dw

AA (well, all the airlines) have just been publishing largely pre-pandemic schedules and cutting closer in... and in the process selling seats on flights they know are going to be cut. It’s definitely been annoying for people that want to book with some schedule certainty 2+ months in advance.

Antarius

However, you can cancel for a credit at any point and rebook the flight of your choosing. Which is one positive.

enviroian

Do you think that SEA-LHR flight will last on the schedule? Hell, did it even start yet?

Often1

There are also daily threads alleging roughly the same on other carriers' boards.

RM/IM is messed up around the world. Nobody has a great handle on it and planning is thus affected. Add onto that the fact that changing restrictions, including local quarantines and limits on restaurants and the like, deeply affect demand.

Worse, when things go wrong, there are still fewer alternatives. That makes departures, connections & arrivals less solid.

abdawson1

I have an award itinerary that magically went from BOS - JFK - LHR to BOS - LGA...JFK - LHR. The award won't permit changes.
Looks like there are no mainline AA flights BOS - JFK now. BOS - LGA is on Eagle.

However, there are AA code shared flights on Jetblue metal between BOS - JFK. Based on criterion #3 above, are those permitted?

IADCAflyer

I got them to do it for a paid trip last year - I had to feed them the precise itinerary to get it to go through. Not sure if they will force an award ticket onto other metal (a code share might be your ace in the hole).

dw

Surprisingly that’s already running (+ BA’s flight). I’d think the loads must be shockingly low right now.

ComplexAnalysis

Have 3 trips in June, really first time flying this year .... annnnd each of those are now misconnects with the first flights getting shifted 1-2 hours later and the second getting shifted 1 hour+ earlier. You would think they want it easier to be able to connect in hubs...

redtop43

I'm not completely content to take this lying down. We all understand that in IRROPS an airline does what it has to do. But they are clearly selling seats on flights they know will never operate, even if they're not sure which flights exactly will be cut. Meanwhile pax are denied the opportunity to buy in advance at more favorable fares or shop the competition. This really isn't OK. It's not acceptable competitive behavior, it's not aligning the expectations of a ticket purchaser with the realities of the airline business.

redtop43

This is clearly intentional. They are clearly intentionally offering flights they have no intention of flying. Regarding proof, the question is to what standard. If this were to be litigated to the nth degree (which it won't be) whomever sets and changes the schedules would be deposed, and presumably tell the truth under oath, about whether they intentionally sell tickets on flights they don't expect to operate, or whether they are "Shocked, shocked to find that demand doesn't align with projections." (For those who don't get the reference, google the phrase "Shocked, shocked to find that gambling is taking place.")

The solution is twofold: (a) A disclaimer at time of purchase that some flights may not operate as scheduled and (b) a vastly broadened change and cancellation policy permitting re-ticketing on any reasonable itin with no fare difference.

As I read through the rest of the thread, and the parallel thread on schedule changes, I realized I'm living a charmed life. Regarding my trips through mid-August, I get PHL-LAS widebodies in both directions. In one case it will cost me $190 to rebook, in two other cases it cost $22, and in one of those cases I was able to change an (eastbound) 6AM connection through LAX to a 10PM nonstop, which is vastly more desirable for me. Many other people are getting slammed much worse than I.

_____________________

I called AA again. There was another change on my original itin. They cancelled the original connection and put me on a later one. My original itin was PHL-LAX 4:00 6:39 LAX-LAS 8:00 9:14. The new was PHL-LAX 3:55 6:37 LAX-LAS 8:50 10:07. They said that because I was now arriving later, they could move me to the nonstop which departs PHL at 6:55 and arrives LAS 9:07. So in the end I'm getting basically what I wanted and thought I had paid for, a PHL-LAS trip in F on B787 arriving around 9PM for what I originally paid. I'd have been content even if the NS was A321, because if they aren't flying 787's, they're not. Right now I'm actually pretty happy but I still feel really bad for other people who've gotten shafted.

FlyDeltaMD88

This. I know people in Delta/United's network planning and/or revenue management, they've been there for years and know what they're doing. I know some great people who work at AA also in different departments who tell me their network/fleet planners are awful, not sure who the HR person responsible for hiring them is but they need to be booted ASAP.

chuck1

My XNA-DCA non-stop cancelled on a Saturday.
Rebooked XNA-MIA-DCA for a 12 hour return with several hours in MIA.
Not sure why they didn't rebook via ORD, DFW or CLT with much shorter times.
I called in and no problem to change it but do check what the system chooses to protect you on. It may be far from the best option.

platbrownguy

BOS-LGA/vv has been 3x daily (but 1x Saturday)

DCA-LGA/BOS has been 7x each, daily (but 3x Saturday and 6x Sunday)

They still have pre-covid schedules up for later in the year. They'll fix them closer in. That's just how they've rolled.

IADCAflyer

All this nonsense is doing one thing: for insiders its confirming the fact that if you want, book -whatever- ticket you want that's anywhere close to your intended time and is the cheapest. When AA changes the flight schedules, you get a free shot to rebook the flight you really want.....

Catbert10

Correction, went to 3x weekly. Just not on days I can use.