JMKSTL

Forgive me if this is old news, but the storms yesterday that messed things up in ORD uncovered a new policy that will negatively affect status on AA. Two agents who answered the EXP line told me that they were told that they could no longer protect me on an optional flight if I failed to make my connection (as it turned out it would not have mattered yesterday). They just got an e-mail to that effect.

Is this commonly known? One less reason to stay loyal I guess.

akcae

I was told by an EXP agent in a weather situation that I couldn't be protected on an *alternate* flight after I had boarded until the original flight was officially cancelled (even tho we were told on the aircraft that we were cancelled and heading back to the gate).

Your situation is, however, if true, more troubling.

Often1

I don't think that this is new.

"Protecting" is a polite term for taking an empty seat out of circulation which could have been occupied by someone else. Not sure that is viable in a post-recession world of capacity cuts.

If that one seat is "protected" for you, it means that I don't get it. If it goes out empty, that's a lose-lose.

JMKSTL

Thanks for that info. I guess I didn't realize that they actually went out empty. I assumed that they would get filled if I got on the earlier flight and vice versa, that the seat on the earlier flight got filled when I didn't make it (although I can see how that might be tougher, but that would be the situation whether they protected the seat on the later flight or not).

JonNYC

Don't confuse bumper-sticker answers given here with actual explanations.

Ord Liza

I was told awhile ago by more than one agent that they were no longer allowed to hold an alternate seat. I can't remember exactly, but I think it was many months ago.

Geauxtigers

*****

Mark_T

Lounge AAgent protected me on an alternate route as recently as 2 weeks ago.

I even got an upgrade message for the alternate flight while I was still waiting for my delayed flight to depart.

Whatever the official policy is, I suspect a good AAgent still knows how to do what is needed in the appropriate circumstances...

krlcomm

If a seat is protected and is empty at departure that seat will be filled if there are oversolds or other standbys waiting for it in the same way a no-show seat would be filled. It would not go out empty.

iadisgreat

About a month ago, EXP line wouldn't protect me on a later flight (only confirm the change and give up my original seat). Two minutes later in the Admirals Club (ATL), that agent protected me proactively when I asked what they knew about my delay.

OT: While the ATL club is an unmitigated disaster Thursday PM in terms of capacity, the agents there are fantastic!

sombrachinesca

Very poor on AA if accurate - this is the sort of thing that *will* create loyalty (far more than pdb's etc) and should be easy enough to manage so as to not impact profitability. Apparently just another sign of an airline management that flat out doesn't care whether or not any of their customers feel a sense of loyalty.

FriendlySkies

I flew through ORD on Wednesday evening and it was a mess. Our crew for BOS-ORD almost went illegal, due to ops/ATC pushing our push back time over two hours after scheduled (1900) departure. Got moved up and ended up leaving 50 minutes late. We were lucky..

At ORD, my 2237 flt to MCI started the rolling delays as we awaited pilots. They were inbound to ORD, though once they landed, no gate was available. Due to worries that the FAs would go illegal, I called (and surprisingly got through to EXP with no wait) and asked about alternates. EXP agent protected me on a 1200 departure the following day, though said they weren't able to protect me on UA (I had asked if they had anything earlier that morning) because it was a weather related delay.

Often1

Of course and that has always been true. Nobody would expect any carrier to send a seat out empty with a passenger waiting to fill it in these circumstances.

But, if I am a last minute purchaser, typically HVC if I do that sort of thing, and the last seat just got taken out of circulation, I've "lost." Maybe I still head to the airport and SB, but more likely if there are options, I grab a seat on some other carrier.

It's far from "bumper sticker." AA acknowledged that this sort of thing would go away when it started capacity cuts 3-4 years ago and reported that to investors. Once upon a time, it was standard to keep capacity for just these situations. No longer.

E55

Same experience.

Hokie Gator Flyer

A few months ago I was told the same thing when calling Platinum desk--no protection on a later flight is the new policy. It was maint (waiting for them to get out of bed & to the airport). There could have been a slight chance of making my scheduled connection, but all later flights were nearly sold out (really wanted to try to make original connection to make it to DD's kindergarten orientation). I asked to speak to a supervisor since it had just been done at an airport counter earlier that week (for a missing crew member). The supervisor said that only airport staff & supervisors can protect passengers now. She kept my original connection & got me one of the last seats on the next flight.