How to Fly Standby on American Airlines

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In days past, you could lug your outdoor gear to the airport ticket counter and apply for a standby seat. This meant a substantial ticketing discount on your hiking vacation to the Rockies, but only if empty seats were available on the flight that you wanted. Though standby flights still exist today on American Airlines, they do not quite mean the same thing. For one thing, the fare costs exactly the same as a regular flight.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Step 1

Buy a regular American Airlines ticket either through your favorite travel site or through the airline's home page at AA.com, or by calling their phone reservations line at (800) 433-7300.

Step 2

Check in through a self-service kiosk and request a standby for an alternate flight at no charge. You are not guaranteed a seat for this freebie. To confirm a seat, you can pay a $50 charge and choose from available flights within the next 12 hours. You then receive a boarding pass for the new flight.

Step 3

Check in with an airport agent and request a standby for an alternate flight at no extra charge. As with the kiosk, to guarantee a seat on the new flight, you need to pay $50 and choose from a list of available flights in 12 hours. The charge confirms your seat on the new flight with a boarding pass.

Step 4

Change your flight before arriving at the airport by calling the reservations desk at (800) 433-7300. The free standby option is not available but you can pay the $50 charge to confirm a seat on any flights within 12 hours.

Article Written By Aurelio Locsin

Aurelio Locsin has been writing professionally since 1982. He published his first book in 1996 and is a frequent contributor to many online publications, specializing in consumer, business and technical topics. Locsin holds a Bachelor of Arts in scientific and technical communications from the University of Washington.

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