Will me miss our connection tomorrow?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Get it changed 100%. If it were in the same terminal I would say stick with it but not in this scenario. Don't forget the boarding closes 15 min prior to departure so that's only 30 mins.

I flew on American recently - at the gate next to us they had just finished the boarding and had started processing all the standbys when a big group of people ran up. I overheard them saying they had just come from a connecting flight. But it was 2 min over the cutoff time and the gate agents denied them. Even though the boarding doors were still open and they were still clearing all the standbys, the gate agents weren't budging - and it was the last flight of the evening. So the people had to literally stand there and watch their seats being given away to standbys.

All that to say - I wouldn't risk it.

If your flight attendant/ gate agent calls ahead, it will buy you the extra 2-5 min. If they process the ticket into the standby person’s name, there is no turning back. That’s the issue. They switched the tickets at the cut off time and printed the new boarding passes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:-Dont check luggage
-Let the FAs know about the tight connection, they can radio the other plane and let them know to wait for you[i][u] and possibly let you off first.

Flights generally start boarding 45m prior and close 20 mins prior. So really, you only have 25m. Make sure you wear your running shoes!!

No, they definitely will not have the other plane wait for you. How would you feel if your flight from DC to Newark was delayed because they were waiting for a couple who had a tight connection? Not to mention the hit to on-time performance.

They probably won't even ask people to remain seated so you can get off first, but you can certainly mention it and ask if that's possible.

If everything goes perfectly, you should be fine. But if there's a bump in the road you definitely don't have any wiggle room.

I've had this happen for me, which is why I noted it. If they know a handful of people are running to the flight they can hold it a few minutes. I had a connection through hongkong that was slightly delayed getting there. We told the FAs and they made an announcement that several people had tight connections, please let them off first, they radioed the other plane to let them know we had landed and would be there shortly, and they had an airport liason meet us after we got off the plane and rushed us through security/tram. It was approx 15m of straight running but we made it.

Right, they can do things to help. What they won’t do is actually hold the plane for you. Nothing of what they did for you involved them pushing away from the gate late.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Guess what DCUMers….this is OP and we made it to the gate for our flight to Aruba 15 min before boarding started. Wahooo!!! Our bags also made it. For those that are curious, this trip was a package deal…5 nights at a new hotel not on the main strip and not an AI, but between Eagle Beach and Palm Beach, including flights (flight home is direct to IAD) and transportation to and from hotel in Aruba. Two adults and two kids. Breakfast included every morning, $4,700 total.

Excellent! Hope you have a fantastic trip!
(And that DH doesn’t gloat too much