AA called me because they were holding my flight..anyone else?
Feb 22, 2019, 11:00 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2000
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 371
AA called me because they were holding my flight..anyone else?
Okay, last night 2/21, I'm flying RDU > ORD > STL, it's a one way ticket. It's the 10:20pm flight to St Louis, so last flight of the night. I hit the ground and get an email from my customer canceling the next day's visit. This is no big deal since ORD is basically my base as I live in Wisconsin, so I go to my car and drive home. I walk through the door at 10:15 or so. At 10:30 (10 minutes after push back time) I get a call from AA gate agent., "Mr *****, we just wanted to check if you're still going to make your St Louis flight, we're holding the plane for you". I thanked her and told her briefly what happened and she simply said okay, have a wonderful night. In decades of flying I've never had that happen. I was floored. Anyone else?
Feb 22, 2019, 11:18 am
#2
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2004
Location: DFW/DAL
Programs: AA Lifetime PLT, AS MVPG, HH Diamond, NCL Platinum Plus, MSC Diamond
Posts: 21,422
Okay, last night 2/21, I'm flying RDU > ORD > STL, it's a one way ticket. It's the 10:20pm flight to St Louis, so last flight of the night. I hit the ground and get an email from my customer canceling the next day's visit. This is no big deal since ORD is basically my base as I live in Wisconsin, so I go to my car and drive home. I walk through the door at 10:15 or so. At 10:30 (10 minutes after push back time) I get a call from AA gate agent., "Mr *****, we just wanted to check if you're still going to make your St Louis flight, we're holding the plane for you". I thanked her and told her briefly what happened and she simply said okay, have a wonderful night. In decades of flying I've never had that happen. I was floored. Anyone else?
. Unless no one told me I'm a CK. But my spend is only $24-25k a year.
Feb 22, 2019, 11:29 am
#4
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: SE Wisconsin
Programs: AA EXP, Hilton Diamond for Life
Posts: 337
Not exactly, but once I left my very first iPad in the seat pocket when arriving in New Orleans (in F). I was outside waiting for my ride when I got the call: “Mr. xxx, you left your iPad on the plane, would you like to meet us at security to hand it back to you?”
I haven’t had a true complaint about AA customer service since.
(Side note, I also live in SE WI and use ORD as my primary departure.)
I haven’t had a true complaint about AA customer service since.
(Side note, I also live in SE WI and use ORD as my primary departure.)
Feb 22, 2019, 12:02 pm
#6
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: New York City + Vail, CO
Programs: American Airlines Executive Platinum, Marriott Bonvoy Ambassador Elite
Posts: 3,223
Okay, last night 2/21, I'm flying RDU > ORD > STL, it's a one way ticket. It's the 10:20pm flight to St Louis, so last flight of the night. I hit the ground and get an email from my customer canceling the next day's visit. This is no big deal since ORD is basically my base as I live in Wisconsin, so I go to my car and drive home. I walk through the door at 10:15 or so. At 10:30 (10 minutes after push back time) I get a call from AA gate agent., "Mr *****, we just wanted to check if you're still going to make your St Louis flight, we're holding the plane for you". I thanked her and told her briefly what happened and she simply said okay, have a wonderful night. In decades of flying I've never had that happen. I was floored. Anyone else?
Feb 22, 2019, 12:05 pm
#7
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Midwest USA
Programs: BA SIL, WN A, UA SIL, Marriott TIT (LT), Hilton DIA
Posts: 1,969
I had that happen a few years ago in DFW when my wife and I (intentionally) missed a connecting flight to EWR.
We were on a mileage run and decided to cut it short and just go home.
Gate agent called and we told him we were not going to take the flight.
I was really impressed. Both of us EXP at the time.
We were on a mileage run and decided to cut it short and just go home.
Gate agent called and we told him we were not going to take the flight.
I was really impressed. Both of us EXP at the time.
Feb 22, 2019, 2:42 pm
#8
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: STL/ORD/MCI/SAN
Programs: AA CK MM, AC SE100K, UA 1K, DL Plat, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 1,986
I tend to board late, so I have received a number of calls from GAs over the years asking me whether I'm going to make my flight (usually I'm walking and almost at the gate or, rarely, still in the club), but what's different about OP's situation is that they were literally holding the flight. I haven't had that happen since the "glory days" of EXP. It may have even been my first year as EXP... my SAN-DFW flight arrived late, and there was a golf cart waiting to take me and two other passengers to the DFW-STL gate. Once they confirmed I had arrived, they closed the flight. That doesn't seem to happen much anymore, even for CKs, based on reports here.
As an aside, I used to take that last ORD-STL flight of the night all the time. It's often the last AA departure out of ORD in the evening, so it's particularly impressive that they held the flight rather than just calling it a night and heading home.
As an aside, I used to take that last ORD-STL flight of the night all the time. It's often the last AA departure out of ORD in the evening, so it's particularly impressive that they held the flight rather than just calling it a night and heading home.
Feb 22, 2019, 5:52 pm
#10
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: MSP
Programs: AA Plat Pto, IHG Plat, HH Gold, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 2,536
I had Frontier(!) do this for me this summer. I booked one of their garbage fare weekend getaways, ~$40 roundtrip. The weather at destination was not going to be accommodating for my plans so I abandoned it. Even never checking in I got a call from the airport asking if I was going to be traveling.
Feb 22, 2019, 6:41 pm
#12
Moderator: American AAdvantage
Join Date: May 2000
Location: NorCal - SMF area
Programs: AA LT Plat; HH LT Diamond, Maître-plongeur des Muccis
Posts: 62,948
Buy scratchers, lottery tickets. Or you have a propitiously high Helix “Eagles” rating. Have you had several poor experiences / OSO / IROPS that might put you at risk of running to another airline?
Feb 22, 2019, 6:50 pm
#13
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: MDE
Programs: AA-PLT, HH-GLD, PP
Posts: 1,511
It happened to me once. About 5 minutes before departure:
GA: Mr. coolcoil, your flight to XXX will be leaving shortly.
Me: I'm glad to hear that.
GA: Are you planning to fly with us today?
Me: I am. Why do you ask?
GA: Where are you now?
Me: I'm sitting in seat 8C waiting to go.
GA: You're on the plane?
Me: Yep.
GA: OK, thank you very much. (then in the background saying to somebody else: He's on the plane. I don't know how that happened.)
Of course I then double-checked with an FA to make sure I was on the right plane. I guess the scan didn't take. I expected somebody to show up to look at my BP, but nobody did. Of course, they may have just asked the FA.
GA: Mr. coolcoil, your flight to XXX will be leaving shortly.
Me: I'm glad to hear that.
GA: Are you planning to fly with us today?
Me: I am. Why do you ask?
GA: Where are you now?
Me: I'm sitting in seat 8C waiting to go.
GA: You're on the plane?
Me: Yep.
GA: OK, thank you very much. (then in the background saying to somebody else: He's on the plane. I don't know how that happened.)
Of course I then double-checked with an FA to make sure I was on the right plane. I guess the scan didn't take. I expected somebody to show up to look at my BP, but nobody did. Of course, they may have just asked the FA.
Feb 22, 2019, 6:58 pm
#15
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: The FT AA forum, until it no longer wants me.
Programs: CK or bust
Posts: 1,913
It happened to me once. About 5 minutes before departure:
GA: Mr. coolcoil, your flight to XXX will be leaving shortly.
Me: I'm glad to hear that.
GA: Are you planning to fly with us today?
Me: I am. Why do you ask?
GA: Where are you now?
Me: I'm sitting in seat 8C waiting to go.
GA: You're on the plane?
Me: Yep.
GA: OK, thank you very much. (then in the background saying to somebody else: He's on the plane. I don't know how that happened.)
Of course I then double-checked with an FA to make sure I was on the right plane. I guess the scan didn't take. I expected somebody to show up to look at my BP, but nobody did. Of course, they may have just asked the FA.
GA: Mr. coolcoil, your flight to XXX will be leaving shortly.
Me: I'm glad to hear that.
GA: Are you planning to fly with us today?
Me: I am. Why do you ask?
GA: Where are you now?
Me: I'm sitting in seat 8C waiting to go.
GA: You're on the plane?
Me: Yep.
GA: OK, thank you very much. (then in the background saying to somebody else: He's on the plane. I don't know how that happened.)
Of course I then double-checked with an FA to make sure I was on the right plane. I guess the scan didn't take. I expected somebody to show up to look at my BP, but nobody did. Of course, they may have just asked the FA.
