Originally Posted by ContinentalFan
Here's what you do: if you're watching your flight you can monitor the inventory in the front cabin.
Yes, you can. But again, CO may decide a few days before the flight that there're actually not going to sell the J inventory and release them over to the award side. Regardless, the cheapest fare when you do decide to refund out of H into a lower class stands a good chance of being higher than what you would have paid originally.
Originally Posted by ContinentalFan
If it fills up fast, then cancel the ticket and switch to a lower fare. Obviously, if you're buying a ticket right before a flight, you seldom get a deeply discounted fare.
CO has a bad habit of kicking over inventory at the last minute and if you decide to wait out till the last minute because CO shows an inventory of J9 D0 Z0 R0 than you're stuck.