Hi all,

My partner made OW sapphire (AA Platinum) in March. Unfortunately since then, both BA and QANTAS still have her as OW Ruby.

We call up BA / Qantas, after 20 minutes of on hold she is told, we can only see OW Ruby on our systems but when we call OW we confirm she is sapphire so we can allocate seats etc. If you want it fixes, you need to speak with AA as its their problem.

We call AA, after 20 mintues of on hold she is told, our system shows OW sapphire, you need to call BA and AA and get them to up thier systems as its clearly their problem!!

Therefore we are a little stuck, we must have spent over 10 hours on the phone with them over the least few months trying to get this sorted but its just a roundabout with no one able to solve.

Its not the greatest issue in the world as she now has her AA Platinum card therefore can flash that to confirm the status at the airports (Lounges, checkin etc) but it does mean lots of time waisted with them updating / confirming each time. The biggest issue is around things like advanced seat selection as she has to call up BA / Qantas each time she has a flight with them, wait 20 minutes on hold before being able to select a seat, then she can't change it without calling again. Its a right pain.

Any suggestions on how we get this solved would be greatly appreciated.

Were the reservations made before the status rolled over? If so call AA and ask them to update the reservations with the new status.

We had tried that previously. We asked them to remove the AA FF number then add it back in, we did this via BA (Phone), Qantas (phone), Finnair (internet) and AA (phone) but none if it worked.

Unless there is a special "update" they can do to the booking? FYI - One booking is with AA (but is BA and Qantas metal) and one is with BA currently so not sure what can be done with these given that?

This is a problem across all the oneworld airlines (and indeed with Star carriers) due to the way that they share top tier information. Carriers send update files with varying frequency, and varying levels of accuracy, to a central database which is then pushed back out to the other carriers on a pre-determined schedule. That information then has to be reconciled in each other carrier's system, so there are a lot of steps involved when there's a change in status for top tier members. If the change in status occurred in March and it's still not showing...that really just highlights the problem.

This is why the AA status is not being recognized by the other partners before travel commences. But, typically, when the flights move from reservations into the departure control system, it will do a refresh and be recognized.

As you say, if you have the accurate membership card reflecting correct status, this will grant you the entitled benefits. Worst case, BA/QF/whoever can phone their help desk in order to verify your status with AA and you'll be on your way into the lounge, etc.

All the above airlines (except AA) use AMADEUS as their GDS. That system has a habit of remembering your FFP when it was booked. The only way is to remove the AA number entirely, and then close the booking. Then ask the airline to retrieve the booking again, and then enter the number. It should then reflect the new status.

I have tried this (i think) previous we have removed her AA FF and added her QF FF....saved it, then opened again and removed it, saved it, then opened again and added the AA FF, still showing ruby.....

Any other ideas as this is driving us nuts. Perhaps it was the way we did it??

Thanks! Now she has her card its all good for the trip in terms of lounge access etc but its a bit of a pain as card says one thing, boarding pass says the other so each time she will be questioned, checked, phone calls etc where it would nice for "computer to say yes"....

We are at a loss to understand why this is so hard.

Each time she has called up BA or QF they put her on hold for 5-20 mins while they call up OW. OW confirm she is Sapphire then they come back and give her what she wants....but we don't have 20 mins each time she wants to make a change that should take 30 second on line....

Hi All,

Bringing this back up as it continues to be a problem. We have booked new flights (since her update to Platinum)and its still not showing. This is a right pain as each time she has to argue with the check in, lounge ladies etc as "Computer says no" even though she has the card.

Now as she has her card she "can" get this solved but it takes many minutes (hours if on a phone) discussing / arguing with them, it should not be that hard given she DOES have the status.

Does anyone know how we can get AA to re-send the status update to OW carriers so that she can have this assigned automatically?

Perhaps if you explain the situation to AAthey could transfer her to a new AA ff number (along with her miles and status) in order to force an update through the system? A bit radical, but surely by now AA must realise they need to do something radical?

As long as she has the card and it shows a current expiry date, that is enough to prove that she is OW Sapphire. She can just tell check in / lounge attendant that the status has not been updated in the systems yet.

Thanks. However there are a few problems :

1. She can't pre-select seats but has to wait for check in....If you know what you are doing (which we do) you can get "throne" seats in advance with the status
2. The few times she has tried to get into a lounge, she has had the "Computer says no" thrown at her. In singapore it took 10 minutes of waiting while the person on the check in called one world etc. In the Qantas club Melbourne domestic she had to argue with the check in dragon for a good 5 minutes as "Computer says no".....So while in theory it works, its WAY too much hassle...
3. If she calls up BA or Qantas it takes a good 20 minutes for them to recognise her status to get any of the benefits...

It surely can't be that hard....

Anyone with any suggestions????

Newb question for a guy who is new the One World. Always been Star alliance heavy, but now that I challenged for Platinum on AA and got it, have a question...

I have a TON of AMEX MR that I want to move over to BA during the next bonus promo. Can you book a BA Avios ticket, and use your AA status to get any benefits while traveling? Or when booking a BA Avios ticket are you stuck with your BA status?

Thx!

I am having the same problem with Qantas! I am AA exec plat but only listed as oneworld sapphire. How is this not a bigger media issue at least among the FF crowds? This also means that your mileage is calculated incorrectly. Surely there must be something we can do to get OW to see this as an issue that at least deserves correction.