United.com offered me a competitor AA/DL/ ... / non-*A flight segment (!?)
Mar 7, 2017, 3:46 pm
#31
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: 4éme
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Last year I had a UA flight cancel due to MX and UA put me on a DL flight. What's interesting is that due to that flight, I did a status match with DL this year and have moved 50% of my flying to DL.
Mar 7, 2017, 8:17 pm
#32
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Minneapolis, MN (MSP)
Programs: DL DM, UA 1K MM, Subway Club Member
Posts: 1,988
UA phone agents will actually sell you DL (and other interlined carriers') flights if you ask. For most flights they can price pretty easily. I think the first segment (or if international the first international segment) has to be on UA. It's somewhat handy if you have to go ORD-ATL-XXX-ORD or something and the ATL-XXX segment is only offered by DL. You can call and have them price and sell it to you.
People forget these sorts of mixed carrier tickets were much more common back in the days of travel agents and more airlines. The legacy carrier's computer system (and overall businesses) are still structured around the old paper ticket coupon system (all electronic now) and ARC still does the settlements for hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of passengers every day.
People forget these sorts of mixed carrier tickets were much more common back in the days of travel agents and more airlines. The legacy carrier's computer system (and overall businesses) are still structured around the old paper ticket coupon system (all electronic now) and ARC still does the settlements for hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of passengers every day.
Last edited by kenn0223; Mar 7, 2017 at 8:25 pm
Jul 18, 2019, 10:16 am
#33
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Reviving this thread to note that I just booked a RT on united.com with a UA segment outbound and a DL segment on the return. Reason? Because attempting to book the return segment on delta.com was impossible - the flight refused to show there!
After booking on united.com, I can now access my Delta segment on delta.com, select a seat, and add my Delta FF number. Very odd.
After booking on united.com, I can now access my Delta segment on delta.com, select a seat, and add my Delta FF number. Very odd.
Jul 18, 2019, 3:44 pm
#34
Join Date: Feb 2015
Programs: united
Posts: 1,636
Long ago, well before the merger, I had to go to from LAX to Tallahassee, which UA did not serve at the time. United.com sold me a ticket that routed me LAX-TPA on UA and then on to Tallahassee on US Air Express.
In general, airlines are happy to sell you a ticket that includes a segment on a different carrier. They still generate some revenue.
In general, airlines are happy to sell you a ticket that includes a segment on a different carrier. They still generate some revenue.
Jul 18, 2019, 3:48 pm
#35
Join Date: Feb 2015
Programs: united
Posts: 1,636
Reviving this thread to note that I just booked a RT on united.com with a UA segment outbound and a DL segment on the return. Reason? Because attempting to book the return segment on delta.com was impossible - the flight refused to show there!
After booking on united.com, I can now access my Delta segment on delta.com, select a seat, and add my Delta FF number. Very odd.
After booking on united.com, I can now access my Delta segment on delta.com, select a seat, and add my Delta FF number. Very odd.
Jul 18, 2019, 4:15 pm
#36
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True. But it doesn't explain why this particular flight was bookable via united.com, but not bookable on delta.com, as the flight didn't even show up as an option on delta.com.
Jul 18, 2019, 8:51 pm
#37
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: DTW/MBS
Programs: UA 1K, HHonors Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, Formerly Starbucks Gold
Posts: 3,525
Reminds me of when people trying to get on the last UA 747 flight found a way to book the code share through Air New Zealand since UA wasn't selling it anymore.
Jul 18, 2019, 9:01 pm
#38
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Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Los Angeles
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Via Google Flights. Google offered me a mixed-airline itinerary (route was an open jaw: LAX-JFK;JFK-SFO) and said "Book on United.com". Sure enough, clicking brought me to a United.com check-out screen with one direction's flight operated by Delta.
I was fascinated by this, since AFAIK United and Delta are not partners.
No amount of Edit Search once on United allowed me to reproduce this mixed carrier itinerary. (which was a shame, since I had no way to enter my promo code).
Does anyone know how to get it to show itineraries like this without going thru Google Flights?
I was fascinated by this, since AFAIK United and Delta are not partners.
No amount of Edit Search once on United allowed me to reproduce this mixed carrier itinerary. (which was a shame, since I had no way to enter my promo code).
Does anyone know how to get it to show itineraries like this without going thru Google Flights?
A subsequent version limited the choices to *A carriers (but you could still specify which ones).
Last edited by WineCountryUA; Jul 18, 2019 at 11:04 pm Reason: merging consecutive posts by same member
Jul 19, 2019, 6:10 am
#39
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...and the whole thing became moot this morning when Google reported a major fare decrease on my trip - now bookable as two one-ways, one on united.com, the other on delta.com.
I canceled the original booking in the 24-hour window and rebooked "normally."
I canceled the original booking in the 24-hour window and rebooked "normally."
Jul 19, 2019, 8:12 am
#40
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Long Beach, CA
Programs: DL DM
Posts: 5,292
AA/DL ended their agreement in 2015:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/american-airlines-aadvantage/1709216-aa-american-dl-delta-
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/american-airlines-aadvantage/1709216-aa-american-dl-delta-
That agreement between DL and AA has since been restored.
Jul 19, 2019, 9:19 am
#41
Join Date: Jan 2017
Location: SFO
Programs: United 1MM GS, Marriott Platinum Elite, Hilton Diamond, Hertz President's Circle
Posts: 283
they use different search engines and are hosted on different platforms. No reason to expect the same flights show up everywhere.
Jul 19, 2019, 11:39 am
#43
Join Date: Jan 2017
Location: SFO
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Jul 19, 2019, 11:42 am
#44
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Jul 19, 2019, 12:57 pm
#45
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It was only interlined by looking at Google Flights and selecting outbound UA, return DL there.
When I went to delta.com and asked for only a one-way ticket, delta.com refused to show an 8 PM flight that I could clearly book via other means. delta.com wasn't showing a valid, published, available-for-reservations mainline Delta flight.
When I went to delta.com and asked for only a one-way ticket, delta.com refused to show an 8 PM flight that I could clearly book via other means. delta.com wasn't showing a valid, published, available-for-reservations mainline Delta flight.