Here is policy most people are not aware of: If you purchase a ticket for someone else, and the ticket holder is unable to use the ticket, the airline issues the credit to the ticketholder NOT the person who paid for it! So, you can purchase a ticket and you can cancel or change the same ticket...BUT you cannot receive the credit for the ticket YOU purchased - talk about stealing from customers! How about that for extremely poor customer relations! However, if you contact the CEO, President, etc. of the Airline with a letter and/or fax, they will usually modify the policy for you. Just be sure to be include as much relevant information in your letter as possible, and then try to be patient!