They may operate under one roof, share check-in facilities, lounges, and gates, but American Airlines’ Five Star Service (premium ground service) is not available on British Airways flights at New York JFK…which strikes me as yet another needless example of AA faling to provide to an integrated premium experience for its most valuable passengers.
American Airlines’ Five Star Service Foolishly Excludes British Airways At New York JFK
I have clients who are traveling in British Airways First Class from JFK to London Heathrow on an American Airlines-issued ticket. BA and AA are joint venture partners (they share revenue and coordinate schedules, pricing, and marketing on transatlantic routes). The flight is an AA codeshare operated by British Airways and departs from Terminal 8 at JFK, the same terminal AA uses. The check-in facility is shared, as is the lounge.
Let’s just say these are high-maintenance travelers and they want an escort from the curb to check-in, through security, to the Chelsea Lounge, and ultimately to the gate…and they are willing to pay for it. A perfect opportunity for AA’s Five Star Service, right? This premium ground service was designed with these travelers in mind…the sort of travelers who pay top dollar to fly bread and butter routes in front cabins.
But oddly, the Five Star Service is not available when departing on British Airways flights from JFK. I called multiple times to confirm and was told, “British Airways doesn’t allow this with their flights” or “British Airways doesn’t like AA agents around their planes.”
Make it make sense!
The two carriers are supposed to be “metal neutral” (i.e., no difference between the two) and I simply see no legal or practical reason why AA cannot offer its (valuable) ground service to British Airways flights at JFK. If there is no agreement, make one. It’s a big deal for a certain subset of travelers that pay top dollar to subsidize the tickets of everyone else…would it really be so hard? The answer is no.
AA Must Capitalize On Low-Hanging Fruit
Here’s an example of American Airlines turning down money from exactly the sort of premium clients they are trying to win back…and at their own hub in a highly competitive city like New York.
My suggestion: take the money, escort them through security, to the lounge, and finally to the gate, then wait with them until they board…it’s not so hard, even if the AA agent is not allowed on the BA aircraft.
And for that, they’ll pay you essentially whatever you ask.
It’s like the annoying phone prompts when you call AA then are transferred to the domestic side every call, even though you specify international…stupid pressure points that make travel harder and turn passengers away. AA must get the little things right if wants to start competing with Delta and United for profit once again.
CONCLUSION
I know we’re talking about a top 1% problem here, but it baffles me that AA and BA make it so hard to request VIP ground service in JFK despite so much deliberate overlap. It’s time to fix this problem, which is a symptom of a larger problem at AA: a tendency to make it far too difficult for customers to hand their money to the carrier.
I have a feeling that BA is the one that doesn’t want to pay AA – which either says they don’t want to entrust their highest value passengers to AA or they are too cheap to compensate AA for the expense of providing this service.
I wouldn’t immediately jump to the conclusion that AA is walking away from revenue.
But BA doesn’t have to pay AA—the passengers who choose to use this service pay AA directly. I think it should at least be possible on AA issued tickets.
Why didn’t they simply fly on BA ? ( Without all the AA complications .)
AA is also a partner with JAL , but I’d rather fly on JAL tickets , without taking any chances with AA complications .
If I go to LHR on BA , it would be nonsensical to be involved with AA in any manner , and likely counterproductive .
What the writer don’t understand as he obviously have something against AA, is not that simple. There are legalities and also british airways does not provide such service so obviously you know about the 5 start service becuase AA provides it and you were trying to exploit it with BA. Your plan failed so here you are writing a nonses article
I have nothing against AA. I want AA to succeed. I’m certainly entitled to comment how much I think this policy makes no sense.
BA doesn’t exactly roll out the red carpet for premium AA fliers at LHR. Although I agree with you that I don’t understand why airlines aren’t doing everything they can to provide door to door service that the ultra premium flier is willing to pay for. This is certainly not a AA vs BA issue but your nice, clickbait headline makes it seem so.
I see this service as something AA can and should offer (for a price, of course) regardless of what BA does…it’s good business for the JV, which helps AA.
Oepeate? Please…
This is a 1%-of-the-1% problem lol. Nonetheless, interesting enough to read about that it warrants a posting
I agree AA should offer that service to BA customers. And, let’s be honest, after the passenger spends some time with the AA staff and then gets on the BA flight with their employees, the customer will think they have died and gone to heaven (in a good way) with the BA staff!!!
Todd nailed it. Anyway, separate point, but I have always found the F escorts at the airports I’ve had them be superfluous. I know my way around. And all that awkward small talk. I always feel I am keeping them from doing something more useful.
or people could just walk to the gate on their own…its honestly not that hard.
I imagine the way AA books the service in Sabre uses an SSR or other chargeable keyword that works for AA operated flights, but doesn’t work for codeshare flights – most ancillary products with a charge usually have to be booked with the operating airline – and if the operating airline doesn’t offer that service, the SSR isn’t going to be accepted/confirmed.
AA would have to consider creating a method for edge cases such as this one for codeshare flights, which would add a certain amount of complexity, for the incremental revenue.
I could be wrong, and it may not be via SSR, but I suspect it is.
Why were they not booked on AA metal, not codeshare, originally?
When they go to the first class check in area (and I’m sure you’ve reassured them that there are couches and a dedicated security lane…) just have them say that they need a wheelchair for their emotional support animal. There’s your escort! Problem solved.
“It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.” —Theodore Roosevelt
I am currious; Why did you not book them BA in the first place ? I would almost always booking code-share for my high yield folks for reasons such as this. Honestly currious in this case what the driver would have been
Bingo !
I’m just guessing that someone of means had a bunch of AA miles and no idea how to use them, did a google search, found Award Expert, and they were booked on BA first class through AA for 85k points each plus surcharges. And this person, especially when traveling with the family (which often times includes a nanny for the children) likes the white glove treatment. It all sounds ridiculous, but it’s not as uncommon as you think among a certain clientele.