How to turn your unused or canceled AA tickets into cash and eliminate hesitation to book a trip whenever you want
I make a lot of flight bookings.
Well, since I’m constantly talking about being an “Opportunity Traveler” I have to put my cash and miles where my mouth is, right? Part of that is chasing opportunities and being adventurous with my ticket buying.
And thanks to the Lockdown, now is the golden era to snag opportunities because most big carriers, including American, Delta, and United, don’t charge change fees.
Which brings me to cars that travel 230 miles per hour.
One of those “opportunities” for me was the Mexico City Formula One Grand Prix — an event that I would have loved to attend. So I booked a flight, even though I knew there was only a 25% chance I’d make it in the end, given work and other commitments. But the water does sometimes part.
So if I ended up canceling the trip, I would lose nothing. It doesn't take long to book and I love the process – fantasizing about exotic experiences can be as good as being there (fantasy often exceeds reality). I’ll just need to rebook within 12 months if I don’t use the ticket. Which leads me to the topic of this report.
First a couple of American Airlines definitions:
Flight Credit: A “Flight Credit” is issued when a customer cancels their flight. These are valid for one year from the date of purchase and the new booking also has to be in the same name as that of the Flight Credit.
Trip Credit: A “Trip Credit” is any residual value that isn’t used from a Flight Credit. It is transferable, meaning you can use that trip credit for anyone.
A Ticket That’s as Good as Cash
Given that my name is on the ticket, I have to be the one who takes the make-up flight. This is the one called a “Flight Credit.” For someone like me, it’s no big deal because I’m flying all the time if not making fantasy bookings half the time.
But what if you only take one or two flights a year? Or you fly a lot like me and are booking for friends or family that don’t fly as much. Maybe your job makes it hard to take a lot of trips. In those scenarios, wouldn’t it be great to make these unused tickets available to your spouse, a family member, or a friend?
Lean in, dear reader… I’m about to show you how you can turn a Flight Credit into a ticket that anyone can use — which is basically like turning it into cash.
Convert your unused flight to cash
It’s quite simple.
You take your AA Flight Credit and exchange it for the cheapest ticket you can find, in the name of the original traveler. The amount left over becomes a Trip Credit (more commonly called a “travel voucher”), which is valid for a future booking — for anybody.
For example, let's say you have a $1,000 ticket. You cancel it, and now have $1,000 value in the form of an AA Flight Credit. You exchange the AA Flight Credit for (let’s say) a $49 one-way coach ticket from LAX to Phoenix, leaving you a remaining value of $951, which is now in the form of a trip credit (an AA voucher). That $951 trip credit is now valid for anyone to use. “Here you go, hon, visit your cousin in Omaha!”
We found a $49 flight, but you might be able to do better. Either way, you’re essentially turning your unused ticket into a usable ticket for someone else. It’s like converting it to cold hard cash, and you just exchange that $49 for your next ticket! So, do you have any tickets lying around waiting for a cash conversion? You know what to do.
Keep these options in mind if you're hesitant to pull the trigger on your next ticket, as you have nothing to lose when you book tickets.
There's never a reason to lose out on a low fare going up.