Originally Posted by
Lux Flyer
Or they're collecting data on what people would want for VDB. Getting a lot of these offers as well even when they have multiple tickets for sale and semi-open seat maps (obviously not 100%). But I think it's less likely 1/4 of the plane is no showing to clear 2 page of standbys as it is AA is doing some data collection (which is actually smart to do because all their old data on people's travel/VDB/flexibility habits has probably gone out the window in the past year).
If they really are requesting far more volunteers than would be likely to be needed, it could be a result of their low capacity currently, in the case of IROPS. I doubt it's purely for internal research purposes.
I have noticed flights that were wide open suddenly become zeroed out if even just one other flight is delayed. AA's capacity has been so restricted due to COVID-19 (just like other airlines) that, when cancellations/delays happen, it's harder to find other flights to re-accommodate those passengers. Perhaps they're just trying to get a better idea in advance of which passengers have flexible schedules.