[IanMcIntosh]

Really need some assistance here. Have a rather complex multi-city booking on an American Airlines ticket for next year. Issue is with last segment which starts in ANU goes to MIA, then LHR and then ABZ. Issue is that have a commitment that really needs me to in Oslo rather than Aberdeen at then end of the day of travel. So ANU-MIA-LHR-ABZ.

Have spoken to AA about changing last flight from being LHR-ABZ to LHR-OSL, but they want silly money to make that change. My question is therefore, what happens if I make a separate LHR -OSL booking with BA and don’t fly the last segment of the original itinerary? Presumably when I check in at ANU I could tell them not to through check the baggage from LHR? Or even get them to interline to the separate OSL booking? Would they do any of that?

Metal on MIA-LHR and LHR-ABZ segments is BA, though it’s all on an AA ticket in A class….

Any help anyone can give will be sincerely appreciated….

[capetonianm]

You haven’t said what type of ticket you’re on but I’m assuming that your ticket originates in the UK and you would want it to end in Norway. Depending on the fare type this could change it to a pricing structure of two one ways if the fare types
are not combinable as an open jaw.

If you don’t fly the last segment to ABZ there’s a 99% probability that nothing will happen.

If your ticket to OSL is on the same carrier and you have at least the MCT, they could check your baggage through, but they might refuse to do so.

[IanMcIntosh]

Yes ticket originates in UK (ABZ) and is mix of Business/First class…. But even removing the last segment causes AA to reprice the whole ticket increasing the cost by 50%. So, now understand that all I need to know is if AA will “short-check” bags when we check-in at ANU so we can retrieve them at LHR and proceed to Norway from there and just forget about the last segment of the original ticket….?

[capetonianm]

I can’t understand why removing the LHR ABZ segment would cause such a significant increase. That doesn’t make sense to me on the face of it but I would need to see the ticket and look at the fare construction to give a fully qualified answer on that.

I would be inclined to ask for a second opinion on that. I’ve often found that when airlines are faced with that type of situation they just look at the easiest option which which can be to simply treat the new portion as a one way.

the airlines have the right to reassess and charge the difference in case of a rerouting and that would include not flying the full itinerary. In this case I think it unlikely that they would take any action and if they were to do so I think they would almost certainly fail in a court of law.

As regards the check-in procedures that’s in the hands of the person who performs the check-in.

[StephenLondon]

There has been quite a clampdown on the short-checking of bags of late, and I have seen multiple requests denied, leaving some pax in distress. Thus. I wouldn’t hold your breath and hope a nice person at ANU will help you. Can you make your trip with hand baggage only?

[IanMcIntosh]

Sadly hand baggage only is impossible thanks to length of trip…. Just going to have in insist on the short-check!

[FaroFlyer]

Can you re-schedule the LHR > ABZ to following morning. If the MIA flight arrives mid morning, and you can get a connecting flight first thing next day I think it should count as a transit, not a stopover, so no additional airport fees. You would then have every reason to need your bags at LHR. Make your booking to OSL on another airline and you should be safe.

[JOHN1970]

Have you asked AA to quote you to change the LHR ABZ sector to a day later. I am assuming then you could get your luggage at LHR, no show for the next day flight and check in again for the new LHR OSL sector. I can’t believe that their robotics would give you a come back on that one.

[Fclass]

Ian,

Had a similar experience when I returned from SXM only last week on an AA ticket via MIA to LHR travelling a mixture of J & F. Prior to the trip I needed to change the final destination to MAN from LHR but additional cost was exhorbitant. So (at the suggestion of AA!) I purchased LHR – MAN club tickets the avios points earned on the SXM-LHR leg and was advised to show the check in agent the additional booking from LHR to MAN and request luggage to be booked straight through to MAN.

Did so and was refused without even any thnking time! Check in agents at SXM are not AA employees and I suspect the same willbe true of ANU. So had to collect baggage at T3 (where BA MIA flights arrive/depart) and transfer to T5 landside and check it in again for LHR/MAN.

I therefore think you may have difficulty in getting the luggage short-checked in ANU.

Good luck

PS – The AA Lounge nearest to the departure gate at MIA has a BA staff member present and may somehow help. However the lounge whilst spacious has zero hot food (except soup), little cold food and was AC’d to a realy cold temperature after the Carribbean.

[IanMcIntosh]

Hi Fclass,

Many thanks for that – extremely useful – will just have to be insistent on collecting bags at LHR – transferring landside is manageable…..

Had exactly the same ticket repricing issue you mention. Even removing the last leg was creating wild charge! And exactly the same as you, have used avios for LHR-OSL flight…..

[Author]

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