Originally Posted by
stephem
While NooBs who have never used this (or maybe even left the US) get their underwear in a bunch trying to do mental gymnastics imposing meanings on words that differ from China's policy, it is plain as day that this is an intended way (intended by the PRC govt) around having to get a visa for short stays. If you look at the history of it, it started in a couple of provinces and has been so successful at raking in $$ they have expanded it.
The problem here is not the policy and not even the intent, it is that the silly tool that US carriers rely on is not semantically interoperable with the China TWOV policy. And so to properly assess validity of travel to China without a visa from the US, the airline agent needs to do something that to them (and anyone slavishly insisting that "destination" means what it means to IATA and not simple a "third region" as China means) looks unnatural and potentially put the third region in as a destination- even if it is only a "connection" under IATA terms.
Well US carriers do use Timatic which is based on information provided by the Chinese representatives to the IATA. Timatic is not used only by American carriers but by a number of carriers around the world. Absence some clarification from the Chinese representative to Timatic, AA agents, like many other airlines, will continue to have the same issues with the terms in Timatic.
As for noobs applying the common understanding of terms ... it may be that some of those noobs have lived in several countries, flown millions of miles, and might even have some knowledge of China and Chinese government methods of communication.