That is an interesting observation. My ticket was for JFK-HKG, so if they wanted to bust it up, they could have reissued right there (which would have taken like 3 minutes), and put me in F from JFK-YVR, and then in J/F-waitlist from YVR-HKG. Ex-post, that would have been the right thing to do. The risk of me making a scene in YVR would have been minimal, since I wouldn't be holding an F-boarding pass for YVR-HKG. Any fuss and I would have been offloaded and left in the lurch (and maybe arrested) in YVR. Besides, I was perfectly civil throughout the entire episode, so its not like they were boarding a time bomb.

So, although it is apparent AA screwed the pooch (although for all purposes the he-said/she-said game is really not my responsibility), CX could have corrected it with a bit of creative thinking. So, effectively, I flew in a lower class than paid, even though availability existed in the higher class of service. Sounds to me like an involuntary downgrade, at least for the JFK-YVR. YVR-HKG is dicier, because I did decide against it, but only after I proactively sought the seat. If I hadn't, it would have been a clear continuation of said involuntary downgrade.

Technically, I could have thought of these solutions myself, and suggested them to CX. I didn't, and I would next time. But as a passenger, I am not expected to have done so, and thus the AA screwup and the subsequent CX cockup weren't really my responsibility. However, I was the one that was prejudiced in the end.

I am just going to send off the letter to CX, with a copy to AA and the ground staff in JFK, and we'll see what develops. I don't have anything to lose, really.

[This message has been edited by Pickles (edited 09-29-2003).]