simonrsays

I was on stand by for an earlier flight - paid comfort fare offering same day standby
I was listed at X according to mobile app standby list
Passenger X+1 is given the last seat.
- i have screenshot of standby list.

Passenger X+1 was on the next flight which was oversold. I was not from this flight.

Does AC play loose with the standby list to minimise compensation payments on the later flight.
Is this a standard practice?

RangerNS

While there may be some priority list they are supposed to follow, there is for sure a lot of wiggle room.

From your perspective, you should remember it is standby. If you wanted a confirmed seat aboard that flight, you could have paid for it. Standby is way down the priority list.

For that matter, PAX who jumped ahead of you might have been confirmed by a concierge or by reservations, either because they paid, or some employee did the right thing and got them out before they would be late.

YOWzer

My anecdotal experience on Rapidair (YOW-YYZ): Many times I am very low on the list (e.g. #8 our of 3 seats available) for standby in J, and will usually still clear and get a seat in J (rarely in Y). I am sure that there any many business travelers on that route, and are on standby to get home earlier (even if they are not at the airport) just in case they finish their meetings earlier. Despite all that, I still clear. It makes me wonder did I 1) skip the order 2) many on the confirmed list did not show up at the airport 3) many on the standby list did not show up at the airport or 4) both 2 and 3.

Even then, it feels like I clear standby a lot more than I would anticipate if I just look at the list.

canadiancow

PDM clears the list automatically 5 minutes after check-in closes. If this is when the person was cleared, it was the system following its own priority. If it was sometime after that, then it was an agent doing something manual.

While I have seen some agent shenanigans with standby after dealing with no-shows (i.e. a flight attendant got the last J seat when I ended up in Y), the bigger issue is that the order the list is processed in is not the order displayed in the app.

For simple cases, it is. Like two Super Elites on M fares standing by for the same flight, whoever's on top will clear first. But when you start mixing in standby, upgrades, deadheading, and employees, the list just doesn't seem to be accurate.

As for seeing yourself clear when there are people above you, that can be caused by several factors. First of all, one time I booked a flight, went on standby for an earlier flight, then cancelled the whole booking. I remained on the standby list for the earlier flight. Obviously I would not clear, and the person after me would. Other times I've been on standby for a flight that departed before my inbound arrived. Obviously I would not clear, and the person after me would.