[shah121]

I had booked the tickets online but under different reservation numbers as I bought tickets seprately due to vacation days uncertainity. I went online and got seats together. I did not check in online as "special handling" is almost always required when traveling from DXB to the US. I received the following reply yesterday from CO: Note that there was no aircraft change, delay or even overbooking, LHR gate staff said someone in their office changed my itinrary 1-2 days before my departure date. And YES, I am siged up for flight notification via US Cell # and Email both of which I checked and nothing.
LHR staff gave 2000 miles and now the following email says $100 credit, that Im saw in an email. This is ridiculous on Continentals part! Comments?

"Thank you for contacting Continental Airlines.

I understand your frustration as you were not provided your originally flight as a result of a smaller aircraft substitution or decommit on your recent Continental flight. In an effort to prevent delaying or canceling a flight, it is sometimes necessary for us to use an alternate aircraft. When these situations occur, our staff tries to locate the same type of aircraft originally scheduled to operate the flight. In the event that an alternate type of aircraft must be used, we try to accommodate our passengers with seating as close as possible to those originally assigned.

I regret you were not notified your flight was changed before you arrived to the airport. When maintenance problems are reported, our Maintenance teams work diligently to prevent any flight disruptions. The decision to change an aircraft is often made at the last possible minute. In the event a flight is changed in time for us to notify our passengers before their arrival to the airport, every effort is made to do so. I apologize again that this was not the case during your recent travel.

Continental offers a unique and free flight information update service called Flight Status Notification. When you use Flight Status Notification, Continental will send an e-mail to your pager, mobile phone, or e-mail inbox at the specified time prior to the scheduled departure or arrival. The message will include the current departure or arrival time and gate information (when available).

To sign up to receive flight status pages, please visit the Travel Information - Flight Status & Information - Flight Status Notification section on our Web site, www.continental.com, and provide the required information.

In addition to the 2000 bonus OnePass miles the London service desk added to your account I have forwarded an electronic travel certificate on your behalf as compensation for your inconvenience. The travel certificate will be delivered via e-mail. Please allow three business days for processing.

Mr. Shah we appreciate your business and look for to serving you on a future Continental Airlines flight.

Thank you so much for choosing Continental Airlines.

[jimworcs]

Ok, so they are now suggesting that they had to substitute the aircraft for an alternative one. This is good for you, because that is something that is within their control. You are entitled to the compensation under the EU directive. You should now write to Continental and tell them that you were denied boarding and that you wish to claim compensation under EU directive 261/2004. Specify what time you actually arrived, compared to the time you were originally scheduled to arrive.

Your rights under EU directive 261/2004 are without prejudice to any other claim for damages you may make.