sharka

Booked a RT using AA award miles from JFK to Manila several months ago. Outbound using air partner: JAL, from JFK to Narita then onward to Manila (arrival at late night).

Recently found a better schedule on CX that departs JFK earlier that will get me into Manila early afternoon instead of at night. CX requires a transfer in HK then onward to Manila.

No date change for departure date, No change in departure city (JFK) or arrival city (Manila).

Only change was with AA air partner (CX and JAL) and changing planes in HK rather than Narita.

Was told last nite when trying to make the changes that AA now charges a change in tix fee for using a different air partner. I told her never heard of this policy. She was very insistent on the phone. I thanked her and hung up. Called again 10min later and another rep. told me the same thing.

Note: I made changes before using different AA air partners in the past to change not only air partners but different dates of travel. In the past, as long as the original departure city and arrival city were same then no fees for any changes.

Guess they must've changed the award tix policy.

dickinson

How much was the fee?

guv1976

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I would call a third time. If you get the same response, ask when this change fee was implemented. The policy had been: no change fee when changing carriers when only oneworld carriers are involved (excluding Explorer awards, which do not permit carrier or routing changes at all).

With a search, you should be able to find sukn's post from a year or so ago which contains the policy and the file reference number that would enable an AA agent to locate the policy.

guv1976

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There do not seem to be any new change fees noted on aa.com:

http://www.aa.com/i18n/AAdvantage/re...servations.jsp

sam007

Guys

i'm getting conflicting opinion from AA on this. If I have a ticketed reward on AA partner A and want to move it to partner B once a seat becomes available, is that possible without incurring fees? Mileage stays the same, taxes differ by a few $

clacko

yes, but the op might reference this possible error on the next call to aa...

Upgraded!

I have two questions which I almost feel silly asking, because I'm guessing the OP has either thought about both of these issues and would have mentioned them if relevant, but:

1. Are any of the intra-Asia flights "operated by" rather than on the metal of the marketing carrier?

2. Did the class of service change for any segment?

MSPeconomist

Can't the OP argue that the fees in effect at the time the original ticket was issued are what rules should apply now? This sounds a lot like the changes in checked bag fees case, where the DOT mandated that previously purchased tickets go by the old rules.

brp

I don't think it would work as changes are usually covered by the present-day structure. In the baggage case, folks changed nothing, so it was reasonable to expect that the rules they booked under would still apply. Somewhat less of an argument here.

Cheers.

sharka

Glad to answer these.
1) operated and flown by the main carrier (JAL and CX only) and not by any of their subsid.

2) No change in class, no change in dates of travel, no change in original departure city or arrival city.

RxCapt

I made a CX to QF change over the summer and was hit with a change fee. Didn't really want to play the hang up and call back game because I just received an alert from EF about J seats on the A380 becoming available and didn't want someone else to grab them. Now waiting for F to open up.

Upgraded!

Thanks, sort of what I figured... Final question for you: Were all JL and CX flights being booked with the operating carrier's flight number, or were any being booked as an AA codeshare? If any were an AA codeshare, I wonder whether that changes the award type from an AA award to a OW partner award? I do not know one way or the other for sure, but am guessing someone here could give a definitive answer.

ckpeter

FYI, with very rare exceptions, award tickets are always booked as operating flight numbers, and not codeshare flight numbers.

guv1976

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An AA codeshare cannot be booked (as a codeshare) on an award ticket; the flight can only be booked under the operating carrier's flight number.

Upgraded!

Thanks for clarifying. Would the rare exceptions include times when you have a flight with a OW partner's flight number but the actual operating carrier is not a OW member nor an AA partner? For example, you want to book LAX-NRT-XYZ and NRT-XYZ is a JL flight number but operated by ##, with whom AA has no partnership? Or would such an itinerary not be bookable with AA miles?