Well said
I am not a lawyer or know much about law. Is it not possible that in an industry where it costs millions and millions just to operate in an environment that has ridiculously low fares as an expectation from its customers, that the carrier could, rather than pay more for your hotel accommodation than you have paid for your ticket, just give you your money back? A lot of other places where you spend your money and then at the last minute they can't deliver, simply offer you your money back rather than make an effort to supply you at a later date.
Of course the industry knows that you are likely to a long way from home and therefore has always tried to accommodate its customers within the logistics of having a/c in the wrong place and the extended time it may take to get the operation back to normal.
I am not trying to sound dismissive to the rights of people that have been severely inconvenienced, I am just trying to point out that if the rules just tie up the airlines then they may just look at loopholes to save them money.
An a/c is not like your car where if you notice an odd little noise somewhere on your way to work then you decide to get it checked out on your days off.
6