On my flight to Punta Arenas from Santiago, two people got on who were supposed to get on the next flight. They just let them fly and had the luggage delivered to the destination.
His friend who gave him the buddy pass is going to get into trouble for no reason now. This seems wholly unnecessary. My wife would fly standby all the time and they'll usually find some way to get on some plane at some time. It just won't be ideal. No reason to be this desperate.