Originally Posted by
oliver2002
The system allows standby listing and airline employee travel is handled US style. Altea even clears the list using the PCV if so desired. Lufthansa allows you to 'flex' even in low booking classes if you are willing to pay a bit more (50-75€). The change is handled in the DCS, so the booking class etc doesn't matter.
Even on a Lufthansa flexible business class ticket, one needs to be persistent. More often than not for me, it required long discussions with fussy gate agents at FRA, who were telling me it was too late to change since meals had already been loaded; and it required quite a lot of cajoling to convince them that I would happily forgo the meal if it meant getting home sooner (in time for supper).
My strategy at FRA used to be booking, say, a 17:00 departure, and then leaving the office with enough buffer that I would normally arrive at the gate (just) in time for boarding of the 16:00 departure. But I then often had to argue with the agents for 5 minutes to let me on, despite this being an official benefit of the flexible ticket. They always did in the end, but often made it sound like they were doing me a favour.