To me it’s the same thing, or that was my intent at least. I should clarify that I meant it in circumstances where it was the only possible option to construct a route on a given date. Obviously this would only work on more obscure routes and not common ones where there are lots of options.

Ive run into it a couple times. Living in ANC options dwindle quickly in the winter. I’ve had agents immediately say 2 certs would be needed and anytime I’ve pushed back and gotten a supervisor involved I’ve been told the first agent didn’t realize only one cert is required in these instances. It’s so uncommon many frontline agents don’t realize. One supervisor did check with revenue management once, who agreed that in cases where no possible routing meets the connection time limits, one cert can be applied to a routing where the customer takes the first available connection, even if it’s greater than the 4 hr domestic / 24 hr international rule. I think it’s more of a manual override than published policy.