There's always an optimist in the group. First, CFC always was an option, although perhaps an option less often chosen because of the ability to standby for free. Second, do you think the average traveler, who chooses their airline based on a few dollar difference in fares, is gonna pony up $50 (or whatever the CFC fee is) to change their $79 ticket? Some will, but my guess is not a lot. Third, unless AA changes when they make CFC seats available -- and maybe they will -- it only makes them available when there are a fair number of seats available. And finally, it remains to be seen how standby at the gate works and whether a passenger willing to pay $50 gets priority over an EXP; on a fully booked flight, I hope, and expect, that elites still will have priority on the standby list over a non-elite willing to pay $50.


Are you proposing that elites should have to pay more than $0 to standby or that we should be allowed to confirm flight changes for a lower fee? The former is just silly. The latter is great; I'd like to pay less for everything. I'm an elite; I deserve it.