'Not enough time for your bags': How a 90-minute connection rule upended a flight to Alaska

Thomas Larson thought he'd done everything right when he booked a flight from Raleigh-Durham to Ketchikan, Alaska. He’d bought a multi-airline itinerary through Alaska Airlines: The first leg was on American Airlines to Phoenix, then continuing on Alaska Airlines to Seattle and Ketchikan.

His connection in Phoenix was a seemingly safe 93 minutes.

But when an American Airlines agent in Raleigh-Durham refused to check his bags — claiming the connection fell short of a 90-minute minimum — Larson faced an impossible choice: miss his flight or buy a second ticket.

Larson quickly forked over $708 for a new one-way fare on the same flight, plus baggage fees. He hoped American Airlines would sort it out after he arrived in Alaska.

Of course, it didn't.

Larson's case raises three important que