I was booked on flight TW0843 from JFK to SFO on March 08, 2001 departing JFK at 4:45 PM. I checked in very early at approx 10:30 AM. Close to departure time, I needed to make a telephone call. Sice there were no telephones ear the gate, I had to go outside the security area and arrived at the gate at 4:25 PM, which was 20 minutes before the scheduled departure. The gate agents had closed the gate and refused to let me on the plane even though the aircraft had not yet left the gate. The aircraft did not leave the gate till 4:45 PM.

The gate agents told me that I had to be at the gate 30 minutes before departure. The TWA ticket jacket has the following information under
"CHECK-IN AND BOARDING:"
After checking in for the flight, passengers must be on board the aircraft 10 minutes (45 minutes for international, Puerto Rico and Hawaii flights) before scheduled departure time or their resrvations and seat assignments are subject to cancellation.

By denying me boarding, even though I was well within the time stipulated, the gate agents clearly violated my rights as a fare paying passenger. In addition, they were extremely rude.

I was then put on STANDBY for the next flight (TW0045) and arrived in SFO at 11:00 PM, three hours after my scheduled arrival. I did not get a meal on this flight. By the time I picked up the rental car and arrived at my friend's place in Los Gatos, it was past 1:00 AM.

On return, I contacted TWA and was offered a Denied Boarding Compensation voucher-good for domestic travel in the Continental United
States. I refused. This was TWA's normal compensation under their "TWA Customer Commitment" if I was denied boarding because the flight was oversold or "circumstances beyond TWA's control. They also had to accomodate me on a flight leaving within 2 hours. Actually they did not accomodate me at all. They put me on a standby list for a flight leaving 3 hours after the original flight and confirmed me 10 minutes prior to departure. This accompanied by extremely rude behavior and misrepresentation of the rules and policy. I was without a meal on a 6 hour transcontinental flight.

I asked for 2 Vouchers good for First Class Travel Systemwide on TWA or American (since it was already known at the time that TWA would stop flying within a few months). I also asked to comped AAdvantage Platinum for two years.

TWA did not agree. They essentially stuck to their offer of one domestic coach voucher good for travel on TWA only and we were at a stalemate. I wanted to seek some sort of legal remedy, but got busy with other things and never followed up.

I have now revived this matter with AA. Any of you experts out there have any suggestions?