MADPhil

The AA website allows you to see the seats for individual flights or journeys by using "Plan Travel" > "Flight schedules and notifications". This, of course, only tells you which seats have been assigned and not how many have been sold. A free account on EF will show you data for a single flight if you go through "Set up an Alert".

titansox

Hey yall,

I'm looking to book an AA flight from DFW-FRA the end of November. AA is operating this on a 789 that whole week. I've been trying to search the internet (and this forum) for some info regarding the wifi/live tv available on this flight and to be honest I really am interested in whether I'll be able to watch live NFL if I go on the Sunday flight. When you go on their website to book the flight it only says "seatback entertainment" which is vague. After doing some snooping I found AA 789's uses Panasonic as their wifi provider and on seat guru for the 789 it says "5 live steaming television channels (Sport 2, Sport 2 Extra, BBC News, CNBC, CNN) " but I have not been able to verify that is correct and if it is, is it safe to assume AA will put the NFL on one or both of their sports stations? Does AA even control these stations or are they farmed out to other airlines/cruise? Are these live channel available on international flights? Any insight would be greatly appreciated!

FullTimeFlyer

Does that mean that they'll be adding the ability to cancel within 24 hours after purchase?

wrp96

That's been there for awhile.

Rossodio

First time posting in travel forums ever, please forgive the newbieness.

I started saving points with US Airways Dividend Miles as a teenager in the 1990's and the account was brought into the AAdvantage program when AA took over US Airways. Have had a cobranded credit card since the 90's as well that has changed holders a number of times, so it is really cool when I call Barclays (Aviator Silver MC now) and they say "thank you for being a member since..." and the customer service reps always get a kick out of it.

Anyway, with my using Flight Cents and utilizing AAdvantage eshopping and dining and simplymiles etc etc etc, along with my actual spending on the card for anything and everything I can since they changed the status program to be based on spend, I am pulling about 240,000 loyalty points towards status a year (just hit EP today) and about 75,000 additional miles to spend per year between flight miles and other promotional offers that don't also give loyalty points. Looking forward to grabbing some great flights with the miles each year.

I have one question about being EP and booking domestic award flights - wondering how I will be prioritized for complementary upgrades. Yes, I am an EP status member, but this would be award travel. Would I go behind EP's who book with full fare payment but ahead of all PP's?

My bigger question is about an international trip I am wanting to book with award miles next year sometime between April and August. I am trying to book first (or business) to fly ideally from GSP (or would be willing to fly out of CLT or ATL if I had to) to go to NAP (Naples, Italy). Whenever I pull flights to book using award miles, the selection of flights is understandably neutered. However, no matter how I attempt to look flights up to book through aa.com with award miles, there are a couple of serious issues:
1) There is a layover of ~30 minutes in DCA that I can't seem to get around if I fly out of Greenville. When I look to book not using award miles there are all kinds of ways around this, but I think that a layover that short is pretty unreasonable. Any thoughts on how to get around this?
2) When I try to book from GSP, CLT, or ATL, in every case when I am looking to book as Business/First, there seem to be no flights available to book through award travel. They only offer main cabin and economy plus. My plans are very flexible within those months and I would expect that at least somewhere, for enough miles, I could book a Business or First class set of flights, but it looks to not be the case.

I would be forever indebted to anyone who could help guide me through this and work with me to get an actual business or (even better) first class flight booked in this way with reasonable connection times. Over a million miles burning a hole in my pocket and I really want to make this trip happen!

Also... if you think this deserves its own thread let me know and I'll blank this response and post it as a thread. Not sure how the politics work in these forums in particular.

guv1976

Welcome to FlyerTalk!

Because AA does not serve NAP on its own metal, the only AAdvantage awards you can book to NAP are MileSAAver awards. That means that any AA segments on the award must also be available at the MileSAAver level. (Web Special award seats can not be included on a MileSAAver award.)

You might have to cobble together two separate awards: one from GSP/ATL to a gateway served by partners like Iberia, Finnair, or Royal Air Maroc, and another from the gateway to NAP; or one on AA metal from GSP/ATL to LHR or MAD, and then a separate award on to NAP. If you choose the latter option, it would probably prove more cost effective to acquire some BA Avios to redeem for the short, intra-European flight, but then you would not be protected in case of IROPS.

If you want to use AAdvantage miles for all flights, use the multi-city award-booking engine in an attempt to get the two separate awards on a single PNR: that would afford you protection in the case of IROPS.

Good luck!

guv1976

Rossodio, here's an example of a combination of two awards that might work for you. (Note that there is a LGA-JFK ground transfer required.)







AA it turns out, the itinerary prices a little cheaper -- in both miles and cash -- if reserved using the multi-city award-booking engine:

Rossodio

Interestingly, I was with a bunch of checking different dates able to find a way to book first class on AA and business on British Airlines to get there using the award booking tool for around 115k miles per person, with reasonable layovers. Somewhat surprised to see a total of almost $3000 of fees on top of this, however. That makes it a bit less palatable and your multi city option does make more sense, I think.

I really appreciate your tips on using the multi city tool to get separate bookings. I imagine this would imply that I arrive at the "middle man" airport, for lack of a better term, collect my luggage, go back through check in etc. for the last leg with the second carrier and recheck bags in the process, then go through with the flight? Or does this work differently?

Rossodio

If I am doing a ground transfer from LGA to JFK but the booking for the flights to LGA and from JFK are on the same ticket/record locator, would I need to go to baggage claim to get the luggage at LGA and transfer it to JFK myself as well? Or does AA have shuttles that would do that for me?

guv1976

Rossodio, you would have to claim any checked baggage at LGA, and re-check it at JFK. And the cost of the ground transfer would be on you. However, if you were able to get the ATL-LHR award and the LHR-NAP award on the same PNR (as, for example, by booking via the multi-city award-booking engine), when you re-check your baggage at JFK, you should be able to get it tagged all the way through to NAP. You would not have to claim it and re-check at LHR.

As to the high fees you were finding on awards costing fewer miles, whenever you redeem AAdvantage miles for long-haul travel on BA -- especially in premium cabins -- there are high carrier surcharges to pay. (AA only collects carrier surcharges for travel on BA and IB; the surcharges on IB are much less onerous.)

LeisureTraveler

With my AA status, let’s say I book a JetBlue flight. Do the benefits listed below (like checked bag allowance) for JetBlue travel apply to all passengers on the same record as the AA elite passenger?

https://www.aa.com/i18n/travel-info/...es/jetblue.jsp

guv1976

Apparently so:

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/34504245-post952.html

cs57

Arriving terminal 3 at LHR on AA in J can I use AC airside (t3) before connecting to BA in terminal 3. Using arrivals lounge would be great, but that is landside. Many thanks for any help.

JJeffrey

Yes, arriving off AA in J connecting to BA you can use any of the oneworld business lounges in T3 before your onward BA flight from T3. I would go to the CX or QF lounge, not the AC.

wrp96

You can use the AC in T3 but it will require clearing security in T3, then finding a way back into the transfer flow, taking the bus over to T5, then clearing security there. Make sure you clear T5 security no later than 35 minutes before your scheduled departure or you will be removed from your onward flight. Is there any particular reason you want to use the AC? If you are going to stay in T3 to use the lounges, then the CX and QF lounges which you will also have access to would be better choices. You'll also have access to the BA lounges in T5.