Originally Posted by CPH-Flyer

The challenge is probably that we who understand the most about the transit rules in general, probably know very little about the intricacies of non-rev/ID travel.

If you can't get your second flight confirmed until you are in the airport in Japan, then that might be a bit of a challenge to allow you to board in the US. If we ignore covid and entry restrictions for a moment, what would the normal flow be for this journey, go through transit flow and go to the next gate and do the "stand-by rain dance" and hope for a seat fall down in your lap, or to go through arrivals and start nagging the check-in staff until a seat magically opens?

I have seen reports of UA staff travelling on UA to Guam via Japan, only getting a confirmation of the second flight in Japan. But I don't know if that is easier for UA staff on UA than it is for non JL staff on JL.