Still Needs Work: My Experience With AA's 'Dynamic Reaccommodation' System
Delays and cancellations in air travel are pretty much inevitable, but it's how an airline deals with the situation that can have a huge impact on traveler satisfaction. Standing in a 200+ passenger line waiting for two gate agents to manually rebook a Dreamliner full of passengers — as I experienced myself on American Airlines years ago — doesn't leave a warm and fuzzy feeling about the airline.
That's why I was really excited to learn that American Airlines rolled out a new dynamic reaccommodation system in September 2017. The app- and website-based system lets flyers decide which new flight they want without any interactions with gate, check-in, lounge or phone agents.
Ever since its introduction, I've been "looking forward" to testing it for myself. However, I've recently experienced an incredible streak of luck with my AA flights. In my 67 American flights in the last 13 months, I've yet to have a cancellation or significant delay. (Remarkable, I know.)
But that streak ended on Monday with my short hop from Boston (BOS) to New York's LaGuardia (LGA). For undisclosed reasons (at least undisclosed to me), my 12:00pm flight was cancelled. I was alerted at 9:58am by AA app push notification, email and text message — a good reminder of why it's important to give the airline your day of departure contact information.
Top-tier Executive Platinum elites are supposed to get top priority in rebooking, and indeed, American Airlines automatically saved me a seat on the next BOS-LGA AA Shuttle flight at 1:00pm. Score one for American Airlines protecting its frequent fliers.
Although I'd be upgraded to first class on the 12:00pm, the 1:00pm rebooking was in economy. That's not a big deal for such a short flight. After all, with free alcoholic drinks in economy on American Airlines Shuttle flights, the only benefit of sitting up front is a bigger seat for the 1 hour, 21 minute flight, and being able to get off the plane one or two minutes faster.
However, with all of the news breaking that morning, I wanted to instead grab a later flight to give me a chance to catch up beforehand. And that's where the system broke down.
In the app, I was given the option of confirming in first class on the 2:00pm or the 3:00pm. I selected the 2:00pm flight, but no dice — the app merely returned to the homepage. Figuring that there was just a temporary issue, I tried again. This time the app crashed. After opening the app again, I went through the process again and it crashed again. And again.
So, I opened the rebooking email I received and clicked on the link marked "Confirm or change flight." This loaded AA's website and displayed the trip I originally booked — without any option to confirm or change my flight. It didn't even note that the flight was cancelled.
As a third attempt, I called the American Airlines Executive Platinum desk. The automated system told me that my flight was cancelled and that the fastest way to rebook would be through the app or the website. I agreed with the automated system that that's how it's supposed to work, but when I asked for an agent, she told me that the 2:00pm flight was unavailable.
Next, I typed in American Airlines' rebooking website: www.aa.com/flightchange. There I was offered the same 19 rebooking options as I saw in the app, with a mixture of first class and economy.
So, I tried selecting the 2:00pm flight, expecting an error. Instead, I was excited to get a confirmation page:
I clicked Confirm and...
I returned to the app to try it just one more time, and found that the all 19 options were now gone and I was stuck on the 1:00pm:
I reached out to my AA corporate communication contacts about this issue. They confirmed that this is indeed not how the process is supposed to work, and are checking on the back end about what went wrong. As with the recent ticketing issue that we raised with AA, hopefully this will lead to improvements in the dynamic reaccommodation system that will make things smoother for all travelers.
I'm still excited about this dynamic reaccommodation system, and I'm sure that it works much better than this for most passengers. However, it's concerning to experience so many errors and issues in the system over 13 months after it was rolled out. Hopefully after some more work, it'll be ready to shine.
TPG featured card
at American Express's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 5X | New! Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotel stays booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked through AmexTravel.com, the Amex Travel App, or purchased directly from airlines. |
| 2X | Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid car rentals booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App and cruises booked and paid through AmexTravel.com. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- Valuable dining and food-related credits
- Flexible rewards with airline and hotel transfer partners
- Multiple travel and purchase protections
- No foreign transaction fees
- Access to Amex Offers for additional savings (enrollment required)
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- New! Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotel stays booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked through AmexTravel.com, the Amex Travel App, or purchased directly from airlines.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid car rentals booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App and cruises booked and paid through AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- Pay It® lets you tap in the American Express® App to quickly pay for small purchase amounts throughout the month and still earn rewards the way you usually do. Plan It® gives you the option to split up big purchases into equal monthly payments with a fixed fee. You’ll know upfront exactly how much you’ll pay.
- Updated! $120 Dining Credit: Earn up to a total of $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the Gold Card at Grubhub (including Seamless), Buffalo Wild Wings, Five Guys, The Cheesecake Factory, and Wonder. This can be an annual savings of up to $120. Enrollment required.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year at over 10,000 qualifying U.S. Resy restaurants after you pay for eligible purchases with the American Express® Gold Card. That’s up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: Earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin’ locations. Enrollment required.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Enjoy up to $120 in Uber Cash annually with your Gold Card. Just add your Card to your Uber account and you'll get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an Amex Card for your transaction.
- New! As an American Express® Gold Card Member, you can enjoy complimentary Hertz Five Star® Status. Enjoy benefits like skipping the counter at select locations, adding an additional driver at no additional cost*, and vehicle upgrades**. Benefit enrollment and Hertz Gold+ registration are required. *Additional drivers must meet standard rental qualifications and must be a spouse or domestic partner to qualify as complimentary. Other additional drivers subject to fees. **Benefits are subject to availability and vary by location. Additional Hertz program Terms and Conditions including age restrictions apply.
- Take advantage of a $100 credit towards eligible charges* at over 1,300 upscale hotels worldwide when you book The Hotel Collection through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App **. *Eligible charges vary by property. **The Hotel Collection requires a two-night minimum stay.
- Book your travel through the Amex Travel App with added peace of mind – backed by American Express® service and support. Only for American Express® Card Members.
- Whenever you need us, we're here. Our Member Services team will ensure you are taken care of. From lost Card replacement to statement questions, we are available to help 24/7.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.