thirstyg

Update: Turns out the ticket was converted due to a bug with Air Canada's system. When the AC schedule changed, they converted my ticket to be owned by AC rather than Avianca which led to a whole bunch of finger pointing until a smart/diligent AC agent handled the case.

So, out of the blue, I get an Air Canada email for a flight coming up in like 3-4 months saying that my YYZ-CDG flight has been rescheduled... to the same time 24 hours later.

I think there is something else going on here. YYZ-CDG is a super popular route on AC. I'm not showing any seats on that flight anymore paid or otherwise in any cabin though it is available on every other day of the month.

The problem is I *need* to leave Paris that day, and my flight is booked with LifeMiles as a mixed ticket (Booked via LifeMiles; first 2 flights are on AC and last flight in UA)

I called Air Canada based on past interactions with them and other airlines assumed they'd be able to accomodate me by flying me via YUL no problem. They said they can't touch the ticket since LifeMiles issued it. I'm nervous to ask LifeMiles to make any changes lest I lose the original ticket altogether and not be able to replace it.

My questions are:
1. If LifeMiles doesn't show the YUL routing as available for an award, does that mean they won't book me on it? Or since there is available seat and this is a schedule change caused by Air Canada, LifeMiles will be able to move me to the YUL routing? (YUL is a layover only; I just mention it as it is available and would get me to my next layover on time)

2. If this were a 'close in' event where it is 24~ hours or less, would I also have to call LifeMiles in that case, or at that point Air Canada would be able to assist me?

thirstyg

Well...this is rich....

Upon closer examination, my first two flights were moved to the 11th, but the last flight wasn't moved (and is still on the 10th).

So, upon landing in ORD, I will need to take the airport train that travels time and space to take me back to the prior day so I can make my last flight.

view-with-a-room

Flight changes happen all the time. One of the issues with booking well in advance is the flight changes. To highlight, Air Canada cannot touch the ticket; call Lifemiles. Not clear if the itinerary is multiple segments and one ticket or multiple segments and more than one ticket. For multiple segments and one ticket call the booking agent to resolve the issue. Lifemiles may or may not work to address the issue and may conclude cancelling the ticket and refunding the miles is the easy way out; but you have no option but to call Lifemiles.

The cutoff point is at the point the journey starts. The airlines will not let you complete check-in unless issues with the itinerary are addressed by the booking agent. A flight change with a 30 minute layover but a legal requirement of a 90 minute layover will require the booking agent to address the issue. The airline will not let you check-in and/or board the plane.

I do hope you have an alternative plan; Lifemiles works best with an alternative plan.

view-with-a-room

Do not arrive at the airport with the expectation the issue will be addressed by the airline. Either contact Lifemiles or wait and see if Lifemiles contacts you. I would wait a week and see what happens. Best guess the change will be addressed by Lifemiles manually. The system to fix flight changes on award travel isn't an exact science. No guarantee the end result will be to your liking, though.

thirstyg

So, if I show up to the airport, the 'in policy' worst case scenario surely would not be 'you're not allowed to fly today'? Given that it was not my messup, I would think someone on the day of departure would have to get me to my final destination even if it means they put me on a boat. Right? Or they could 'in policy' say "You can't board and we're not going to help you" ?

It is all on one LifeMiles ticket. Called AC, they said call LM. Called LM, they said call AC. I agree that LM is the one who has to sort it out ahead of time probably (and I won't wait til day of to take care of it; I'm mostly just curious on my question above). I will probably call in a day or two again and HUCA until LM gets it sorted.

Is it reasonable to expect that if LM doesn't give me many good options, I could ask and be granted them just dropping the final segment and I can make my own plan for that and not lose the booking entirely?

view-with-a-room

Been there, done that. No, one airline sold you a ticket for a flight on another airline and the other airline has discretion over whether you board the plane or not. 3 hours prior to departure from LAX for a flight to China the airline concluded the the flights did not meet the requirements of China Visa Free Transit. Two hours later and $200 later the itinerary was changed and the airline allowed me to board the flight. The other option was to cancel the itinerary prior to departure for $200 with the miles returned; but I would be sitting in LAX without a flight. AC can free up award space but Lifemiles needs to ask for AC to free up award space. No guarantee either airline will work with you. The trip is months in the future, not days or weeks in the future. The change will require manually processing so the processing may take day or weeks. The front line staff may or may not be aware of efforts to address the issue. Itineraries change so the airlines are fond of addressing issues with complex itineraries multiple times.

No issues with the hang up, call again; but be strategic. If Lifemiles tells you to call AC, call AC. If AC tells you to call Lifemiles, call Lifemiles. State point blank you are calling the airline at the request of the other airline and at some point the issue will be escalated. AC can contact Lifemiles if the issue continues without resolution; but the request from AC to Lifemiles will be to contact the passenger. AC cannot fix the ticket or the issue with the ticket, Lifemiles owns the ticket.

thirstyg

Super helpful -- thank you! Will update with the resolution.

thirstyg

So, this has been a huge mess + 10~ phone calls to figure out (though half of those never reached an agent thanks to the mess at AC right now).

What happened was when the AC flight schedule changed, my LifeMiles ticket was taken over by Air Canada (which is not what should happen; it is a known issue with AC likely because of their new system).

So, my 134 Avianca Lifemiles ticket became a 014 Air Canada ticket. Avianca would claim every time I called it belongs to AC and they can't touch it which seemed wrong, but the last time I called AC the agent confirmed they did own it (contrary to the prior agent I spoke with) and that it was a known issue in their system and they would handle it manually. They accommodated me by adjusting my final flight to be after my first two flights rather than before it.

SK AAR

Wow, AC apparently reissuing an AV award ticket on their own ticket stock ? This is beyond me - now how will AC get paid? - the ticket may be viewed and treated as an award ticket issued by AC itself, i.e. LifeMiles will not be billed for flights taken.

kiwimagic

I had the same problem NRT-IAH-SFO-YYC. AC issued a schedule change prior to my previous flight arrival at SFO.Spoke to Life Miles, several different agents all told me they can do nothing and to speak to AC. I went to the airport explained the situation at the ticket counter And they were able to ticket me on a direct IAH-YYC. However ticket stock is now 014 and contains this warning

[font][font]It seems that this reservation has been completed elsewhere than aircanada.com (either with a travel agent or on another website).[/font][/font]

[font][font]To see your itinerary / receipt click on the link below, but keep in mind that the information shown may not be complete because you did not make the reservation on aircanada.com.[/font][/font]