AA gave away our seats to standby pax- advice?
Jan 14, 2023, 11:24 am
#16
Join Date: Jul 2009
Programs: none
Posts: 1,669
Sometimes life isn’t completely fair. You should get at least two things from this experience:
1. A lesson learned/ teachable moment
2. Sympathy (which you’re getting from other FT readers)
Neither of which has much value.
The best you can hope for now is to somehow convert the sympathy into something positive.
Whe the carrier says “be at the gate at (whatever time)”it’s implied that you’re ready to actually board then. We ARE adults after all. Even if you checked in early, dropped off bags, got your passes, and got to the gate on time, the last piece of the puzzle is to get on the plane. Yes, the airline gave your seats to someone else because you didn’t board when you should.
Hopefully, you learned something (#1 above) and you have my sympathy (#2).
Decide what it is that you want, and from whom. At this date the airline can’t bring the plane back, so they won’t help. They can’t take the standbys off and you can’t blame the other passengers for taking the seats. Maybe it’s the guy who was on his phone and clogged the line ahead of you. Good luck with that.
the airline went out of their way to help after the fact, and it looks like you eventually made it home. So, get on with what’s good with your life.
sometimes life isn’t fair.
1. A lesson learned/ teachable moment
2. Sympathy (which you’re getting from other FT readers)
Neither of which has much value.
The best you can hope for now is to somehow convert the sympathy into something positive.
Whe the carrier says “be at the gate at (whatever time)”it’s implied that you’re ready to actually board then. We ARE adults after all. Even if you checked in early, dropped off bags, got your passes, and got to the gate on time, the last piece of the puzzle is to get on the plane. Yes, the airline gave your seats to someone else because you didn’t board when you should.
Hopefully, you learned something (#1 above) and you have my sympathy (#2).
Decide what it is that you want, and from whom. At this date the airline can’t bring the plane back, so they won’t help. They can’t take the standbys off and you can’t blame the other passengers for taking the seats. Maybe it’s the guy who was on his phone and clogged the line ahead of you. Good luck with that.
the airline went out of their way to help after the fact, and it looks like you eventually made it home. So, get on with what’s good with your life.
sometimes life isn’t fair.
Jan 14, 2023, 11:31 am
#17
Join Date: Aug 2021
Location: USA
Programs: American Airlines (Executive Platinum), Hyatt (Globalist), Hilton (Diamond), IHG (Diamond)
Posts: 2,922
Sometimes life isn’t completely fair. You should get at least two things from this experience:
1. A lesson learned/ teachable moment
2. Sympathy (which you’re getting from other FT readers)
Neither of which has much value.
The best you can hope for now is to somehow convert the sympathy into something positive.
Whe the carrier says “be at the gate at (whatever time)”it’s implied that you’re ready to actually board then. We ARE adults after all. Even if you checked in early, dropped off bags, got your passes, and got to the gate on time, the last piece of the puzzle is to get on the plane. Yes, the airline gave your seats to someone else because you didn’t board when you should.
Hopefully, you learned something (#1 above) and you have my sympathy (#2).
Decide what it is that you want, and from whom. At this date the airline can’t bring the plane back, so they won’t help. They can’t take the standbys off and you can’t blame the other passengers for taking the seats. Maybe it’s the guy who was on his phone and clogged the line ahead of you. Good luck with that.
the airline went out of their way to help after the fact, and it looks like you eventually made it home. So, get on with what’s good with your life.
sometimes life isn’t fair.
1. A lesson learned/ teachable moment
2. Sympathy (which you’re getting from other FT readers)
Neither of which has much value.
The best you can hope for now is to somehow convert the sympathy into something positive.
Whe the carrier says “be at the gate at (whatever time)”it’s implied that you’re ready to actually board then. We ARE adults after all. Even if you checked in early, dropped off bags, got your passes, and got to the gate on time, the last piece of the puzzle is to get on the plane. Yes, the airline gave your seats to someone else because you didn’t board when you should.
Hopefully, you learned something (#1 above) and you have my sympathy (#2).
Decide what it is that you want, and from whom. At this date the airline can’t bring the plane back, so they won’t help. They can’t take the standbys off and you can’t blame the other passengers for taking the seats. Maybe it’s the guy who was on his phone and clogged the line ahead of you. Good luck with that.
the airline went out of their way to help after the fact, and it looks like you eventually made it home. So, get on with what’s good with your life.
sometimes life isn’t fair.
Boarding passes don't say "Boarding ends at [time] — or earlier, if we feel like it."
Jan 14, 2023, 12:24 pm
#18
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Jan 14, 2023, 12:54 pm
#19
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If you do wind up in this situation, with GAs closing flight early, take a pic that shows you were at the gate prior to T-15. At least you'll then have evidence that you were at the gate prior to scheduled cut-off.
Jan 14, 2023, 1:26 pm
#20
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Join Date: Jan 2002
Posts: 44,708
The AA CoC states that you must be in the boarding area 30 mins before but boarding closes 15 mins before. This is what AA is claiming - I call BS as there's no written requirement to make yourself known in between those times. You're well within your contractual rights to sit there from T30 to T16 and board.
Originally Posted by https://www.aa.com/i18n/customer-service/support/flying-with-american.jsp
You must be at the gate and ready to board the plane:
15 minutes before departure on domestic flights
30 minutes before departure for international flights
Be sure to check your boarding pass for boarding times. If you're not at the gate in time, your seat may be given to a standby passenger.
The doors close at least 10 minutes before departure. Once the door is shut, it will not be reopened unless there is health, safety or security issue.
15 minutes before departure on domestic flights
30 minutes before departure for international flights
Be sure to check your boarding pass for boarding times. If you're not at the gate in time, your seat may be given to a standby passenger.
The doors close at least 10 minutes before departure. Once the door is shut, it will not be reopened unless there is health, safety or security issue.
Last edited by Dave Noble; Jan 14, 2023 at 1:32 pm
Jan 14, 2023, 1:28 pm
#21
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Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: NYC
Posts: 27,271
Unfortunately, "denied boarding" or "involuntary denied boarding" is a much more specific term than it would seem at first glance, and I think it's unlikely that it applies in your situation. IDB by definition requires that you be denied boarding because the plane has more ticketed passengers than available seats. Unless you can prove that the plane went out with every seat full, it would be difficult to make a case for that specific compensation
I would really love to know what "records" AA has to prove you were not in the gate area 30 minutes before departure. AFAICT the only things they would have records of are (a) the time you dropped off your bags, and (b) the time you attempted to board the plane.
Jan 14, 2023, 1:39 pm
#22
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Join Date: Jan 2002
Posts: 44,708
Well it’s not really clear - OP says they cleared standbys onto the flight but those could have been, say, ticketed & confirmed basic economy pax that we’re waiting for seat assignments. That AA didn’t let the OP on, albeit in different seats, suggests the flight may have in fact been oversold.
.
.
Jan 14, 2023, 1:43 pm
#23
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The AA information page does state a minimum time to be at the gate, but it is 30 minutes only for international flights; for domestic flights it states 15 minutes
Since the passenger was on a domestic flight, the 15 minutes requirement would apply ; The CoC wording is different and contradictory.
Since the passenger was on a domestic flight, the 15 minutes requirement would apply ; The CoC wording is different and contradictory.
Arriving at the gate
Be at the gate and ready to board the plane at least:- 30 minutes before departure on domestic flights
- 45 minutes before departure for international flights
Boarding ends 15 minutes before departure. If you’re not on board, we may reassign your seat to another passenger. You will not be allowed to board once the doors close.
If you're on a codeshare flight operated by one of our partners, check with that airline
Jan 14, 2023, 1:59 pm
#25
Join Date: Feb 2017
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Posts: 1,301
Closing boarding early and cancelling reservations seems to happen with some regularity on AA, definitely more than any of the other US majors, due principally to D0 combined with a fair number of rogue GAs. For this reason, I am especially careful with AA not to cut it as close as I will with UA, AS, or DL.
off.
off.
longer even think about flying AA. By far they are the worse of the majors. Almost as bad as WN
Jan 14, 2023, 2:30 pm
#26
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 2,299
I don’t know if they had (b), I don’t recall if OP said they tried to scan their BPs or were verbally told it’s too late. Maybe they did try to scan. But there would also be (c) the time they were removed from the flight and other pax assigned to their seats. That would be critical, if that happened before T-15.
Jan 14, 2023, 3:23 pm
#28
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: BOS
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Posts: 3,581
Which AA would have documented somewhere the time that the passengers were offloaded. There's nothing that happens in a PNR that doesn't get recorded in the history. Now getting someone who can access that information on a past date reservation, or for AA to voluntarily acknowledge what that data shows is a different story. But that data definitely exists (even absent OP taking a picture of being at the gate).
Given OP's description of being in what they thought was a line to board, it's entirely possible that the agent offloaded them as they were standing ten feet from the desk.
I strongly suspect that if they were offloaded under T-15, AA would have said that directly in their email. That they didn't, and fell back on "not at the gate," makes me suspect they were actually offloaded somewhere between T-30 and T-15.
Jan 14, 2023, 3:32 pm
#29
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Join Date: Jan 2002
Posts: 44,708
The problem here is that "being at the gate" isn't something that happens in a PNR. That is AA's specific claim here — that OP was required to be at the gate and was not, and that their records prove it.
Given OP's description of being in what they thought was a line to board, it's entirely possible that the agent offloaded them as they were standing ten feet from the desk.
I strongly suspect that if they were offloaded under T-15, AA would have said that directly in their email. That they didn't, and fell back on "not at the gate," makes me suspect they were actually offloaded somewhere between T-30 and T-15.
Given OP's description of being in what they thought was a line to board, it's entirely possible that the agent offloaded them as they were standing ten feet from the desk.
I strongly suspect that if they were offloaded under T-15, AA would have said that directly in their email. That they didn't, and fell back on "not at the gate," makes me suspect they were actually offloaded somewhere between T-30 and T-15.
Jan 14, 2023, 3:44 pm
#30
Join Date: Aug 2021
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If OP really tried to board at 10:40 am for an 11:00 am flight, there's no "suspect" about it.