PHX Flyer: You are going on to a different point now. The point relevant to OP's case was whether by accepting an alternative flight, the OP had waived her right to sue the airline.
But it is true that it is in the airline's favour that instead of trying to take off with a defective aircraft they flew the parts in required to fix it, and this may have taken the two days, and then during these two days they did not keep the passengers stranded in the airport telling them over and over to just wait a few more hours as sometimes happens, but sent them home. At least most of these had their homes here to return to, but a few of them were New York based and were returning home on that flight and they were stranded in a foreign country. Their stories were carried in the press later how the New York based passengers had to either sleep in the airport or go to hotels at their own expense.
But the question is, during a delay of 2 days, is an airline still liable to the passengers for the delay? Getting to sleep in your own bed is of course better than sleeping in the airport. But remember these passengers had to spend those two days waiting by their telephones, not being able to do anything else for their weekend, when relatives in New York had been expecting them. Some other passengers lost hotel bookings in New York and had to pay one night's hotel for their cancellations.
An airline must be liable for delays, unless for acts beyond their control (e.g. weather), but mechanical failures are the airline's responsibility. In the instant case this OP's delays in DFW arose from AA's mechanical failures and likewise she is entitled to damages for delay.
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