You cannot self-upgrade. If you see an empty first class seat, you can’t just take it. I have never, ever seen it actually work. What I’ve seen is passengers who tried it being embarrassed, and I’ve seen passengers escalate matters when they’re sent to the back and get kicked off the plane. But some are now trying it even though they know they’re going to get kicked out – they just want a free drink before that happens!
Here’s video of a United Airlines passenger being dragged off of a Shanghai – Newark flight after trying to upgrade himself to business class several times and stealing champagne.
And here’s a passenger on a Korean Air flight being dragged out of business class after attempting to self-upgrade. When cabin crew try to get her to move, she chants “US marshal! US marshal!” as though that’s whom she hopes responds. Then they try to move her and she laughs that she’s wearing a seat belt so she’s latched to the seat. After finally being dragged down the aisle, she shouts “nuclear disarmament!”
Like I said, this basically never works. But today I learned that some people know this, and still sit down in first class seats anyway. They figure they’re going to get kicked out, but they’ll just get moved to their seats in back – and probably get a free drink before they do!
Passengers flying from Providence, Rhode Island to Atlanta on Delta sat down in the bulkhread row of first class and settled in. The real passengers assigned to the seats boarded. And they headed to the back.
They quickly get up laugh and say “we are rookies” the flight attendant asks what row they are in and they say 24. They leave their bags and travel back to their row.
A flight attendant shares what these passengers were up to, and it’s not the first time:
[T}he flight attendant comes over and I tell him I’ve never seen anything like that before. He tells me it just happened for the first time to him earlier and that the people sat down, received their pre-flight booze and then said I’m just going to go say hi to my sister in the back of the plane and walked off with the free drink to obviously not return.
As commenters observed, “this is a new “hack” making its way around social media.” In fact, “Flight Attendants HATE this one simple trick!”
It may seem silly to do, but someone facing $10 for a cocktail in coach makes a quick calculation that as long as they don’t put up too much of a fight, apologize and act confused (they were drinking, after all!), it’s a cost savings.
Joke’s on them with domestic carriers like American Airlines, where flight attendants don’t usually bother offering first class passengers predeparture beverages.
People are that desperate to drink?
3rd World behavior (translated:American pathetic behavior)
Doesn’t happen anywhere else.
I just took a flight from Atlanta to San Diego first class. The entire trip it was next to impossible to use the bathroom. First of all, first class is sharing ONE bathroom with 20 first class passengers plus the flight attendants plus the pilots. However, the coach passengers are constantly coming up front to use the bathrooms. I don’t think this is right!!! I am paying a much higher fare. I shouldn’t have to stand in the aisle every time I needed to use the bathroom because of coach passengers not using their own bathrooms. In order to use the bathroom, you had to actually stand in the aisle otherwise, if you don’t you can’t use it. This has happened on many of my Delta first class flights. Flight attendants don’t enforce the rules. There is a curtain between coach and first class for a reason. The flight attendants are also allowing coach passengers to put their suitcases in the first class bin. It is very frustrating!!!
YouTuber Sam Chui talked about this on a CX flight he was on where his GF was the FA and the piggish passenger pushed her when confronted. He was dragged off in handcuffs.
How clever and silly. I see the flawed logic, like, with all the games these big companies play on us, how about a few free drinks on them. So, they took the risk, they got a freebie, but if they take it too far, they shouldn’t be surprised if they get Dr. Dao’d outta there and added to the no-fly list. Not worth it.
@Tom AndersonPecus: When flying in first class with Delta Air Lines, you expressed frustration about flight attendants permitting coach passengers to store their suitcases in the first-class overhead bins. The good news is, Tom, to help prevent you from having to gate-check your first-class luggage or to your final destination, as a premium customer, when the bins are occupied by coach passengers’ bags, flight attendants will allow you to place your luggage in any available overhead bin in the coach cabin at no additional charge.
I’m not sure how much of a “hack” this is. First class cabins IME are 90% of the time full. Now maybe someone plants their fat ass in a seat for a few minutes before the passenger that belongs in that seat shows up and maybe they will get a drink before that happens. Of course, if it’s AA less than a 50% chance there will be any pre departure beverage other than a choice of warm water or warm OJ.
Either way that should be an immediate denied boarding and kicked off the flight. That will stop this “hack” real quick.
Imagine if these people find a way to sneak into the lounge?
I’d be way too ashamed to try that move.