Skipped Over for / Lost Upgrade: "Late to Gate", Upgrades Already Processed
 

I was skipped over for an upgrade today because I couldn't make it to the gate agent fast enough. I have an ankle injury that allows me to walk at a snails pace. I was at LAX in T4, at gate 41 when she called my name, and I was departing from gate 48. By the time I got to the gate, she said because I didn't show up when she called me, she skipped over me.

She claimed she needed to ask me if I wanted to be separated from my party for my upgrade. What BS, I cant place my name on the upgrade list when I am flying in a party without specificially telling the check-in agent to place only myself on the upgrade list.

Its not the end of the world but that first class seat would have made the ankle pain much easier to deal with.

I am a MM EXP and the decision maker for my company when it comes to what airline we fly. I booked close to 50 flights this month alone.

Can I expect any kind of decent response from American on this?

Probably not

How exactly is AA at fault here? Was the GA supposed to know that you had an ankle injury? I don't want to be unsympathetic, but your injury is hardly the GA's responsibility.

And if you had others on the same PNR as you, the GA was justified in wanting to make sure that you wanted to split from them in the event of an upgrade.

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Finally, your title is completely misleading; even needlessly inflammatory. You were not "denied [an] upgrade because of disability."

I would expect ... nothing.

Considering that I made it very clear to the check-in agent about my disability and if the GA has proper training she would know that if one person is on the upgrade list on the same PNR as other guests, its because it was a specifically requested. You cannot upgrade one person on multi person PNR without speaking to an agent in person.

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:td:

<redacted> You state you were denied an upgrade for a "disability" This suggests that AA knowingly broke the ADA. If this is the case, then by all means you should pursue it.

However, the facts as you state them sound as if you were late to the gate b/c of an ankle injury. Why not ask for assistance to the gate when you checked in?

As for the injury being easier to deal w/if you had been seated in F. In 2014 I broke my foot and indeed sitting in F made travel easier so I paid to sit in F rather than risking my health/suffering discomfort.

There are no exit responsibilities ever, that would deny an upgrade based on disability. On the converse, many disabled pax request to sit in first based on a disability, due to comfort.

To be honest, I'm not entirely sure what the law is but from an ethical standpoint people with disabilities (even temporary) are entitled to reasonable accommodation from other human beings. What they are not entitled to is mind reading or telepathic gps-location services from an airline gate agent.

If the upgrade was THAT important to you I echo the sentiment of another poster in suggesting that you pay for the upgrade and not leave it to upgrade-roulette. Alternatively, if you simply wanted to make sure you were in the gate area early enough to hear any upgrade announcements, I would have thought you would have:

* gotten some crutches to help you move more quickly
* arrived earlier than normal, or
* asked for a wheelchair or cart.

-z

Did you seriously expect the check-in agent to call the gate agent and advise her about your injury so that she would wait for you? If so, that's not a realistic expectation.

<redacted> If you are not at the gate when you are called, you can lose not only your upgrade but even your seat. The GAs are under tremendous pressure to get flights out on time and they can't wait around for people. That's reality.

You came here to ask for opinions; you got them (and they are pretty unanimous). Sorry you don't like the answers.

The OP was not "denied upgrade because of disability." The OP missed out on an upgrade because they weren't at the gate when the gate agent was handing out the upgrade boarding passes. We had a thread here a couple weeks ago from someone else who dawdled at the club instead of getting to the gate in time to get their upgraded boarding pass.

In this case, the OP's disability is their excuse for not being at the gate on time to claim their upgrade. In reality, the OP should have arrived at LAX earlier and probably should have asked for a wheelchair. The T-4 corridor is not very wide and is the busiest terminal at LAX, and disabled passengers who "walk at a snail's pace" needlessly slow everyone down. Perfect time for a wheelchair assist.

+1.

You know you're slow. You need to be at the gate on time. It's not AA's fault you weren't there. Further, I don't think an "ankle injury" counts as disabled. PARTICULARLY if you're CHOOSING to walk through the airport.

Your posts come off as a big DYKWIA.

Thread title changed per FlyerTalk Rules. /Moderator

How long does one have- based on published rules, CoC, or what have you- to respond to an agent before you can lose your upgrade?

I mean we know you have to be at the gate by t-10 (?) or you lose your seat. But can an agent clear upgrades at say t-30, and give a minute or two, and be done by t-25?


I dont think the OP has stated what time- in relation to the scheduled departure time- this situation transpired. How can one say "you werent there on time"? Or is the time defined by 'whenever the gate agent wants to start clearing the list'???


OP- you will get nothing from USair consumer relations. Well, not exactly- they will thank you for your constructive feedback and assure you they will pass along your comments.

Officially, all bets are off at T-20.

Oops. Thanks.

So when did OP arrive at the gate? When did the agent clear the list?

If you injury requires first class seating, you should probably purchase said seat.