Hi Moyeung,

Thanks for bringing that to my attention, can't believe I didn't see that bit when I initially went through those rules myself.

What this means, from my understanding at least, is that the OP was correct in initially requesting that CA rebook him. In fact, he would have probably been in breach of his contract with AA if he had not done so. However, whether CA then complies with these AA rules or not does not affect AA's basic liability to the passenger for damages due to delay (as well as other causes) along the entire journey, as it is a carrier, namely the issuing carrier.

So, given the fact that CA refused to re-accommodate the stranded travelers, the OP can and should claim all out of pocket expenses from AA, who in turn have an excellent case for a claim against CA. Do you agree?