Hope this hasn't happend to many others!

[CapeCod Sunshine]

We booked our air travel through American Airlines last May 07 the non-stop flight we always take BOS to STT because it was filling up- we got a great price and continued to plan our vacation (which is actually starting out in JVD then on to STJ)- I just happend to check our itnerary in August and it said "Schedule Change" Our flights had been cancelled and they no longer offered the Non stop BOS to STT flight and re-booked us on another flight (with a 7 hr. layover-arriving in STT at 9:00pm!!!) When we called to ask why this happend they said that we bought "Air Travel" NOT "non-stop travel" after I let her have a piece of my mind- she
re-booked us (with of course different times) that were a little more acceptable for travelling with 4 adults 5 kids and attempting to get to JVD before customs closed... Well since then they have changed our itinerary 2 more times (NEVER contacting us to let us know) and we have had to re-book each time- they say the would have let us know 30 days prior to our date of air travel if there is a change (which at that point you are at the mersy of whatever flights are left to travel)- Then to TOP off my story I checked American Airlines website and it now says- they will offer their Non-stop flight BOS to STT starting Oct.28th 2007!!!!! So,how much would you like to bet when they offer that flight on Oct.28th-the cost will be much higher than we paid last May when we booked that flight and they now have filled all of the "not so desirable flights" with passengers (many of whom have rebooked their non stop flight )and who can no longer change existing reservations without a fee!! Please everyone-check your flights often!!!!!! This has given me way too many headaches!!!

[Steve S]

Maybe you'll get "lucky" and you'll get another change without notification. Then you can tell the AA agent that the non-stop is the only flight that allows you to meet your connections on both ends!

Delta told us that they usually will wait until 30 days out to send notifications. A nod to their ever changing schedules, but a pain for those of us booking a villa a year in advance.

[Rachelle & Joe]

Wow! That's CRAZY!!!!! ya know on our anguilla forum someone just posted the very same problem with AA! she finally in the end rebooked with US Air which according to some has a reputation of losing luggage!.....it seems they all have us at they mercy one way or another!!!! ok....we just booked our flight on sat. with AA for next may 08! looks like we'll b checking status weekly !!! at least! Good Luck!!!! hope all else goes well!

[flip-flop]

Not just an AA problem. Delta did the same thing to us. Only they completely cancelled ALL thursday flights landing in STT. So they were going to rebook us for Friday. I threw a fit and got rebooked for Wednesday instead. Sure it cost an extra nights hotel & a day off of work but its sure better than losing a day of vacation!

This is why I check my flight info online almost as often as I check my bank & cc info

[Ksea]

Just checked my bank account and AA reservations. No money as usual...and our AA arrival time in SJU changed by 5 minutes. I also checked my Mega Millions numbers and did not win. Oh well.

[MIG]

AA changed our flights also. We're going PHL-STT via SJU. The flight from PHL to SJU continues onto STT (exact same aircraft and flight number). Would they do the obvious thing and keep us on the same plane to STT? Of course not, they planned to take us and our bags off the plane in SJU, gave us a 2 hour layover and put us on the NEXT flight to STT instead.

When I called to complain I was told they did that b/c the connection in SJU was too tight. What difference does it make how tight the connection is if I'm not getting off the plane???

Finally got it straightened out. Unbelievable.

[Waterbugs]

We booked through United last year and they changed out flight times to where connections were too close together. So I called and asked what we could do and they quickly upgraded us to a non-stop flight at no charge. We also booked well in advance, but we always got same-day notifications when the flight schedules changed. AND none of our luggage was lost or destroyed. A fluke?? I don't think so. I have always had good luck with United, and, NO I am not an employee of UAL. Just a frequent (lucky) flier.

[mrsb]

MIG you are scaring me. We have booked AA as well. They sent an e-mail a while ago stating that our flight down was now direct from PHL to STT instead of stopping in San Juan. I have been checking and I see that we do stop in San Juan but it looks as if we do not get off the plane. It is a 30 minute layover. Can anyone tell me if they usually just have passengers wait on the plane for others or are we in for a surprise?

[ccasebolt]

Yikes - we have the nonstop BOS-STT flight booked for March. I *really* hope they don't mess that up because we have to catch a ferry to Tortola and the last one is 5:30 out of Red Hook I don't want to have to pay for another place to stay that night...

[jayseadee]

It's possible that you've got a direct flight, but not non-stop. If the flight number from SJU to STT as your flight to SJU, then yes, you'll just wait on the plane while they pick up others with connections.

AA is notorious for changing flights. We always book several months in advance and expect at least a dozen changes; and no, they don't start notifying until the time gets close.

We lucked out last year as the flights and connections got us in earlier than originally planned and saved us a night stayover on STT.

I'm sure we'll pay for that stroke of good luck next time

BTW CapeCodSunshine, welcome to the forum.