Standby - Multiple segments/last segment the next day
 

I've been trying to get an answer to this from UA CS, but nobody really seems to know how it works.

Let's say you're confirmed on two flights - A and B - and you wanted to fly standby on the same day later. There's lots of A segments later in the day, but there aren't any B flights that you can make on that day if you take a later A flight. So basically, you'd be able to make half the trip on a later A flight on the same day, but if you do, you won't be able to catch a B flight on the same day.

In that case, what's the standby policy? Can I standby for a later A flight even though I won't be able to make my B flight? Or does the fact that I won't be able to make my B flight somehow make me ineligible for standing by on later A flights?

I don't think you can do that, I believe you can only standby for the same route on the same day

Instead of 'A' and 'B', how about some actual cities? I wouldn't reccomend what you're planning, but knowing the routing will help better answer your question.

It's SFO-ORD-MKE, in this case. My car is at MKE, and so I'm going to have to get back there somehow - even if it's by train. I've got an afternoon flight, but I just don't know if I'm going to make it with the traffic.

I've missed it before and was able to standby, but I'm wondering if that was a fluke. In that instance, Mr Chicken even confirmed me on the next flight and then a flight the next morning from ORD to MKE.....