Liberia (Guanacaste, Costa Rica) does accept mobile boarding passes according to aa.com, but as JJeffrey says overseas to US they seem to not work much of the time. Most likely docs check.

I have tons of miles in my AAdvantage account and I can't use them to fly AA anywhere international!!

Always availability in J and F on AA is zero and they wanted me to fly BA and pay the fuel surcharge!!

I wonder what other members are doing in such dilemma? Do I have to always fly BA and pay the massive fuel surcharge or just forget AA and switch to other airlines like UA or maybe AC?

This same complaint comes up on here about every day now. There's no denying that AA is very stingy with premium award space on its own metal. However with a little flexibility I am never able to replicate the same level of "nothing is available ever!!!" that is often thrown around.

For example, you say you can't find any space on anything "international," yet you mention BA, so are you specifically looking for Europe? A quick 5 min search at aa.com, filtered to show AA metal results only, reveals tons of dates over the next 3 months with sAAver business space open. I searched ORD-LHR/ZRH/BCN/FRA, etc.

ORD-LHR for example:
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...6369a4c594.jpg

Thanks for the tip. I wasn't aware of that filter thing. Hopefully It will help me a lot in my future search.

AA website says one way award ticket US - Maldives in economy requires 40k and in Business 70k. Shouldn't an award ticket in economy be 35k??

Nope. 40K and 70K are the correct mileage amounts for a one-way from the U.S. to the Indian subcontinent region (which is where AA places the Maldives).

Yes, that makes sense. I was looking at AA award chart not AA partner award chart.

Through my poking around on the site, I gather fare buckets are somehow indicative of likelihood of upgrades, but I am still not quite sure how to read the tea leaves. Flying LAX-HKG this weekend (AA 193, 1/19/19, 11:50 pm). I am using my EXP cousin's SWU, but it has yet to clear. There are currently 14 open seats in Business. Been checking Expert Flyer for weeks, but C space has never opened up. Below are the fare buckets as of this morning on Expert Flyer. What do these say about the chances of clearing, both before and after arriving at the airport? I am Platinum myself, to the extent that matters. Thanks!

F0 A0 J7 R7 D7 I4 W1 P0 Y5 B0 H2 K1
M0 L0 G5 V0 S0 N0 Q0 O0 E0

I have a rountrip flight coming up in a few months and I just noticed that both flights have changed. One of them had both a time change and an aircraft swap (replacing my F 787-9 seats with a 737 configuration) and another is just a time change.

What are the guidelines on getting a free change to another time on that date?

Two hours time change or connection changed to below MCT (minimum connection time) are sure winners. Your change, on what’s probably a domestic or mid-haul, without knowing more details, I’d suggest calling and asking for the change that would serve you and preserve the aircraft type. (If it’s a longer flight, it’s likely now a 787 MAX 8, to make it even worse.)

I booked a last minute flight from ORD to CDG with a 4 hour layover in DFW. The price was too good to pass up. I put a request to upgrade to business with points and the lovely $350. I've never tried to upgrade but I have a decent amount of points now so I figured why not. When do you find out if you receive the upgrade or not?

I've also recently acquired Platinum Pro level. Does that get me any type of lounge access on international flights?

You just have to keep an eye out on your reservation at aa.com to see if you've been upgraded. Or set an alert at ExpertFlyer for C space on your DFW-CDG segment and give AA a call whenever it appears and ask them to process your upgrade.

And PLT Pro is oneworld Sapphire, so you have access to any of the business class lounges along your way. This includes the Flagship Lounge at ORD and the temp Premium Lounge at DFW. On the way home, you can visit either the CX lounge or Admirals Club at CDG as well.

Is he paying for the chance?
 

Am I correct in thinking that the miles/$ aren't actually charged unless/until the upgrade processes? And second question, assuming you haven't checked in for the flight yet, are these "paid" upgrades prioritized ahead of status and/or SWU upgrade requests?

Appreciate your knowledge!
-Z

Yes, the miles/copay are not charged until the upgrade actually clears. Whether you have checked in or not has no bearing on the upgrade waitlist, for longhaul flights like this miles/copay and SWU have the same prioritization, the waitlist is sorted by status and then rolling 12 month EQD.