Jan 18, 2021, 1:06 am
Last edit by: JDiver
Welcome to the archived 2021 "NEWBIE LOUNGE"Ask Your Consolidated / Combined AA Questions Here (flame free)
MODERATOR GUIDEPOST: (This post can only be edited by moderators.)
FOR THE 2022 THREAD, SEE HERE: link
Welcome to the Newbie Lounge!
Important links:
Link to American Airlines Conditions of Carriage
Link to AAdvantage Terms and Conditions
NOTE: See below for links to the archived older threads.
Q. How can I find information more easily than reading through all the threads? Now that I'm here, what do I do next?
Check out the following resources:
Searching can be key to finding important information and answers without waiting for someone to drop by and answer, and it helps prevent that information fragmentation. FlyerTalk Advanced Search can seem quirky to the infrequent user, but it's fairly powerful if one knows how to use it. There are several ways to search:
Forum basics: Now that the new AA has become by some measures "the world's largest airline", this new, combined has become a "mega-forum", very large, very active - and theoretically very difficult to find information and easy to lose one's place. Having to search for and sort through dozens - or more - of threads on baggage, airports, minimum connect times or the like could soon become unproductive and discouraging.
To prevent this from occurring, please note we try to:
Keep a few "sticky" threads: such as GUIDE posts, OSO / IROPS, etc. for urgent and quick reference, such as basic "where do I find" reasons
Keep threads to specific topics: Prevent information fragmentation and loss by consolidating questions, answers and discussion of one topic contained in one thread. (This also honors those members who have already shared valuable information and experiences.)
"Popular" threads are likely to have a Wikipost at the head that will summarize important information and have resource links. These are "community property", and as any wiki are established, maintained and updated by the members (with 90 days of tenure and 90 posts on FlyerTalk).
You may find your question or post merged into one of those threads. Be sure that we will leave a link behind from your original thread, and to look up to see if there's a wiki with information. We apologize for any possible inconvenience or difference between this forum and others, but we think you'll like some of the resources and tools here to enable more convenient, comfortable travel on AA and greater knowledge sharing.
Keep it welcoming: We're proud the members of both FFPs have kept the brickbats to a minimum; we want this forum to be welcoming, civil and information rich, so name calling (including calling a member one disagrees with "AApologist") and snark are not tolerated. Posts with such are likely to be summarily deleted in their entirety; repeated such behavior may result in suspension of one's membership privileges or being banned from this forum. Let's keep it friendly and in accordance with the FT Rules.
FlyerTalk Rules (We all agree to abide by these, and are held accountable.)
NOTE: 2020 NEWBIE LOUNGE posts are here.
2019 NEWBIE LOUNGE older posts are here.
The 2018 AA NEWBIE LOUNGE post thread is here
The 2017 AA NEWBIE LOUNGE post thread is here
The 2016 AA NEWBIE LOUNGE post thread is here
Thanks for reading!
MODERATOR GUIDEPOST: (This post can only be edited by moderators.)
FOR THE 2022 THREAD, SEE HERE: link
Welcome to the Newbie Lounge!
Welcome to Flyertalk!
The Newbie Lounge is a place for newer and less experienced members to ask their questions about American Airlines and the AAdvantage program and have answered by our more experienced and knowledgeable members. Feel free to ask any question related to American Airlines and AAdvantage here.
NOTE: This is a "flame free" thread; flaming, personal criticism for "failing to search" etc. is not allowed (if posted, the post will be summarily deleted, the poster subject to sanctions).
Advanced questions posed by veteran FT users may be moved and / or merged into existing master or GUIDE threads, most of which have Wikiposts at the top of the page that contain summaries of important information.
We volunteer Moderators monitor this "lounge" thread to assist you as well. When browsing the fora, look at the page tops of the various forums. There will be a menu, and often "sticky" threads, and threads with header "wiki posts" (created and maintained by the FlyerTalk community) with important information relating to that forum / topic.
Don't hesitate to contact a moderator or another member if you have any additional questions. You can PM the Moderators by clicking on
, which pops up a message box; the message goes to all this forum's Moderators. Note that unlike some sites with paid staff moderators, FlyerTalk Moderators are volunteers, and most work, travel, go on holiday, etc. You can Private Message us using the PM system (My Flyertalk) and our handles.
We're glad you've chosen to join the Flyertalk frequent flyer community!
Your American Airlines | AAdvantage Forum Moderation Team,
AZ Travels the World, aztimm, dstan, JDiver, JY1024, Microwave
(Our thanks to thread founder / "plank owner" HNL.)
The Newbie Lounge is a place for newer and less experienced members to ask their questions about American Airlines and the AAdvantage program and have answered by our more experienced and knowledgeable members. Feel free to ask any question related to American Airlines and AAdvantage here.
NOTE: This is a "flame free" thread; flaming, personal criticism for "failing to search" etc. is not allowed (if posted, the post will be summarily deleted, the poster subject to sanctions).
Advanced questions posed by veteran FT users may be moved and / or merged into existing master or GUIDE threads, most of which have Wikiposts at the top of the page that contain summaries of important information.
We volunteer Moderators monitor this "lounge" thread to assist you as well. When browsing the fora, look at the page tops of the various forums. There will be a menu, and often "sticky" threads, and threads with header "wiki posts" (created and maintained by the FlyerTalk community) with important information relating to that forum / topic.
Don't hesitate to contact a moderator or another member if you have any additional questions. You can PM the Moderators by clicking on
, which pops up a message box; the message goes to all this forum's Moderators. Note that unlike some sites with paid staff moderators, FlyerTalk Moderators are volunteers, and most work, travel, go on holiday, etc. You can Private Message us using the PM system (My Flyertalk) and our handles.We're glad you've chosen to join the Flyertalk frequent flyer community!
Your American Airlines | AAdvantage Forum Moderation Team,
AZ Travels the World, aztimm, dstan, JDiver, JY1024, Microwave
(Our thanks to thread founder / "plank owner" HNL.)
Link to American Airlines Conditions of Carriage
Link to AAdvantage Terms and Conditions
NOTE: See below for links to the archived older threads.
Q. How can I find information more easily than reading through all the threads? Now that I'm here, what do I do next?
Check out the following resources:
- GUIDE: FT - AA Forum, LOUNGE DASHBOARD and OSO / IRROPS (Links to most important threads, "Help Desk" assistance threads, the thread with resources for off-schedule operations / irregular operations (including links to AA weather policy and tools), hub airport threads, AA lounge Dashboard for all lounges and lounge related issues.)
- FAQ: American Airlines and AAdvantage - Please check here first! (Our FAQ were originally written for the pre-merger AA forum, but there's still a lot of useful information there.)
- New and uncertain where to start here, and it's about American Airlines? Start in our "NEWBIE LOUNGE" thread, here: link.
- Do you have questions about other travel related issues that do not pertain to AA and are unsure where to start? Visit our Information Desk Forum here: U]link.
- Especially useful to new members: FAQs (How to post like a pro and more)
- The NEW FlyerTalk: Helpful Hints, Tips and Suggestions to Enhance Your Experience (Information Desk Forum)
- FlyerTalk Glossary (What is all this jargon?)
- Airport Code Guide (How do I decode an airport code / find one for a city?)
Searching can be key to finding important information and answers without waiting for someone to drop by and answer, and it helps prevent that information fragmentation. FlyerTalk Advanced Search can seem quirky to the infrequent user, but it's fairly powerful if one knows how to use it. There are several ways to search:
- Canarsie's Using the Search Feature on FlyerTalk: The Definitive Thread has relocated to the Information Desk Forum; it can be found there.
- One can search FlyerTalk with Google with this web form.
- Or, if you are used to Google search, use Google Advanced Search and insert www.flyertalk.com in the "site or domain" box.
Forum basics: Now that the new AA has become by some measures "the world's largest airline", this new, combined has become a "mega-forum", very large, very active - and theoretically very difficult to find information and easy to lose one's place. Having to search for and sort through dozens - or more - of threads on baggage, airports, minimum connect times or the like could soon become unproductive and discouraging.
To prevent this from occurring, please note we try to:
Keep a few "sticky" threads: such as GUIDE posts, OSO / IROPS, etc. for urgent and quick reference, such as basic "where do I find" reasons
Keep threads to specific topics: Prevent information fragmentation and loss by consolidating questions, answers and discussion of one topic contained in one thread. (This also honors those members who have already shared valuable information and experiences.)
"Popular" threads are likely to have a Wikipost at the head that will summarize important information and have resource links. These are "community property", and as any wiki are established, maintained and updated by the members (with 90 days of tenure and 90 posts on FlyerTalk).
You may find your question or post merged into one of those threads. Be sure that we will leave a link behind from your original thread, and to look up to see if there's a wiki with information. We apologize for any possible inconvenience or difference between this forum and others, but we think you'll like some of the resources and tools here to enable more convenient, comfortable travel on AA and greater knowledge sharing.
Keep it welcoming: We're proud the members of both FFPs have kept the brickbats to a minimum; we want this forum to be welcoming, civil and information rich, so name calling (including calling a member one disagrees with "AApologist") and snark are not tolerated. Posts with such are likely to be summarily deleted in their entirety; repeated such behavior may result in suspension of one's membership privileges or being banned from this forum. Let's keep it friendly and in accordance with the FT Rules.
FlyerTalk Rules (We all agree to abide by these, and are held accountable.)
NOTE: 2020 NEWBIE LOUNGE posts are here.
2019 NEWBIE LOUNGE older posts are here.
The 2018 AA NEWBIE LOUNGE post thread is here
The 2017 AA NEWBIE LOUNGE post thread is here
The 2016 AA NEWBIE LOUNGE post thread is here
Thanks for reading!
NEWBIE LOUNGE 2021: Ask AA newbie questions here - flame-free thread
Oct 7, 2021, 12:03 pm
#856
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Not here; there!
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold
Posts: 29,584
If the long haul flight (or any flight) is just on hold then its no problem to add connecting segment(s) to the itinerary. You don't have to cancel the existing hold and start over or anything like that.
If the long haul flight is ticketed, a good agent can definitely add a flight to an existing ticketed award without having to cancel and start over, however many agents don't know how and just say you need availability on everything. Try HUCA.
Couple points: on int'l awards you have up to 24 hrs to connect any connection point (not 3 hrs). Also the agent was correct in that you cannot combine a web special award with a partner award like you were trying to do. You need sAAver space on the XXX-LAX to be able to add it on the same award.
If the long haul flight is ticketed, a good agent can definitely add a flight to an existing ticketed award without having to cancel and start over, however many agents don't know how and just say you need availability on everything. Try HUCA.
Couple points: on int'l awards you have up to 24 hrs to connect any connection point (not 3 hrs). Also the agent was correct in that you cannot combine a web special award with a partner award like you were trying to do. You need sAAver space on the XXX-LAX to be able to add it on the same award.
Oct 7, 2021, 12:13 pm
#857
Join Date: Sep 2020
Posts: 16
If the long haul flight (or any flight) is just on hold then its no problem to add connecting segment(s) to the itinerary. You don't have to cancel the existing hold and start over or anything like that.
If the long haul flight is ticketed, a good agent can definitely add a flight to an existing ticketed award without having to cancel and start over, however many agents don't know how and just say you need availability on everything. Try HUCA.
Couple points: on int'l awards you have up to 24 hrs to connect any connection point (not 3 hrs). Also the agent was correct in that you cannot combine a web special award with a partner award like you were trying to do. You need sAAver space on the XXX-LAX to be able to add it on the same award.
If the long haul flight is ticketed, a good agent can definitely add a flight to an existing ticketed award without having to cancel and start over, however many agents don't know how and just say you need availability on everything. Try HUCA.
Couple points: on int'l awards you have up to 24 hrs to connect any connection point (not 3 hrs). Also the agent was correct in that you cannot combine a web special award with a partner award like you were trying to do. You need sAAver space on the XXX-LAX to be able to add it on the same award.
Another newb question, is there a way to search for sAAver space by filtering out web specials rather than checking each flight individually? Seems like a lot of routes even in August/September of next year only show web specials this far out.
Oct 7, 2021, 2:35 pm
#858
Join Date: Mar 2019
Programs: Marriott Plat, AA Plat
Posts: 122
Had a change ticket credit that was this week converted to a Trip Credit automatically (received an email). Went to use it, and couldn't find where to apply (international itinerary). Went to read the fine print of the Trip Credit and it said that its "*Valid for travel wholly within or between the U.S., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands only when booking on aa.com (U.S. currency only)."
That's a bummer, had a credit that could have been used for any itinerary that is now limited, just due to AA automatically converting to these Trip Credits. Is there any flexibility in anyone's experience calling in and having an agent override, to allow international trips to be booked using Trip Credits? Thanks.
That's a bummer, had a credit that could have been used for any itinerary that is now limited, just due to AA automatically converting to these Trip Credits. Is there any flexibility in anyone's experience calling in and having an agent override, to allow international trips to be booked using Trip Credits? Thanks.
Oct 7, 2021, 8:35 pm
#859
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2015
Location: BOS, YVR, ZRH
Programs: *G
Posts: 17,398
Remember that even when XXX-LAX and LAX-HKG are both available as SAAver awards, that does not necessarily mean that XXX-LAX-HKG will be available as a single award. AA sometimes has only married-segment availability, and sometimes has only divorced-segment availability.
Oct 7, 2021, 8:43 pm
#860
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Not here; there!
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold
Posts: 29,584
What if XXX-LAX is only available in Y? I want to book an INTL J award that just doesn't have availability from BOS-ORD as sAAver... Can I voluntarily downgrade and call in to do that or does even the Y award need to be a saver? Otherwise I'd just have to pay cash but it's kind of dumb.
Oct 7, 2021, 8:58 pm
#861
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2015
Location: BOS, YVR, ZRH
Programs: *G
Posts: 17,398
what counts as a sAAver in this scenario? E g. I want to tack on BOS-ORD to an intl J ticket, but none show up when I search BOS-XXX. however there is plenty of BOS-ORD available at less than 15k for Y/less than 25k for J (down to 7.5k even!) On SOME days AA WILL show the connection, I just can't figure out why only on some and not others. Whats the indication that it'll let me combine it or not?
Oct 7, 2021, 9:09 pm
#862
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Not here; there!
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold
Posts: 29,584
what counts as a sAAver in this scenario? E g. I want to tack on BOS-ORD to an intl J ticket, but none show up when I search BOS-XXX. however there is plenty of BOS-ORD available at less than 15k for Y/less than 25k for J (down to 7.5k even!) On SOME days AA WILL show the connection, I just can't figure out why only on some and not others. Whats the indication that it'll let me combine it or not?
https://www.aa.com/i18n/aadvantage-p...ward-chart.jsp
A SAAver Coach award between BOS and ORD -- when available -- costs exactly 12,500 miles. If the only Coach awards you see cost more or less than 12,500 miles, that is NOT a SAAver award; it is an "Economy Web Special" award.
Oct 7, 2021, 9:22 pm
#863
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2015
Location: BOS, YVR, ZRH
Programs: *G
Posts: 17,398
AAdvantage award chart here:
https://www.aa.com/i18n/aadvantage-p...ward-chart.jsp
A SAAver Coach award between BOS and ORD -- when available -- costs exactly 12,500 miles. If the only Coach awards you see cost more or less than 12,500 miles, that is NOT a SAAver award; it is an "Economy Web Special" award.
https://www.aa.com/i18n/aadvantage-p...ward-chart.jsp
A SAAver Coach award between BOS and ORD -- when available -- costs exactly 12,500 miles. If the only Coach awards you see cost more or less than 12,500 miles, that is NOT a SAAver award; it is an "Economy Web Special" award.
Oct 8, 2021, 11:49 am
#864
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2015
Location: BOS, YVR, ZRH
Programs: *G
Posts: 17,398
BOS-DOH: Shows up in J via ORDDOH-CPT: Shows up in J nonstop
ORD-DOH: DOESNT show up at all, only via AMMBOS-CPT: DOESNT show up at all, only via LHR.
What's happening here? Is this some sort of whacky married segment logic where I can fly TO Doha but not VIA Doha? Does AA even filter out partner non-stop flights? I'm very confused.
Oct 8, 2021, 12:19 pm
#865
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Not here; there!
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold
Posts: 29,584
Actually, it gets weirder. So let's say I'm trying to book BOS-CPT via Doha. All the dates I'm searching account for the time differences:
BOS-DOH: Shows up in J via ORDDOH-CPT: Shows up in J nonstop
ORD-DOH: DOESNT show up at all, only via AMMBOS-CPT: DOESNT show up at all, only via LHR.
What's happening here? Is this some sort of whacky married segment logic where I can fly TO Doha but not VIA Doha? Does AA even filter out partner non-stop flights? I'm very confused.
BOS-DOH: Shows up in J via ORDDOH-CPT: Shows up in J nonstop
ORD-DOH: DOESNT show up at all, only via AMMBOS-CPT: DOESNT show up at all, only via LHR.
What's happening here? Is this some sort of whacky married segment logic where I can fly TO Doha but not VIA Doha? Does AA even filter out partner non-stop flights? I'm very confused.
Oct 8, 2021, 12:24 pm
#866
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2015
Location: BOS, YVR, ZRH
Programs: *G
Posts: 17,398
Oct 8, 2021, 12:33 pm
#867
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Not here; there!
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold
Posts: 29,584
There's nothing to fix. This is how the AAdvantage program works these days. But as the old saying goes, "There's no harm in asking."
Oct 8, 2021, 12:35 pm
#868
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2015
Location: BOS, YVR, ZRH
Programs: *G
Posts: 17,398
Oct 8, 2021, 4:59 pm
#869
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 1,345
I called in and booked an award ticket yesterday with partner RJ. The ticket is still "on request." Today I called in to update another award ticket that lost a segment due to AA flight cancellation. The new flight is short leg on BA and overwater on AA. That ticket the ticketing desk had to open up J space. Even that ticket is still "on request." Anyone have any idea why that would happen. If it was for one ticket, I get it. But it's an issue for two award tickets within the last 2 days.
Oct 9, 2021, 12:46 am
#870
Join Date: Jul 2001
Programs: AA EP
Posts: 2,203
it sounds like QR married segment logic
Actually, it gets weirder. So let's say I'm trying to book BOS-CPT via Doha. All the dates I'm searching account for the time differences:
BOS-DOH: Shows up in J via ORDDOH-CPT: Shows up in J nonstop
ORD-DOH: DOESNT show up at all, only via AMMBOS-CPT: DOESNT show up at all, only via LHR.
What's happening here? Is this some sort of whacky married segment logic where I can fly TO Doha but not VIA Doha? Does AA even filter out partner non-stop flights? I'm very confused.
BOS-DOH: Shows up in J via ORDDOH-CPT: Shows up in J nonstop
ORD-DOH: DOESNT show up at all, only via AMMBOS-CPT: DOESNT show up at all, only via LHR.
What's happening here? Is this some sort of whacky married segment logic where I can fly TO Doha but not VIA Doha? Does AA even filter out partner non-stop flights? I'm very confused.