Just had a conversation with the AA RTW desk trying to find confirmed seating on a couple of flights. The flights I'm interested in have F seats available, though no A inventory. I casually mentioned that I might take my chances and standby at the airport. The agent then informed me that standby is not allowed on owe fares. I asked if there was a statement in the published rules to that effect. His response was that there is not a specific rule that permits standby, therefore it is not allowed!

Has anyone here been refused standby on an owe?

Which airline are you flying? For AA, I have never had any problem asking them to release the F class seats into A class inventory. Ask nicely or phone and get another agent.

Standby or waitlist?

I believe you'll be allowed to stand by. AA will probably extract their pound of flesh in the form of the $100 standby fee but to the gate agent/checkin agent you are on a discounted F class fare and thus are free from most rules and restrictions WRT your flight.

I've just had this with a C/D-class OWE, wanting to get to do the LHR-DXB-LHR-run on my way out nof Europe, and no waitlisting for the OWE-fare is allowed...

Unless rules have changed that's patently incorrect at least WRT an AONE. Is the DONE different in that respect? I know I waitlisted several segments on BA and CX and it's even possible to waitlist a segment while holding confirmed alternate arrangements for that segment so that one isn't 'left out' should that segment not clear the waitlist.

Darren - I was talking about trying standby on the flights I couldn't get confirmed on mentioned in my recent AA forum post.

As far as waitlisting goes at least as of yesterday you still could. I've waitlisted flights recently with AA, CX & QF. Now as to whether you will have any luck with AA is another matter. My recent (i.e. yesterday's) experience is that you are lowest on the totem pole in terms of priority.

I have certainly had segments waitlisted on D OWE fares in the past. BUT, you can only be waitlisted if you have an alternate confirmed reservation (may be in a different class on the same flight), and the ticket has not yet been issued. For the ticket to be issued all sectors must be confirmed, so the waitlist status must be dropped.

I had a D OWE and could not get an A seat on an 2-class AA domestic flight. I was waitlisted for it up until the day before my flight departed when my ticket had to be issued. I mentioned this to the AA check-in agent who issued me the confirmed Y boarding pass and added me to a standby list for F upgrade. I was upgraded (to the class to which I was entitled to travel on the D OWE fare) at the gate.

I've said it many times before, but I'll say it again...

DON'T PUT DATES ON OWE TICKETS!!!!!

Why have all this hassle? Just get the tickets issued as "OPEN" then deal with the reservations separately. A or D class bookings can be made directly by the airline or a TA independent of the ticket type (I've never had any problem waitlisting). So long as when you turn up to check in you have a reservation in the correct (or lower) class and a valid open dated ticket there will be no problem. I have never had a problem being standby or changing reservations at checkin if seats were available.

christep - that is the strategy I've employed for almost all the owe's I've done. However, of late this is getting more and more difficult with AA. I've talked elsewhere about the lack of responsiveness of the EXP and RTW desks with respect to waitlisting. I've found the best way is to have the ticket taken care of by one of the other carriers (in my case QF). Latest example - I wanted to change an AA flight (same day, just a different time). Called the EXP desk - no can do, told me to call the RTW desk in the morning. Called QF immediately after - no problems at all, flight changed in a few keystrokes. It's quite a joke that my airline of choice can't help me with a booking yet Qantas (rapidly becoming my new airline of choice) can.

Here is a different scenario, it seems that what I'm trying to do "can't be done". I was supposed to fly DFW-BOS on a segment of a DONE3. Flight got cancelled, got put on a flight for the next day. At the airport, no one seems to be able to put me on the standby list for earlier DFW-BOS flights. I called RTW and they said "it couldn't be done". I'm skeptical, but who knows?

Bizarre! Firstly that you dredge up a 4 year old thread, but mainly that the AA RTW desk couldn't sort this out... Have you tried the "AC angels"? They have always done pretty well for me.

You want me to start a new one? I tried the EXP desk, the RTW desk, the gate, and the AC angels. Nobody seems to be able to put me on a standby for an earlier flight.

Best part, is that the airport personnel (AC, gate, and the EXP desk) all seem very worried that I've changed the dates on my ticket without a reissue. When I call the RTW, they seem cool as cucumbers about that and everything is OK with them. Besides, of course, the fact that since the ticket has "international segments" you can't standby for an earlier flight at the airport.

My next call is to CX to make sure they have the ticket number, been through that one before.

Well then, I refer you to my post two above yours from December 2002...

This is a case of standby when seats are not available. The waiting list for DFW-BOS flights keeps rolling forward, now down to about 25 people from over 100 this morning. Apparently OWE tickets (at least for AA) are ineligible for such wonders.