Originally Posted by rjw242

And if AA allowed unlimited free standby for earlier flights, how many people would pay for the much cheaper, late flights and try to switch to the earlier ones?

Heck, this is something I've done numerous times as an elite. But the point being, if someone wants to get on an earlier flight, that earlier flight is by definition more valuable than the one they actually paid for. So there's no reason AA should give it away for free.