Well...
 

How did things turn out?

Well, in my case, I was in the lounge and had a busted leg. So by the time I hobbled to the gate and noticed no GA or plane, it was too late to hobble all the way across the terminal.

but yes, definitely not AA's fault. Although the app does leave scope for improvement.

While I do use the AA app (and apps from airlines I fly), I get AA text alerts, as well as text alerts from TripIt, I still glance at the airport monitors, just in case. Even when rushed, I still quickly glance at the monitor to verify I'm going to the right place. If I'm in an airport lounge, I'll look at monitors there (if available) and/or ask the lounge agent (and usually ask them how long it will take to the gate).

As for what to do, well you're pretty much at the mercy of AA and the agents. I've missed flights and now I usually plan things to pad my time quite a bit, just in case something happens along the way. When I've missed flights, I just pled my case...and was thankfully treated mercifully and put on the next flight (but I had status which definitely helped).

I only look at the airport monitors and double-check with the gate monitor.

I'd say that seeing the wrong gate and heading there is definitely understandable - be it via an un-refreshed app, a monitor that changes during the walk from the lounge to the gate, etc. But actually being at one's supposed gate without checking for any signs of a flight leaving from it, well, that's just weird.

I have almost missed flights at SFO because of this very problem, particularly flights to LAX since they seem to go out of either gate 45 or gate 58.

Although the app does update, I find that there's sometimes a lag if I haven't closed out. Also, I find that boarding passes saved to Apple Wallet don't update as quickly (or at all). I will get text alerts when using my AAdvantage number on reservations, but I won't if using my Finnair number.

I'm fairly sure that if you cancel an entire outbound, they will let you keep the return. If they didn't, it would strongly incentivize pax to buy two one-ways. (Yes, depending on the cost, it could mean doubling the change fee if you have to cancel the whole trip.)

Rough. This almost happened to me flying UA out of SFO. The app wasn't even wrong -- I just screwed up the gate number in my head.

Luckily the flight leaving from the gate I was at was leaving before my flight so I didn't miss anything. I got in line at the gate and thought, gee, they are boarding early! Then I heard something about chicago, looked at the monitor, said, hey, I'm going to Hawaii... and had to duck under the little barrier like an idiot to get out of the line.

Total dumb luck on my part -- had I been at the gate for a later flight I very well may have missed mine.

Add me to the list of people who has done this at SFO and nowhere else...

The app does need to be fixed. Nothing like hanging out in the admirals club to find out your gate has been moved 15 minutes away when you have just 30 minutes before departure. Not everyone is going to want to turn on the texts, particularly with AA's habit of having rolling delays.

Unless AA is worried about server capacity, there is really no reason why it shouldn't auto-refresh every few minutes. Even if they are worried about server capacity, they should still fix it.

Shoot, we sometimes check-in on the computers in operations (or our tablets) and by the time we get to the gate our flight is suppose to depart from, it has changed without notice. It's always a good idea to check the terminal monitors when walking to your gate. (except during extreme IRROPS, the local city who runs the monitors can't keep up with delays) LOL

I have been at Phx Sky harbor where my gate was changed no fewer than 3 times. I believe at departure it may have been 4 times. It was a total S show. Holiday travel time.