Originally Posted by
rufflesinc
it is in the airline's interest to fill empty seats on an earlier flight , as a corollary of AA's D0 push. Airlines charge more for certain flights based on an assumption there is more demand for those flights, but that doesn't apply on day of flight.
Of course, the same argument doesn't apply for wanting to switch to a later flight.
OP and others are doing the airline a favor by going out on an earlier flight with empty seats.
Well, if the OP is offering to do the airline a favour then there is still no reason to be upset if the airline chooses not to take up that generous offer
It is not in airline's interest to fill the empty seats for free - it is in the airline,s interest to maximise margin. AA offers the option to change a restricted ticket for a low fee ( compared to the normal change fee ) on the day; don't like it , then don't change flights
There are plenty of airlines who do not even offer this - turn up early with an inflexible ticket, then sit and wait ; turn up late and pay the no show fee /change fee/fare difference or even have to just buy a new ticket