Nov 8, 2015, 3:40 pm
Last edit by: Prospero
American Airlines Same Day Standby Policy and Discussion
(Not to be confused with SDFC / Same Day Flight Change - see links below)
Standby has its own rules and peculiarities: (As of 14 Jan 2016)
Same-day standby
Standby for a fee (waived for AA Elites)
For $75 on domestic flights, you may standby on an earlier flight under the following conditions:
*Standby between NYC-LON is offered for $150.
AAdvantage elite members may use the standby option for earlier or later flights.
Though it appeared those with checked bags were being denied SDS, JonNYC clarified that AA affirmed AA Elites are allowed to SDS if they have checked bags. Link.
Complimentary standby
Get complimentary same-day standby with:
Complimentary same-day standby is also available for:
Link
The following passengers may standby at no charge based on availability:
Link
Q. What happens to my upgrade if I stand by for another flight?
Your upgrade and position will be lost. You can not be added to the upgrade list on your desired flight until you have cleared from standby. At that point, it may be too late to request your upgrade, given upgrade requests are normally processed prior to the standby list.
See "Airport Upgrade and Standby List" / Order, PALL List and issues (FT)
Previous posts have been archived and can be read here
Standby is not the same thing as SDFC / Same Day Confirmed Flight Change:
See "Domestic" Same Day Confirmed Flight Change / SDFC / CFC / "Standby" or
International Same Day Flight Change / SDFC / SDC / CDC
(Not to be confused with SDFC / Same Day Flight Change - see links below)
Standby has its own rules and peculiarities: (As of 14 Jan 2016)
Same-day standby
Standby for a fee (waived for AA Elites)
For $75 on domestic flights, you may standby on an earlier flight under the following conditions:
- Standby is not allowed for international flights*.
- Has the same origin and destination
- Is for the same calendar day of departure
- Is marketed and operated by American Airlines or American Eagle
- Changes to another multi-city airport or to different connecting cities are not allowed
- You can standby for your originally purchased cabin (not upgraded cabin)
- Standby means upgrades on the original flights are lost (you can not be on an upgrade list until your standby has cleared)
- Standby pax may be required to gate check carry-on baggage
- Standby is prioritized - see "PALL List" link below
*Standby between NYC-LON is offered for $150.
AAdvantage elite members may use the standby option for earlier or later flights.
Though it appeared those with checked bags were being denied SDS, JonNYC clarified that AA affirmed AA Elites are allowed to SDS if they have checked bags. Link.
Complimentary standby
Get complimentary same-day standby with:
- Unrestricted Economy Class (Y fare), Business or First Class tickets
- American Airlines AAdvantage Executive Platinum, Platinum, Platinum Pro or Gold status and companions in same record
- oneworld® Emerald, Sapphire or Ruby status and companions in same record
- AirPass membership
- First and Business Class MileSAAver award tickets
- AAnytime award tickets
- Choice Plus fares
Complimentary same-day standby is also available for:
- Active U.S. military personnel traveling on orders or personal travel
- Active U.S. military dependents traveling on orders
Link
The following passengers may standby at no charge based on availability:
- Customers who purchase unrestricted Economy Class fares (Y class of service)
- Customers who purchase Business or First Class tickets
- Active U.S. military personnel traveling on orders or personal travel
- Active U.S. military dependents traveling on orders
- American Airlines AAdvantage® Executive Platinum, Platinum Pro, Platinum or Gold members
- oneworld® alliance Emerald, Sapphire or Ruby members
- Customers flying on the same reservation as an American Airlines AAdvantage Executive Platinum, Platinum or Gold member or oneworld alliance Emerald, Sapphire or Ruby member regardless of frequent flyer status or fare type
- AAirpass® members
- First and Business Class MileSAAver® Awards
- First, Business and Economy Class AAnytime® Awards
- Customers who purchase a Choice Plus fare
Link
Q. What happens to my upgrade if I stand by for another flight?
Your upgrade and position will be lost. You can not be added to the upgrade list on your desired flight until you have cleared from standby. At that point, it may be too late to request your upgrade, given upgrade requests are normally processed prior to the standby list.
See "Airport Upgrade and Standby List" / Order, PALL List and issues (FT)
Previous posts have been archived and can be read here
Standby is not the same thing as SDFC / Same Day Confirmed Flight Change:
See "Domestic" Same Day Confirmed Flight Change / SDFC / CFC / "Standby" or
International Same Day Flight Change / SDFC / SDC / CDC
Same Day Standby / SDS (not SDFC) Rules & Discussion (master thread)
Apr 10, 2018, 2:08 pm
#541
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: NYC
Programs: AA 2MM, Bonvoy LTT, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 14,638
Just want to confirm my understanding: I am an EXP traveling on an Award Ticket traveling in F that was ticketed in F. I am on an 8:30pm flight out of LGA to ORD (have to take this later flight as this is the final leg of a CMB-AUH-JFK//LGA-ORD F Award and the minimum connecting time from JFK-LGA is brutal). Anyway, if I get to LGA early enough, can I standby for F on an earlier flight (say 6:30pm or 7:30pm)? If so, would it be dependent on F MileSAAver space being available or just any F seat?
Thanks!
Thanks!
Apr 10, 2018, 2:36 pm
#542
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Chicago, IL
Programs: AA EXP (LT Plat 2MM), Marriott Plat, IHG Plat, HHonors Diamond, Hyatt Plat, SPG Plat75, UA1K
Posts: 1,248
Apr 30, 2018, 12:38 pm
#543
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: DCA
Posts: 818
Hello everyone,
Have a question arising from AA's annoying new practice of only making certain flights available for an award as part of a married segment. What I want is a flight from DCA to CLT, but none are available just for that segment at the SAAver level. However, DCA-CUN will get me a ticket via CLT and I would just skip the 2nd segment. However, the DCA-CLT segment is early in the morning. I would ultimately like to standby for a late afternoon/early evening DCA-CLT segment. However, the last CLT-CUN flight on the day in question leaves at 1:39 pm (way too early for my plans). Would I get turned away if I show up to DCA wanting to standby on a later DCA-CLT flight for that reason?
Have a question arising from AA's annoying new practice of only making certain flights available for an award as part of a married segment. What I want is a flight from DCA to CLT, but none are available just for that segment at the SAAver level. However, DCA-CUN will get me a ticket via CLT and I would just skip the 2nd segment. However, the DCA-CLT segment is early in the morning. I would ultimately like to standby for a late afternoon/early evening DCA-CLT segment. However, the last CLT-CUN flight on the day in question leaves at 1:39 pm (way too early for my plans). Would I get turned away if I show up to DCA wanting to standby on a later DCA-CLT flight for that reason?
May 21, 2018, 4:51 pm
#546
Join Date: Jul 2010
Programs: UA, AA, SPG, HH
Posts: 672
May 21, 2018, 5:34 pm
#547
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: NYC
Programs: AA 2MM, Bonvoy LTT, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 14,638
If you are NOT elite, you can't standby on an economy award ticket as per T&Cs. However the chart makes it appear you can do a free same day confirmed change on award (which I highly doubt even for GOLD/PLAT).
May 22, 2018, 9:01 am
#548
Join Date: Jul 2010
Programs: UA, AA, SPG, HH
Posts: 672
Depends. AA updated their SDFC/SDS page (last time I checked was a year ago). However it is still a bit confusing IMO.
If you are NOT elite, you can't standby on an economy award ticket as per T&Cs. However the chart makes it appear you can do a free same day confirmed change on award (which I highly doubt even for GOLD/PLAT).
If you are NOT elite, you can't standby on an economy award ticket as per T&Cs. However the chart makes it appear you can do a free same day confirmed change on award (which I highly doubt even for GOLD/PLAT).
I was confused by this as well. It shows: "Award tickets: First, Business, MileSAAver, AAnytime" as being eligible for free SFDC and SDSB...The fact that each of the words are separated by commas would indicate that any MilesAAver ticket is eligible...that being said I have a feeling this is just a poor use of grammar.
May 24, 2018, 8:34 am
#549
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: FL, USA
Programs: AA Plat, Hyatt Explorist, Hilton Diamond, IHG Plat, Marriot Gold
Posts: 1,666
How does standing by for a later flight work?
Assuming I bought a ticket for a morning flight because it is cheaper but really want to fly out later that night. There are two flights that I can do in the afternoon, as a gold I'm pretty sure I can standyby for a later flight but how does that process actually work, i assume that if I choose same day standby on the app but don't show up to my morning flight, the ticket will get cancelled or will it know that I have opted for later standby? What happens if they can't put you on a flight later, would I just keep standing by the next day??? (concern since i would be attempting to get on the last 2 flight of the day.) BTW this is a MIA-MCO if that matters and I think its basic economy. Would gold override the basic economy or even if i'm gold since its BE it would not qualify? Trying to figure out if this is doable.
May 24, 2018, 8:45 am
#551
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: New York City + Vail, CO
Programs: American Airlines Executive Platinum, Marriott Bonvoy Ambassador Elite
Posts: 3,226
But check the day of your flight to see if there are any IRROPS, if there were, reservations might let you move to a different flight.
May 24, 2018, 8:50 am
#552
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: FL, USA
Programs: AA Plat, Hyatt Explorist, Hilton Diamond, IHG Plat, Marriot Gold
Posts: 1,666
May 24, 2018, 9:00 am
#553
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2001
Programs: DL 1 million, AA 1 mil, HH lapsed Diamond, Marriott Plat
Posts: 28,190
- Anyone can standby for an earlier flight, but only elite status members can standby for a later flight the same day.
May 24, 2018, 9:05 am
#554
Suspended
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: DCA
Programs: UA US CO AA DL FL
Posts: 50,262
OP does not show AA elite status, therefore he is ineligible for same day standby for a later flight. The rules are on the website and a link is below.
It goes without saying that if one is elite and does this, one does not wait past the latest flight with SDC available or one risks not boarding at all.
OP, on a BE ticket, cannot make any voluntary changes of any kind. He either flies as ticketed or not at all. Any change would have to be invol due to carrier IRROPS or schedule change.
https://www.aa.com/i18n/plan-travel/...day-travel.jsp
It goes without saying that if one is elite and does this, one does not wait past the latest flight with SDC available or one risks not boarding at all.
OP, on a BE ticket, cannot make any voluntary changes of any kind. He either flies as ticketed or not at all. Any change would have to be invol due to carrier IRROPS or schedule change.
https://www.aa.com/i18n/plan-travel/...day-travel.jsp
May 24, 2018, 9:14 am
#555
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: FL, USA
Programs: AA Plat, Hyatt Explorist, Hilton Diamond, IHG Plat, Marriot Gold
Posts: 1,666
- Anyone can standby for an earlier flight, but only elite status members can standby for a later flight the same day.
OP does not show AA elite status, therefore he is ineligible for same day standby for a later flight. The rules are on the website and a link is below.
It goes without saying that if one is elite and does this, one does not wait past the latest flight with SDC available or one risks not boarding at all.
OP, on a BE ticket, cannot make any voluntary changes of any kind. He either flies as ticketed or not at all. Any change would have to be invol due to carrier IRROPS or schedule change.
https://www.aa.com/i18n/plan-travel/...day-travel.jsp
It goes without saying that if one is elite and does this, one does not wait past the latest flight with SDC available or one risks not boarding at all.
OP, on a BE ticket, cannot make any voluntary changes of any kind. He either flies as ticketed or not at all. Any change would have to be invol due to carrier IRROPS or schedule change.
https://www.aa.com/i18n/plan-travel/...day-travel.jsp
bolding mine: so then if i did standby for the two last flights of the day and was not able to get on them if they had no space, how would that work, would I just loose the ticket or would they continue to standyby me the next morning?