If I want to dispute an airline charge with my credit card company because I’m getting nowhere with the airline itself, can I do that any time or should I wait til after I’ve completed travel?

Here’s a little known fact: Initiating a dispute with the card company will cause your tickets on most airlines to be automatically suspended while the situation is investigated. To avoid that, wait until travel is complete before disputing a charge if you can. Most card companies give you a period of time after the transaction, often up to 120 days, to dispute it.