Can''t stand by for a codeshare flight?

[JS]

Recently I booked a ticket on UA out of CLT. I wanted the morning US mainline flight from CLT to IAD, but I couldn''t get the reservation system to pull it up, so I chose the 10:30 AM CRJ flight on UA Express.

I got to CLT early, checked in with UA, and asked at the IAD-bound US gate if I could stand by for the wide-open US flight. The lady did some typing and said that because I''m already checked in with UA, I would have to ask them.

Special Services was closed, so that option was out. The Services must be pretty Special if they''re not open at 8:00 AM on a weekday morning.

I asked at the UA ticket counter, and one lady said that they would have to endorse the ticket to US and pay them full fare. I said I didn''t need a confirmed change, just stand by. No luck.

The guy next to her advised me that the codeshare is only for marketing and selling purposes, and they were still two separate airlines. (gee, really, I didn''t know that! )

Oh well, CLT isn''t too bad of a place to wait two extra hours.

On the way back, I was able to stand by for an earlier flight from PHL to CLT (obviously US-operated both as booked and desired standby), and because it was a UA ticket, I could standby at no charge.

Comments?

 

[Aryeh]

Here's the problem, which I'll preface with a bit of Codeshare 101. (And I might add, is a valuable course whichmost UA and US employees, many travel agents, and those customers booking flights on their own have ever been required to both complete AND FULLY COMPREHEND.

Codeshare is strictly a marketing alliance between two or more independent carrriers, each continuing to fly their own planes, using their own staff, along their own, independent route network. These physical components are essentially unchanged and as they were prior to the start-up of the given codeshare relationship.

Codesharing: what's changed... Is how each individual airline's network/flight schedule is REPRESENTED in all CRS's (computer reservation systems) used worldwide. In addition to a given airline's flight displaying on the computer from point A to point B, is a second "flight" of the codeshare partner, also operating seemingly coincidentally at identical times, between the same two points. The computer will show (if one bothers to notice the advisory) that the second (codeshare) flight is OPERATED BY "XX" Airlines.

Why are two flight are displayed? If I want to take that flight, which of two flights displayed should be reserved?

In your case, if I understand correctly, you were flying only from CLT to IAD, no further. Or at least IAD was a stop, not a connection. You were charged a local fare from CLT to IAD and the fare breaked in IAD. The flight was physically a US flight. UA had nothing PHYSICALLY to do with that part of the trip, Although you did have the option to book the departure using the UA flight number which would then appear on the ticket as a UA flight, it was in fact going to be a flight operated by US Airways; and thus should have been reserved under the US flight number.
The ONLY time the codeshare flight (UA instead of US) is when the flight is being combined with a connection to/from a flight ACTUALLY OPERATED by United Airlines. In your case, if you wanted to book a trip from Charlotte to London for example. US Airways has a flight from Charlotte to Dulles and United has a flight connecting from Dulles on to London's Heathrow Airport.
Pre-codeshare the schedule would have appeared on the computer screen (and your ticket too) as a US flight followed by a UA flight.
With codeshare the computer offers that same schedule but represents it as UA from CLT to IAD (actually as UA*) and then UA from IAD to LHR. Confused?
Going to London? the trip appears as a "seamless," "online" trip, pt A to B to C, instantly and seemingly expanding UA's route network when in fact nothing has changed, physically. Vice versa for US, as similar online connections exist showing US to Asia when in fact US hardly knows what exists west of the Mississippi!
Bottom line: If you flying trip that isn't marketed for codesharing, book the real flight, not the marketed flight!!! If you book the marketed flight for codeshare when you shouldn't, the computer will allow it because it assumes you know which flight is appropriate to the trip.
If you book a codeshare flight (UA) instead of US, the ticket may still be accepted by the other carrier if the airline lifting the coupon will be paid for transporting you. Technically this depends upon the fare. In reality however, because most airport agents receive inadequate training (if any) and are overseen by many with the same poor training, all too often agents will misadvise passengers regarding such issues, making the passengers' woes worse! So much wrong information is given out, between carriers, often initiated by a reservation inappropriately booked in the first place.

 

[JS]

Hi, Aryeh. A few corrections to my situation:

I was only connecting in IAD. The fare was CLT to MSP roundtrip.

I booked through UA, not US (US was far more expensive for this non-Saturday night stay).

I booked a UA-operated flight for the CLT-IAD leg (actually UA Express), and I wanted to stand by for the US-operated flight.

I didn't have any US-operated flights on the way out, but I did on the way back (PHL connection). The agent at the desk mentioned something about needing a US operated flight, but she wasn't sure if it had to be the same day or somewhere on the entire itinerary.

I couldn't figure out what difference that would make, and according to the people at the UA ticket counter, it wouldn't have made any difference at all.

Thanks for the help in understanding this.