Aer Lingus / Jet Blue - What did I do wrong?

MICKEYG · 21-12-2009 01:36PM #1

I booked a flight through Aer Lingus from San Juan PR to Dublin travelling last Friday (18th). The flight involved using Jet Blue for the San Juan - JFK leg and then Aer Lingus on to Dublin.

When I went to check in in San Juan the agent told me that the booking was put through separately and she would not be able to push my bags through at JFK or check me in for the EI flight.

My San Juan flight was 30 mins late and then I had to wait 45 mins for my bag to haul over to terminal 4. This resulted in me missing my EI flight and having to spend an extra day in the US before just getting out on the Saturday (just as the snow was horrendous).

EI at JFK were great, no complaints, but I am annoyed about how my booking was not done properly as this almost certainly caused me to lose a day.

Is this common for Jet Blue connections? Is it a flaw in the Aer Lingus website?

bog_savage · 21-12-2009 04:29PM

Pretty sure my luggage was checked straight through from Long Beech - JFK - DUB but I was not allowed my AerLingus international luggage allowance on the Jet Blue leg . Had to pay for extra bag & weight

Still was not as expensive as RyanAir !

BuffyBot · 21-12-2009 06:16PM

Most likely just an uninformed agent at check-in. Probably outsourced ground handlers in PR unfamiliar with the JetBlue/Aer Lingus hook up - I doubt they get a large amount of traffic going onwards to Dublin, and as Aer Lingus is the only airline they currently send luggage onwards to the agent didn't understand that they have a tie up (JetBlue can't check you onwards to any other airline).

Try contacting JetBlue at http://www.jetblue.com/help/contactus/. Their customer care is normally pretty good.

macrubicon · 21-12-2009 06:24PM

I think this is right - Post 9-11 you have to claim your bags at the point of first entry to the US and check them back in - you are booked through but your bags are not as you have to "clear" them by claiming them and bringing them through customs before re-checking.

It's the same the other way - I have done plenty of connecting flights internally from Dub - US and always had to pick them up in Newark and check them through to the final US destination etc.

SoulTrader · 21-12-2009 06:35PM

Macrubicon is absolutely right. I've done this a few times in the past few years - I live in the Caribbean so most of my journeys involve connections through the US. You have to pick up your bags, go through customs and drop them off. The drop off procedure is fairly straightforward at JFK - you just leave them on a conveyor belt once you pass through Customs - even if it's at the wrong terminal they'll still bring them to the correct terminal.

No idea why the check-in agent couldn't check you in for the EI flight though. I always manage to check in for connecting flights at the initial departure airport, even with unrelated airlines.

probe · 21-12-2009 09:46PM

I gave up inter-lining bags years ago. If your first flight is running late, and you have a tight connection (a tight connection at junk airports like JFK, LHR, and LAX is anything less than 4 hours), it doesn't matter whether you wait or inter-line them - they won't turn up at your final destination any faster.

Even if I am using the same airline end to end, unless it is Swiss, Air France, Lufthansa or Singapore Airlines, I won't trust them to connect the bags on the same flights I am travelling on.

Even with Air France I've had a few cases of baggage delay with tight (40 minutes or so) connections at CDG-2F/E. But they have to good manners to arrange for a flight attendant to come up to you in-flight with the advisory "Mr Probe, we are sorry but your checked baggage didn't make it on this flight". They give you a bag of necessaries - a tea-shirt, toiletries, shaving gear, etc - so you don't waste time hanging around at the baggage carousel when you arrive for a bag that doesn't show up. Chances are it will be delivered to your hotel by 08h next morning.

Pythia · 21-12-2009 11:06PM

I travelled Aer Lingus/Jet Blue to LAS and back through JFK. They told me on the way back that the baggage was checked through and I didn't need to pick it at JFK. Of course when I get to Dublin, no sign of my bags, or the three others' who made the connection. I got them 2 or 3 days later.

Seems to be issues with the baggage.

BuffyBot · 22-12-2009 12:27AM

Macrubicon is absolutely right.

Actually, he might be (and therefore so was the agent), but they may not be either.

I'm pretty sure PR was different and treated similarly to a domestic flight with regard to the US as it is technically belongs to the US (unlike the rest of the Caribbean) and if that's the case, it should have been checked through. I'm finding it hard to get confirmation of that online however.

BuffyBot · 22-12-2009 11:00AM

I checked this out. PR - USA should be treated like a domestic flight (and it was, as it lands in JetBlue's Terminal 5 at JFK as the OP stated, which has no immigration/customs facilities and therefore no need to collect a bag, pass it through customs and re-drop).

As such, if your booking was on one ticket OP, you're in the right - the agent should have checked your bag through to the EI flight. I'd contact JetBlue about it

MICKEYG · 22-12-2009 01:09PM

BuffyBot wrote: »

I checked this out. PR - USA should be treated like a domestic flight (and it was, as it lands in JetBlue's Terminal 5 at JFK as the OP stated, which has no immigration/customs facilities and therefore no need to collect a bag, pass it through customs and re-drop).

As such, if your booking was on one ticket OP, you're in the right - the agent should have checked your bag through to the EI flight. I'd contact JetBlue about it

Yes. PR is treated like a domestic flight. No customs, passport check or anything. Will contact Jet Blue /Aer Lingus. You never know, I may get some points as compensation.
Funny thing is, I met the marketing manager for Jet Blue at JFK. He is Irish and was heading home. With the delays (he was non revving) I think he ended up traveling two days later due to the delays. Told him what happened but he did not seem up to speed.

Thanks to all for the responses.

delo18 · 27-12-2009 07:42PM

Arrived on the 23rd of December in Dublin having checked my bags all the way through from Dulles-Boston-Dublin (stop in Shannon) with JetBlue...flight was delayed I barely made the plane so knew my bags wouldnt! Still no sign of them have been on to Jetblue in Dulles and Boston and they claim to have given them to Aer Lingus (seems to be based purely on the fact they just dont have them in their office!) And all AerLingus Boston could do was confirm they didnt make my flight and they dont have them either.

Im very frustrated at the moment Im only home for a week so this has put a bit of a dampner on things. JetBlue and Aer Lingus dont seem to have a procedure to follow when this happens, or any type of system to when exchanging bags I'd like to know basically was JetBlue the last with it or Aer Lingus. As an aside it doesnt seem fair that if the bag went missing on JetBlues side that Aer Lingus is responsible for paying the compensation? Not sure if thats how it works.

Sorry if Ive hi-jacked the thread but I was wondering if anyone else has had similar problems over the weekend when connecting between the 2?

Would love to know also if the only other passenger who made the same connecting flights has recieved his luggage yet!

BuffyBot · 28-12-2009 01:11AM

It's always the last airline that is due to handle your bag (even if it turns out they didn't) that takes responsibility for dealing with the missing bag - it's the industry standard. Think about it - if you flew Aer Lingus to London and BA to Sydney and your bag didn't make it - there isn't going to be a Aer Lingus office at Sydney to help you as they don't fly there. That's why last airline on the itinery will always be responsible for dealing with your missing baggage complaint. This is why Aer Lingus in Dublin are the people you need to be dealing with.

28-12-2009 11:42PM

I'm also confused about this, OP. Puerto Rico is in the US, so there should be no problem with bags not being checked through. Isn't the Dublin - San Juan route booked as one journey through Aer Lingus? I can't see why it should be your problem about collecting bags, or why like one poster here, you should have to pay extra for 'excess baggage' on the Jet Blue leg. I can't see any reason it shouldn't work like any other connecting flight booked with the one airline.

I can't see any reason for your bags not being booked through. The most likely scenario would be the ground staff not realising that Jet Blue and Aer Lingus are a partnership for this flight, as I doubt they have many passengers travelling to Dublin from PR, but if the employee said the booking was put through separately, it sounds like a problem was made at the reservations level. It's a fairly big screw up anyhow. I'd be interesting in any info you find out, best of luck OP!

BuffyBot · 29-12-2009 12:36AM

but if the employee said the booking was put through separately, it sounds like a problem was made at the reservations level.

Technically, the Aer Lingus and JetBlue bookings are two seperate bookings, just made in one transaction via the Aer Lingus website. They basically stitched together their two booking engines to work togetherm but when you make the booking, you get two booking references: Aer Lingus, and a seperate JetBlue booking reference. However, they still check through luggage etc made on these bookings.

It's a weird little arrangement, unique to those two airlines.

So the check-in agent may have been right in one small aspect, even when being very wrong in the greater scheme of things

29-12-2009 12:46AM

BuffyBot wrote: »

Technically, the Aer Lingus and JetBlue bookings are two seperate bookings, just made in one transaction via the Aer Lingus website. They basically stitched together their two booking engines to work togetherm but when you make the booking, you get two booking references: Aer Lingus, and a seperate JetBlue booking reference. However, they still check through luggage etc made on these bookings.

It's a weird little arrangement, unique to those two airlines.

So the check-in agent may have been right in one small aspect, even when being very wrong in the greater scheme of things

Yeah, sorry, that's what I meant - I basically meant to say that none of this should be the passenger's responsibility. It's not like booking one flight to NYC and a totally different one to PR. I'm especially surprised at people having to pay extra for Jet Blue baggage - that seems really poor form, as it IS part of the same flight as far as the passenger is concerned. I'm actually thinking it probably was the agent not being aware of the arrangement with Aer Lingus, as they probably rarely encounter passengers going through to Dublin. I'm surprised the route even exists at all, to be honest. I can't imagine there's much demand for it?

BuffyBot · 29-12-2009 12:15PM

I'm surprised the route even exists at all, to be honest. I can't imagine there's much demand for it?

I'm sure there is plenty of local traffic between PR and NY to sustain it

. As I said at the beginning (and to re-inforce what you say), it was most likely a clueless check-in agent. Not unique to either Aer Lingus or JetBlue in my experience!

29-12-2009 05:53PM

BuffyBot wrote: »

I'm sure there is plenty of local traffic between PR and NY to sustain it . As I said at the beginning (and to re-inforce what you say), it was most likely a clueless check-in agent. Not unique to either Aer Lingus or JetBlue in my experience!

LOL obviously the JetBlue leg is busy! I meant the demand for an Aer Lingus flight from Dublin - how many people want to go to Puerto Rico from Ireland? I was really surprised to see it as an option on the website. I'd have assumed you'd just have to make 2 separate bookings.

MICKEYG · 11-01-2010 02:06PM

Got a letter from Aer Lingus apologizing for the trouble. They offered to reimburse any out of pocket expenses I incurred. They were all covered by EI themselves so I will decline. My complaint has been passed on to the interline manager. I'll keep you posted on what happens.

As for an issue with the agent. The Lady in San Juan couldn't do it and when I got to JFK and asked the crew in the office there if they could do anything they checked their system and said they couldn't as they were separate bookings. So maybe not an individual error but something in the computer system?

BuffyBot · 11-01-2010 05:16PM

I'm not surprised. I doubt Aer Lingus can much details of the JetBlue booking, and I doubt JetBlue can see much of the Aer Lingus booking. Unlike when you book a flight with Aer Lingus and it offers you a connection with United for example (where it would be all one booking), the EI/JetBlue partnership is kind of unique - they are two seperate bookings in reality. It's just an arrangement that allows you to book a JetBlue flight without having to go visit their site and book all over again, and allows you to have luggage tagged/checked through (and an understanding that if things go wrong, they'll look after you (which normally wouldn't happen if you booked two flights seperately with two different airlines).

If you look at your Aer Lingus confirmation mail, somewhere in it should be a JetBlue confirmation number seperate from the Aer Lingus one. The last one I had, it was so small as to be barely noticable in the big lump of text they send

MICKEYG · 12-01-2010 10:28AM

BuffyBot wrote: »

I'm not surprised. I doubt Aer Lingus can much details of the JetBlue booking, and I doubt JetBlue can see much of the Aer Lingus booking. Unlike when you book a flight with Aer Lingus and it offers you a connection with United for example (where it would be all one booking), the EI/JetBlue partnership is kind of unique - they are two seperate bookings in reality. It's just an arrangement that allows you to book a JetBlue flight without having to go visit their site and book all over again, and allows you to have luggage tagged/checked through (and an understanding that if things go wrong, they'll look after you (which normally wouldn't happen if you booked two flights seperately with two different airlines).

If you look at your Aer Lingus confirmation mail, somewhere in it should be a JetBlue confirmation number seperate from the Aer Lingus one. The last one I had, it was so small as to be barely noticable in the big lump of text they send

I saw that number and used it to book a seat on Jet Blue. Will keep ypu posted on how this works out.

Viva La Gloria · 30-06-2011 10:28PM

Major bump, I know....

But I just booked flights to Jacksonville for October. Going over is fine, stopping off in Chicago and then flying with an Aer Lingus (operated by United/GoJet flight) to Jacksonville. But coming back we fly from Jacksonville with JetBlue to New York JFK and then Aer Lingus to Dublin.

But when we were booking in the bags, it said "Bags can be booked for Aer Lingus Flights only." I assume this means that our bags with JetBlue from Jacksonville to JFK aren't booked in because in my confirmation email it says "Book in bags" beside that flight info. But when you click on the link it just brings you straight to the Aer Lingus homepage. But because the flight is domestic, Jacksonville->JFK I shouldn't have any issues? I've emailed JetBlue to ask whether or not we need to book in bags on that flight. It's all very confusing. Anyone know how quick they respond?

BuffyBot · 01-07-2011 01:02AM

Your booked bags for Aer Lingus would include your domestic flights both ways. You wouldn't have to book baggage with the other airlines separately.

Viva La Gloria · 01-07-2011 12:11PM

but then why does it say "Book Bags" in the email on the JetBlue flight? When I click that link it just brings me directly to the Aer Lingus homepage.

BuffyBot · 01-07-2011 05:38PM

Because computer systems are sometimes dumber than you give them credit for.

Viva La Gloria · 02-07-2011 12:19AM

Still a bit skeptical tbh. But at least it's on the way back and not on the way over so I don't care as much

Aer Lingus / Jet Blue - What did I do wrong?

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