent shows up so that you don't miss out on those announcements. And that isn't all that difficult these days as the agents rarely show up more than 15-20 minutes before the boarding time (shown on your boarding pass). It's not like the old days when agents might show up to manually change the flight number and destination 2-3 hours before departure.

For those who simply can't be at the gate 15-20 minutes before boarding is scheduled, you'll probably find that your battlefield upgrades go to the next name on the list. Maybe the agent won't skip over you, but if they do, I don't think you have anything about which to complain.

I doubt that anyone in AA management could possibly care less about the OP's predicament, but the OP can certainly plead their case and then report back if I'm mistaken.

Sant

The travel decision maker doesn't have to be the boss/C-level manager of a company, does it? The road warriors at this company may not even report to OP.

Allan38103

It doesn't look like the upgrade went unused; it just went to someone else.

There's probably someone out there (maybe even on FT) saying, "All the upgrades were already taken and I was next on the list -- but then a name ahead of mine no-showed and they gave the UG to me."

Win some, lose some.

Dallas49er

If true, then the road warriors, inside the company and out, who do the real BIS, already see him/her/it for what he/she/it is.