Cjacq

Hi all. I'm a bit of a newbie but I thought I'd enjoy detailing this bonkers trip and someone might get some joy from my awkward and ridiculous trip.

I'm in Dublin airport right now, Terminal 2, 51st & Green lounge, just past USPC. They have a pancake machine which is one of those things that brings pure joy to me.

I'm flying to SFO via PHIL with AA and then immediately afterwards, flying to YUL via PHIL also via AA but on a separate ticket (eep). I return to SFO next week with Air Canada (economy) and stay here for a week and a half before returning to DUB.

There are reasons this happened and mostly it's because I'm a panicky planner.

So they're not able to check my bag all the way to YUL, which is a pain, but since I had a 6 hour layover in SFO, I wasn't too bothered.

Now my flight is delayed, and my connecting flight in PHIL is rescheduled, so I have about 3 hours in SFO and I'm hoping that's enough (and that there aren't any further delays!). I mostly want my bag to end up in YUL while I'm there But I checked my bag before my flights were delayed and rescheduled. We'll see.

AA also changed my seating assignment from 3A to 5A and I'm confused as to why that would happen. I'll ask. Maybe they'll tell me

I'm flying Business to PHIL and Domestic First to SFO. The flights to YUL are economy.

I'm BAEC Blue, with 280 TPs so by the end of this entire trip, I should be Silver, so that's the real upside here. I'm pretty sure there's literally no other upside.

Cjacq

It continues:

AA are unable to check me in online for my SFO-YUL trip. Last time this happened, the flight was overbooked. (this one doesn't appear to be -- seat selection looks plentiful?) I have my seats selected. Argh. I hate checking in close to flight time. I always figure that's how a person gets bumped.

Anyone else have reasons you might not be able to be checked in online?

atsak

You've been selected for special treatment at security is one. Make sure you tell them if you're allergic to latex.

Madone59

As is this is not a trip report I am moving it to the AA forum.


Madone59

Moderator: Trip Reports

milesandmoremiles

What of any of this qualifies for "travel chaos"?

3Cforme

With carriers routinely denying interlining baggage on separate tickets you need to rethink your approach. Re-route protections inherent in a single ticket also have value.

Cjacq

Well, for me anyway! I wouldn't normally spend hours flying across the US just to fly back across the US to get to my destination, and the separately ticketed flights are a bit stressy for me. They were booked by separate departments so I didn't have much call on that (but probably could/should have pushed back).

Also, apparently the Canadians are to blame, but everything has been delayed, so:

* First flight (DUB-PHIL) delayed by 2 hours, had connecting flight re-scheduled but still had both PHIL-SFO flights showing on my app.

* Got to PHIL and the earlier connecting flight hadn't boarded yet, so chanced my arm and was still booked on that flight (and the later one) so went on the earlier one because hey, never know what might get delayed, but bags didn't make it.

* AA App is great for tracking bags? I can see my bag made it on to the later flight I was booked onto, so it'll be here in enough time for me to check in for next flight. Killing time in Admiral's Club until that lands.

So far, so good. But if @atsak has a point, my luck may have run out!

Today I have learned:

* Sometimes Wifi on a 7 hour international flight is way cheaper than on a 5 hour domestic flight so I should have done work then.
* Flights that have no IFE whatsoever are weird. Like, I remember watching movies when I flew as a kid, and I'm 41. What's with the lack of screens? My laptop didn't quite last the length of the flight (no power either?)

Cjacq

I was speaking to people in Dublin whose bags had been put through on two separate ticketed flights by Delta. But I guess I mostly fly OW, so. It seems a really petty thing to not do.

wrp96

You can't check bags through the same airport twice, so even if it had been on one ticket they wouldn't have been able to check your bags through all the way to YUL.

lds89

You were most likely on a legacy USAirways (LUS) A321 from PHL to SFO. None of the LUS narrowbodies have IFE or power (in fact, at one point they removed power from several of the planes). You can however stream free IFE content by connecting to GoGo on these birds

quillbin

The reason for this is the PHL-SFO flight was operated by a Legacy US Airways (LUS) A321. (AA Refers to this configuration as "321"). This configuration (like many LUS aircraft) lacks AVOD and Power. The only LUS aircraft I have seen with AVOD and Power is the 332.

Sadly AA's Hard Product out of PHL is mostly an LUS (Read: Subpar) one, with very poorly equipped cabins by 2017 standards. (And will be until the F/A lists merge in 2018 allowing LAA aircraft to fly LUS routes)

If you ever have to fly on LUS metal, This Laptop/iPad/Tablet/Smartphone Power Bank will be the best $129 you will spend. (Link)

Cjacq

That's a very valid point.

And yeah, the PHL stuff all seemed a bit old. That said, the flights were well underbooked, and the economy flights I took to YUL were wonderful. Really quiet, loads of room (nobody in my row!) and super chill.

Flights home go via ORD, so I might see some more recent seating. Apparently though the plane I'm taking from ORD-DUB doesn't have the seatback screens, so we have to use a tablet they provide? That seems bonkers.

Now I'm just dying to see my TPs (BAEC) land. After all this, I should be in decent shape!