dparkinson

I've got an itinerary that's on 086 stock. The ticket to Oz is operated by UA, and the return is operated by NZ.
The flight to SFO from my origin is delayed and will cause a misconnect at SFO to the Australia flight and force an overnight.
UA is telling me they cannot do anything at the origin station because I haven't flown yet and NZ has control, and thus they (UA) have received no money.
Not believing them, they swiveled the screen around to show my segments in SHARES and after each of my outbound segments it says NZ CNTRL
What they're saying is I either need to deal with NZ now at the origin, or if I fly to SFO, UA can help me as they will actually have control of that ticket. Is that correct?
Is there any way to push or pull control over to UA before lifting the first coupon?

lincolnjkc

Late delivering carrier is responsible for fixing onward transportation... If UA is operating the delayed flight they'll ultimately be responsible for fixing it, but res likely can't/won't by policy until the misconnect is certain (e.g. until you're in SFO or you're not in SFO and the other flight has departed).

At this point your best bet is to talk to an agent at the originating station (who has a better situational view and can be more positive they you will misconnect) or call the issuer of the ticket

nerdbirdsjc

I'm a little confused. Is the entire trip to Oz on one ticket? If so, UA should have control (or can easily obtain control) of the coupons for the journey to reroute you as needed. Worst case, the UA agent simply needs to call the Help Desk to get everything done. If the airport agents are acting brand new to realities of IRROPS, call the Premier Desk or Reservations to get the trip sorted out.

If your SFO-Oz flights are on a separate ticket than your XXX-SFO flight, then UA is not at all bound to help. That said, merciful UA agent can still pull control of the coupons, rebook you, then call NZ to clean up the NZ PNR.

bocastephen

Is there a NZ counter at your origin station with agents working it? Another option is to call NZ reservations - in either case:

1. instruct them to push control to UA for rebooking
2. handle the rebooking themselves (less likely)
or
the only other outcome is United rebooks you after you misconnect, either on arrival at SFO or proactively while you're enroute.

If you can get wifi access enroute to SFO, work with the UA twitter or FB person to get your flight rebooked so it's done before you land in SFO.

Kacee

I can't follow either. Best answers require full details on the itinerary.

findark

I believe UA should be able to get control of the ticket if they really want to.. as mentioned your best bet is to talk someone in ORD into helping you.

WineCountryUA

What is it you want done? What alternative will you propose?
While the agent was technically correct, generally reasonable things can get done.

Mwenenzi

The Air NZ ORD mistake fare?

[PREM FARE GONE] ORD-SYD NZ $1500 RT biz
Help me decipher fare rules (NZ but any guidance is helpful.

nerdbirdsjc

The agent is not at all correct. Within 48 hours of departure, schedule disruptions and IRROPS are the responsibility of the operating airline. The agent and/or supe came up with an utterly BS excuse to not help the OP, and it worked in getting the OP to go away for now. Obtaining coupon control from another *A carrier is a *very* easy exercise...it's done through fairly simple agent computer commands at the airport, or worst case by a 2 minute call to the helpdesk.

What's also true is waiting until SFO to fix things may yield far worse results. If the OP won't arrive SFO in time for the UA flights Downunder, s/he is looking at some time-consuming reroutes through Asia (e.g., SFO-SIN/HND/TPE-Oz) to keep moving tonight.

nerdbirdsjc

Any updates?

mduell

Can you provide a reference for your "with 48 hours" assertion?

I always thought it was a different number, but it was just a casual notion, I don't know of any reference for it.

MSPeconomist

I always thought it was when OLCI opens, which is usually (but not on all carriers) 24 hours before scheduled departure of the first flight.

AFAIK OP hasn't said when the travel date is.

nerdbirdsjc

At 48 hours before departure, scheduled flights are transitioned into the operating airline's departure control system, meaning 1) the operating carrier has full access to the relevant e-ticket; 2) most flight activities going forward will take place in the DCS (this is why, for example, many airlines require 48 hours advance notice for purchased seats, special meals, etc. -- those transactions often take place in the res system); and 3) Given #2 , availability info in res systems is often inaccurate for many airlines within T-48.

Air Canada explicitly states the operating carrier should be consulted within T-48. IMHO other carriers should also make this clear in order to set proper expectations, but the world is what it is.

lincolnjkc

FWIW and OT but the 24 hours is actually a TSA requirement (maximum) for flights originating from or destined to the US (probably also those operated by a US-flagged carrier but I don't feel like looking it up right now) -- for carriers that have minimal operations touching the US there can be significant variation -- e.g. MIAT, Mongolia's flag carrier, does OLCI from 48 hours down to 2 hours before departure. Aer Lingus allows for OLCI from 30 days prior to departure for routes within Europe, but does 24-2 hours for TATL flights.

I've always wondered what security reasoning TSA has behind imposing the 24 hour maximum check-in time... but I also am not sure what the advantage to checking in weeks before my flight would be either.

MSPeconomist

OLCI is often the point where seat selection becomes free, so some people prefer to check in as early as possible for that reason. T-48 can be easier than T-24 if you need/want access to a printer when traveling.