Are any of us surprised?
I have had bookings confirm with a PNR with UA/SA/ET without the credit card charge going thru, but an error message appeared on the website, so this is not unheard of. Additionally, I have had some AC agents be very dismissive of looking up a flight with a flight number and last name for privacy reasons.
So, I have sympathy for the guy.
Just today I tried to change seats on a confirmed and ticketed booking and received a 'Gateway Connection" error to the website, not once but twice. I finally gave up and called in. The agent was typing along and said "you know you can change seats on the website, sir".