TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin AA April JFK - SXM Flight Changes

I just noticed there have been some schedule/equipment changes for mid-our April flights from JFK to SXM - nothing major but you might want to check your seat assignments for changes if you're traveling AA in that time-frame.

You're right to remind everyone to keep checking their flights. Last year AA changed our JKF non stop to a connection in Miami. When I called AA blamed it on the US Air merger but we all know everyone flying out of JFK loves the non stop flight. Time to check my April flights again!

Pat, that's why we didn't even bother with AA for next April. We have miles, but they only have direct flights certain days, which are always changed.
Same story ...new year...

We still prefer AA when doable but we've gotten into booking our Saturday n/s down and booking JB home for just that reason. AA routinely cancels their April weekday n/s and often the weekend n/s too once the religious holidays are done. I know I'm taking that chance when I book them so I just keep a close eye on the flights I want and if it happens it's not a big deal. This year they were using a 763 for 1597 and I suspected there would be changes and sure enough, it happened this weekend and we're now on a 757 with different seating specs. John and I were in A & B seats and our Granddaughter was two rows behind us in an F row. Not the end of the world but there were seats adjacent to ours so I moved her to the same row so we're at least next to each other. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" />

We've had several changes on our February trip - some inconsequential - one that was not but AA took care of it very expeditiously, so I can hardly complain about that.

Just notified of yet another change that will affect our class of service (we got downgraded due to equipment change) - got off the phone with customer service and they promised to refund the fare differential of our two tickets if we do end up staying downgraded - which would amount to about five hundred bucks between the two of us - which would buy some nice dinners and several bottles of rose' on the island...

THANK YOU, Pat!!!!
I just checked on our flights in February and they were all screwed up. We
made our reservations in August, and they changed it so we were not only different seats, but each in a different aisle!! very nice lady at AA fixed things as best she could. At least we are together........for now!
BTW, I had registered for flight notification. didn't get one.

YW, Marge and I'm glad you were able to get things resolved to your satisfaction and I'm glad the post was of benefit to you. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" />

We had basically the same issues. I'm told the changes are all done by computers but they had my husband seated in 2A, I was in 3B and our Granddaughter in 4F, none of which matched our preferences in our AA profile. Even the AA CSR didn't get that one since we were all booked on the same reservation and there were plenty of seats available, but they worked it out and we're together, more or less, though it wouldn't have been the end of the world if we weren't.

Your flying your granddaughter business class!!! I'm telling the others!!!

Great if they fixed it and you are still NS!
See you there.... <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Grin.gif" alt="" />

Troublemaker!! <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/jester.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/jester.gif" alt="" />

Same here. Did you notice that they then re-added the JFK direct flight later? Is that responding to demand, or cleaning out the original JFK flight so that it can be re-sold? <tin foil hat on>

The cynic in me can't help but wonder if this is deliberate a bait and switch.

Okay, so perhaps I'm very naive, but I really don't think that's the case at all.

A few years ago we were booked as soon as the flight was in their schedule on the April nonstop to St. Maarten from JFK for Easter week, traveling on Saturday. We had booked very early but by December the flight was almost sold out and they cancelled it anyway and never did reinstate it for that time period.

I guess they find it more practical to use their Miami hub these days for all but the highest part of the high season.

Our November/December trip this year was originally booked on AA, again booked very early, but I was feeling pretty confident in the flights being good since in the past its routinely been a n/s flight for the Thanksgiving time slot. Our flight was well booked early for the Saturday after and yup, they cancelled it and to date it hasn't been reinstated. We chose not to connect in Miami and rebooked on JB. Purely conjecture on my part but I guess the competition from Delta and JB has cut into their profit margins and they feel the hub arrangement works better for them now. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" />

Reading this is dejavu! I had a terrible, terrible problem with AA a few years back. I bought a "package" to St. Martin (air + hotel) for a flight out of and a return to JFK. I booked on AA, and within minutes of my cc being charged I got notification that my "non stop" coming back would have one stop. I talked to AA and they would not help me in any way. I researched and found that JetBlue was their "sister" airline and asked AA to please switch the flight to JB, I'd even pay the extra if the fight was more money. JetBlue agreed but AA would not. To make a long, sad story short - the flight was "switched" two more times and the last time was going to be 2 stops with layovers in San Juan and Miami that were so long that it was actually going to take me more than 24 hours to fly home. It went from completely inconvenient at first to totally ridiculous, and no compensation either for the "non stop" that wasn't because it was all part of AA's "package." I ended up "eating" the flight cost and rebooking it myself on JetBlue. I eventually found out that there wasn't even a "non stop" for my return flight for the day I booked it for, but AA let me reserve a non stop anyway - the ol' "bait and switch." Since then I won't book ANYthing to go ANYwhere via AA. It took over a year for Amex to get to the bottom of it all, and I still couldn't get full compensation from AA.

JoyGirl,

Okay, I have to tell you your experience was very different than any I have ever had with them.

Did you book your package directly through American Airlines as opposed to a Travelocity-type package (or other similar type deals) when you booked it? If so, I can't figure out how you could have been actually 'booked' on a flight that didn't exist. That's totally bizarre.......

My experiences have been usually for air only and have always been done directly through either an AA ticketing agent or their websites and each and every time there have been changes they have always been more than helpful and accommodating, whether the changes have been minor or major, and when they couldn't accommodate me on flights I found satisfactory, they were more than pleasant about making full refunds.

In fact, I believe there are actual rules of common carriage that say they MUST accommodate the passenger when significant changes are made, but perhaps these rules don't apply to packaged trips?

I am so sorry you had this experience but I can only ad from personal firsthand experiences many times over, your situation is not the norm for them, or for any other airlines that I've dealt with, so perhaps the fact it was a packaged product made the differences. I can easily see why you were upset. Just wondering, did you try going up the chain of command to speak with an AA supervisor immediately after it all transpired? And if this had happened to me, I'm sure I would be equally unhappy and would probably never use them again either. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" />