I’m on my flight from SFO to JFK, we had a medical emergency and I’m going to miss my connection to ARN.
If I miss that flight then I miss my Ryanair flight to Budapest at 940 tomorrow 6/13 morning.
Then I miss my Ryanair flight to Jordan at 620 on the 14th.
If anyone is amazing with flight searching and any ideas of what I can do please let me know!!!!
Are any of these flights on one ticket? Perhaps SFO-ARN?
OP is probably on American Airlines 234 (there are four flights currently enroute from SFO to JFK, AA234 is the only one that's listed as delayed, others are all on time). AA234 departed SFO at 6:54 am, about 90 minutes ago, and is currently over central Nevada. OP posted their message about an hour ago, so that all aligns. Presumably they have some inflight internet access. If so, it would be helpful to provide details about next flights (though you will miss them) and confirm their flight info here.
ETA at JFK for AA234 is 3:43 pm EDT, about 55 minutes late. Worth noting (and potentially important): JFK is having delays, a "ground stop" where aircraft flying inbound to JFK are held at their origin and are not cleared to takeoff at their original time, they hold before departure. Weather in the are is bad (and getting worse); the delays may pile up. This will probably cause a lot of chaos today in many places.
Now looking at the JFK-ARN leg...and then beyond....update in a minute...
Wow. That sounds like quite a mess. I’m not even sure how good travel insurance would cover this.
There are two flights today from JFK-ARN:
Delta 204, scheduled departure 8:00 EDT pm tonight. If OP is on that flight, they should be fine.
If OP can switch to that flight (probably $$$$) then it's scheduled to arrive in ARN at 10:00 am Monday.
Finnair 030, scheduled departure at 4:45 pm EDT today. I'm assuming that's the OP's flight. But there are lots of delays. Looking to see if the aircraft for this flight is on the ground in JFK, or if it's on the way but delayed...
CORRECTION: Info I posted earlier about the aircraft being inbound from ARN was wrong -- that's a different flight. OP's aircraft is on the ground at JFK, and there's no indication it will be late in departing. Sorry for previous inaccurate details, deleting them now.
Suggestion for OP: inform the flight attendants that you are at risk of misconnecting for your flight to ARN. Ask if you can be the first off the plane (may be impossible as probably others may be impacted by delays). It's worth asking. You need to try and be among the first off the plane if you can. Maybe you can be re-seated near the front (if there's an empty seat) shortly before landing. Find out what your gate is (I'll check) and how to get there. Get ready to sprint.
OP, please confirm if the speculation about your flights above is correct (if you have time for such things -- once you hit the ground in JFK, just get moving to your connecting flight's departure gate). Also: is your RyanAir itinerary all on one RyanAir ticket, or each separate flights.
Good luck and update if/when you can.
Once you land late in Sweden can you make a 1:20pm Norwegian flight #813 on the 13th that gets you to BUD on the 13th at 8:45pm? There is a layover in Oslo. Otherwise spend the night in Sweden and try your Ryanair flights the following 2 days if they will let you rebook.
If you just need to get to Budapest perhaps look into AA or partner options JFK-Budapest (for example Kayak is showing this evening FinnAir departing JFK with stop in HEL)
Or if you just need to get to Jordan perhaps look into AA or partner options JFK-AMM (for example Kayak is showing today Royal Jordanian, Qatar, Iberia departing JFK this evening too AMM with zero or one stop)
Not sure what AA would be obligated to do except get you to JFK (and maybe to ARN, although it isn't clear if JFK-ARN is on the same ticket, certainly your Ryan Air flights aren't on the AA ticket), but you could see with AA customer service either on line, by phone or at a desk when you get to JFK.
Also, not sure if you have return tickets to get back from Jordan but be careful when you make any changes. And follow up after you get to your destination to make sure your return is intact. You might be marked as a "no show" which will automatically cancel any return flights on the same ticket.
I just watched an add to get 30 minutes of WiFi.
It’s saying we left at 6:55 but we didn’t get out of SFO until around 7:55am since they couldn’t figure out how to get the two passengers off of the manifest.
It looks like the flight to ARN (on the same ticket is delayed).
I booked Ryanair to Budapest due to it being the cheapest way to Jordan (also on Ryanair). My destination is Jordan for a week then onto Malta.
I think I would have to have the most amazing person at AA to get me to Jordan at this point. They don’t have to help me at all if it is due to weather.
At this point I will take any options that won’t cost me a fortune to get me to Jordan.
Ryanair doesn’t have another flight to Budapest for two days. I really can’t afford to stay in Stockholm that long. $$$$$
Thank you for any help!!! I super appreciate it!!!
Leaving Monday ARN-AMM (through Kayak, but then use the airline website to book yourself)
4:20 pm – 2:45 am +1
Pegasus Airlines
2 stops
SAW, AYT
$365
2:25 pm – 2:20 am +1
Scandinavian Airlines, Lufthansa
2 stops
OSL, FRA
$425
3:05 pm – 11:45 pm
Turkish Airlines
1 stop
IST
$549
Critical info:
OP's flight SFO-JFK-ARN is on one ticket (American Airlines and Finnair are partners). That's great news, since AA will get you there (as far as ARN). Getting from ARN to Jordan (AMM) will be the problem to solve...
Before tackling that, American Airlines/Finnair and partners need to get OP there on next option. Next possibility I see is departing JFK at 7:05 pm tonight:
Finnair 06, JFK-Helsinki (HEL), departs JFK 7:05 pm today, arrives HEL 10:10 am Monday.
13 hour 35 minute layover in HEL (aptly named), then...
Finnair 825, HEL-ARN, departs HEL 11:45 pm Monday, arrives ARN 11:45 pm Monday.
The timing is awkward to say the least. Especially since OP doesn't really want to go to ARN. American/Finnair probably won't care that your actual destination is Amman, Jordan (AMM). They are responsible for getting you to ARN, after that, it's not their problem.
So, unless OP can sweet-talk American/Finnair into breaking policy and delivering them to someplace else that works better, they will need to figure out flights from ARN onward, with a departure on Tuesday, not Monday (because unless there's a better flight they can switch to, American/Finnair's best alternative is going to get them to ARN at midnight Monday).
Good luck. if you are forced to stay in Stockholm, look for a good rated hostel on hostelworld or booking.
Of course, AA has no obligation o get you to Jordan, but they're no harm in asking. Agents can sometimes pull off miracles. A reroute is going to require interlining, even to get to ARN.
The Royal Jordanian flight, RJ262 to Amman doesn't leave JFK until 21:40. They are a OneWorld partner with AA, and fly out of the same terminal at JFK.
Otherwise, there could be connection solutions on OneWorld with BA or Qatar.
Yep, RJ 262 (nonstop JFK-AMM) would be the perfect solution. But as @Scudder says, they have no obligation to make that happen, and my guess is they may sound sympathetic but are unlikely to enable/force that. FWIW, at least that flight is not full, there are unsold seats in coach available. If it were me, I'd frame my request around the fact that it wasn't weather than caused your outbound delay, but the medical issues and operational confusion about the passenger names on the manifest. Hope it's your lucky day.
Failing that, next best solution would be if your outbound Finnair flight's departure is delayed long enough for you to make the connection. Hope you have your running shoes on...
Unfortunately, I think you may have a long layover in HEL then a night in ARN ahead of you, and some flight(s) from ARN to AMM on Tuesday. That looks pretty messy (and long), too. Hope you can get American/Royal Jordanian to help.
OK, I'm considering what I would do if I were in the OP's situation.
I recall the sage advice from someone on this forum long ago (sorry, I forget who it was):
When traveling, if a crisis occurs, apply money liberally, and don't look back. Or something like that.
I'm going to make the case that this is exactly that kind of time, and the right approach to take here. OP is clearly a "budget traveler" (otherwise they would not have a Franken-ticket from SFO to Amman). But, they are going to spend a not-insignificant amount of money to salvage their flight problem anyway, and even when they accomplish that, it's going to be a long, messy and inconvenient slog that costs them 2-3 days of their trip. There's plenty of money and time already invested. A bit more money now could quickly and cleanly resolve the biggest challenges without wrecking the next week of their trip.
I'm assuming all of the following are true:
I don't how long the OP's time in Jordan is. IF they are there for many days and have slack time built in at the start of the trip, then going the "long way" from ARN may be a better choice. But I think for most of us, the time we have on our trips is the most "expensive", most constrained commodity we have.
Walk-up price for RJ262 looks like about $1223. Not cheap, but IMHO at this point, it's worth it. I'd go for that. That gets them to AMM at 3:20 pm Monday, and it "fixes" what's fallen apart.
OP should try to talk his/her way into getting AA to put them on that flight first. If they won't, I'd walk over to the Royal Jordanian counter, pull out my credit card, sigh once, then wave the card, and put the crisis behind me (then I'd go have a good, stiff drink...but FFS don't miss that next flight).
Just my opinion. Wishing the OP good luck whatever they choose. Now I'm gonna go have some breakfast.
PS: @Stay-ce -- Your overall trip destinations sound great. I'm planing a trip to Malta in October so I would welcome your impressions of the place, tips etc. Feel free to PM me anytime.
It was Ed.
He said to travel as cheaply as possible, but when a problem occurs, throw money at it.
It's advice well worth repeating.
Not only is Stay-ce a very savvy traveler, reaching out onto the Forum while still in the plane, but also many of you have given her extraordinary help. What team work!
My personal motto has long been “take risks, but never get into more trouble than my available credit can get me out of”
I just wanted to pop in with a mention about checking your travel insurance to see if they will cover some of these costs under "trip delay." Hopefully, you might have purchased travel insurance, but even if you did not, many credit cards can offer some sort of coverage on this. It will be worth checking on once you get past the immediate crisis.
An update: Flight data for OP's current flight, AA234 enroute from SFO to JFK is showing some odd numbers. FlightAware and AA.com are now both showing its arrival time at JFK to be 3:37 pm EDT. It's not uncommon for flights that get a late departure to "make up" some lost time enroute (in fact it almost always happens), but usually only a little.
Current flight data for that flight now shows it arriving in JFK over an hour EARLY...and I'm a bit skeptical that they will be able to shorten the flight duration by 2 hours (it departed an hour late). Usually delayed flights can pick up a little time by getting a better (prioritized) routing from air traffic control, they often catch a break with a bigger tailwind/better altitude, and maybe higher priority for approach procedures. Gaining 2 whole hours would require one heckuva tailwind (the jetstream can make a big difference). That said, I'm still somewhat skeptical that flight will land an hour early, but who knows. If these numbers do hold up, the OP should have enough time to make their original connection to ARN.
@Stay-ce, please provide an update when you can (as long as that doesn't impact your ability to catch flights). You might also want to tip the cockpit crew on your outbound flight if they really do manage to get you from coast to coast in under 3.5 hours. That's remarkably fast from SFO to JFK (unless they did an aircraft substitution and you ended up on a Concorde, in which case you should just call Rod Serling...).
@Tom - I'm seeing Finnair 030 is scheduled to depart JFK at 4:45 pm. Are you seeing a different flight/time?
I'm still not believing the ETA for AA234. It also shows crazy/nonsensical departure times (from SFO) for that flight this morning. I suspect there is some incorrect data feeding into the system (though most of it is supposedly actual ADSB reporting from the ATC system, so not much room for fat-finger errors). For example FlightAware shows the aircraft current position over Nebraska, yet also shows remaining time to destination JFK under one hour. Not in this world unless you're in an F-15.
There are also delays at JFK being reported, numbers are all over the place. Looks like it may not be a great day to travel, but who knows?
I checked with ATC and there are two AA234's. Using the info the OP gave, her plane should be arriving about 3:30 PM ET.
If that's the case, the OP should have about an hour to change gates. I just looked and her plane has started its descent into JFK.
Maybe Stay-ce could ask the flight lead to ask people who aren’t connecting to stay seated until those with tight connections deplane, given the late arrival. We’ve heard that announcement made on previous flights and really appreciated it when we were some of the anxious passengers in the back of economy.
Numbers for AA234 are changing and inconsistent.
AA.com now shows the flight arriving at 3:31 pm. Their map now shows it over Montana - further west than it was depicted previously (over Nebraska)!. Meanwhile FlightAware shows it arriving at 5:58 pm (now one hour late), depicted as still over Nebraska, with 2 hours 49 minutes remaining.
Earlier numbers were some technical glitch or humans monkeying with departure times to sweeten the appearance of on-time stats/mitigate culpability. I'd regard any further numbers with skepticism until they are wheels down.
Pretty sure OP will miss their original connection.
I checked with ATC and there are two AA234's...
Either that, or there's a wormhole.
I'm going with a last-minute aircraft swap for a Concorde. Rod Serling has got to be around here somewhere. I think I smell cigarette smoke...
I'm no help, but I just want to say how amazing it is that everyone stepped up to help another member.
What a great team!
The reason I don't think it's an error is that there are two different aircraft registrations. Same route, same type, two different aircraft registrations
OP's flight on Finnair is AY30, a codesahre, with AA flight #8997. Checking flight status for that on AA.com, they're showing scheduled departure time is 445 pm, estimated departure time is 5:00 pm (probably to be updated). The inbound aircraft just landed, is taxiing to the gate. FlightAware shows the departure on time, at 5:00.
FlightAware now shows the OP's current flight over Iowa, 2 hours 24 minutes left to JFK.
AA.com shows the aircraft has landed at JFK and is taxiing to the gate (about one hour late).
The reason I don't think it's an error is that there are two different
aircraft registrations. Same route, same type, two different aircraft
registrations
Well that would explain the confusion. I've never heard of having two different commercial flights using the exact same designation before (never mind same airline and same route and same day). That's, um...unusual.
If the OP is really on the first AA234, and if that flight really has landed, then they should probably be OK and will make the connection. AA.com say the inbound AA234 will use Terminal 8, Gate 41. Departure gate is Terminal 8, no gate assigned yet. If OP is on the doppleganger AA234, all bets are off.
I have seen airlines have the same flight number for two different flight but they are usually two different legs of the same aircraft. And I have also seen two different flights at the same time but at two distinct parts of the country.
And hopefully OP has carry-on only, to make more options available for substitutions
If the Ryanair flights are missed, hopefully they will have some pity on OP due to it being a medical emergency that dumped the apple cart, and at least allow a credit for future use.
Best wishes for palatable solution
Assuming the above, and OP's flight has landed, it's still going to be a tight connection. Next flight will start boarding soon (it's 3:45 pm ET now, boarding probably begins about 4:15). Aircraft departure is still listed for 5:00, so they'll close the door well before that. OP needs to get off the first plane, find the next gate, get down the jetway and through the door before they close it. Thankfully, looks like both arriving and departing flights are both in T8 (assuming nothing changes). Giddyup.
FlightAware just updated the Finnair departure time (AY30/AA8997) -- moving it UP to 4:35 pm, making it 10 minutes early (it had been listed as 5:00 pm...hmmm, interesting math).
try your Ryanair flights the following 2 days if they will let you rebook.
That's never going to happen in a million years
Too soon to know yet. Flight status was just updated (went from 10 minutes early, to 35 minutes late...maybe they waited for Stay-ce?). Departure now listed "to depart in 11 minutes" (departure usually defined as door close/pullback time, not takeoff); I don't see it airborne or taxiing yet.
If we don't hear an update from them for the next 8 or 9 hours, that probably means they made the connection. If they missed that flight, they are probably still deep in crisis-management mode, figuring out their Plan B (maybe over a drink in some JFK airport bar where there's free wifi); in that case, hopefully we will get an update sooner.
If nothing else, I think this thread should serve as a good reminder and a reinforcement of all the warnings and concerns that are often repeated here about "Franken-tickets", the risks and potential costs of traveling on "bargain" tickets cobbled together from separate airlines/sellers (which may look like a bargain at first, but come with potential for both great inconvenience, more drama than many would like, and big costs to fix things if something goes sideways). Maybe this will work out for Stay-ce, maybe the adventure has only begun.
@Stay-ce, please give us an update when you can. Good luck.
BlockquoteMaybe Stay-ce could ask the flight lead to ask people who aren’t connecting to stay seated until those with tight connections deplane, given the late arrival. We’ve heard that announcement made on previous flights and really appreciated it when we were some of the anxious passengers in the back of economy.
Yeah that request and $10 I’ll get you a cuppa coffee in Stockholm because the truth is it never works. maybe you’ve been lucky but my experience has been everybody still races off the plane.
I really think it’s great that all of y’all are trying to help the original poster. I wish them every success. This is why I always say when you are booking a non-protected connection you need either to allow extreme amounts of time or a willingness to pay the price. For example I have a non-protected connection next weekend from London to Paris. I fly Delta to London and then have a non-protected flight to Paris four hours later. If my plane is more than four hours late I will have to go and buy either a walk up airplane ticket or a walk up train that’s about $300. That was a price I was willing to pay. If however the price had been more than I was willing to pay I would have allowed more time. So for example on my return which I am actually doing by train, I come into London 24 hours before my flight to Atlanta. I was not willing to pay the price of walking up to Delta and saying I need to get full fare one-way ticket home
This one seems particularly problematic in that there are two connections that don’t seem to be protected. I’m not sure what to suggest. But I do not think that Ryan air is going to be generous. As a matter fact if the original poster has Wi-Fi access and it looks like he or she is going to miss their planes it might be better to cancel the Ryanair flights because that might get you credit To use on the new bookings
Most of us are here to help others with their travel plans. I can't remember the last time we did it in real time.
One note I’ve seen a couple of people suggest that the original poster go buy a new ticket at JFK. Since it does look like this may be originally one ticket from San Francisco to Stockholm if she/he gets out of the system at JFK with out the airline knowing about it and agreeing to it then when she/he shows back up wherever for the return flight he/she probably will discover the rest of her flights have been canceled.
It’s possible that American Arfanaire could work with the original poster on that but that needs to be cleared up and documented before a new ticket is purchased from JFK
The plane's door looks to be closed now, awaiting pushback. Don't see them on radar so transponder not switched on yet (should happen after pushback, when engines start), within a couple minutes.
The flight is now active. Whether or not the OP is on it is anyone's guess.
It’s possible that American Airlines could work with the original poster on that but that needs to be cleared up and documented before a new ticket is purchased from JFK
Oh, absolutely. If there are checked bags, there are all kinds of bad scenarios that could play out. Imagine: OP misses the connection, but their checked bags get loaded. Bags show up in ARN but OP decides on a different routing, so nobody there to pick up or deal with bags. Plenty of other bad options could happen (flights are not supposed to go out with someone's bags if that passenger is not on the plane, but it has happened).
Yep, on the way now. Hopefully with no empty seats (and hopefully we won't get an update for 8+ hours).
Moral of the story.......if you wish to book this type of itinerary to save a few bucks, spend little more for lots of pepto-bismol.
Budget at least $100 for drinks.
And the multi-leg flights on RyanAir haven't even started yet. Ah, the adventure of travel...
"she can out cheap any of you on a trip and come up smiling. " And with her five kids in tow, if I remember her posts from years ago.
I hope that the silence means a happy Stay-ce
As of my writing this at 5:40 ET/11:40....
The flight from JFK-ARN arrived at 6:50AM and her flight to BUD departed at 9:59AM. It should be arriving any minute.
Perhaps we'll hear then as her next flight isn't until tomorrow.
David, $100 for drinks per day? You da man!
Sadly the OP will have to pay for additional expenses as AA and Ryan Air have no agreements. I myself allow 24-48 hour buffer zone to connect with a Budget air flight and will pay more for a flexible ticket that can be changed if need be.
The OP assumed the connection would go well but having to hand carry.your bags to the new carrier can be stressful. I myself will pay more $,$$ to have my reservation on one ticket.
Considering it’s been two weeks since this thread was posted and we haven’t heard from this person I don’t think Any additional advice is probably needed,
And honestly, who knows if any of the advice was helpful. It would have been nice for the person to at least acknowledge the advice and thank people who tried to help her but …,
I would like to know about the resolution to this matter, or at least conjecture by more seasoned travelers as to what you think happened. I know you folks have been around the old block a few times!
I think she's still stuck at JFK, nursing a stiff drink and trying to poach free wifi in an airport bar, as she waits on hold to speak with a customer service agent at RyanAir. Just a guess.
I too am so wondering what happened !!!
Hahahaha, David! Laughing out loud.
David and Frank II, you guys are amazing!!
It's not that funny being stuck at an airport. There is a Tom Hanks movie about it.
customer service agent at RyanAir.
Is that not an oxymoron?
