A very common misunderstanding among elite frequent flyers is to see first class seats available, but their upgrade not clear. Something must be wrong! After all, the airline promises space available upgrades within a certain number of hours until departure. That time has passed, and there’s first class space available!
It so insulting as an Executive Platinum that @AmericanAir keeps on selling upgrades despite my flight being in 2 days, past the 100 hour mark where AA says upgrades will clear complimentary. Obviously seats are available. @garyleff
— Franz Orban (@FranzOrban) March 6, 2024
But that is not how this works.
- An airline might start making complimentary first class seats available 1, 2, 3, or 5 days prior to departure. Or they might not.
- Seats for sale, and seats that the airline has decided to offer as upgrades are two different things.
- Seats an airline does not expect to sell don’t even necessarily become available for upgrade! A cabin might have six seats left, the airline thinks it can sell two of those, but won’t process upgrades – afraid that giving away open seats might discourage a customer from buying the two they can sell (since those same customers might get the seats free).
United Airlines Domestic First Class
Airlines used to basically have a first class price, and very few people paid it. 90% of domestic first class cabins were available on points or for upgrades.
Then airlines began selling first class at discount prices, and even setting first class prices at a fixed amount over whatever the lowest coach fare was. The price of first class fell dramatically, and more seats sold.
But there were still seats that weren’t being sold for cash! And airlines now market those seats at a discount to people who already booked coach. Sometimes those ‘buy ups’ are super cheap.
- Airlines are now selling around three quarters of their first class seats for (some amount of) cash, on average.
- That makes first class seats very hard to get as a complimentary upgrade. The airline may keep trying to sell $59 or $99 upgrades through check-in, while refusing to process any free upgrades for elite flyers.
I’m an American Airlines Executive Platinum member. You’d think I might have a good shot at an upgrade flying Austin to Dallas, though there are many premium flyers out of Austin. The airline though is offering to sell first class seats for a $54 upcharge, jumping the upgrade queue.
This amounts to a decision that small amounts of current cash from elites or even just occasional flyers trumps longer-term income streams from regular customers. That’s more or less the bet airlines are making. It turns off elites. I remember being shocked the first time I saw United offer a $59 upgrade and pitch it based on the number of elite frequent flyers waiting for an upgrade that I would be trumping.
Still, if there are leftover seats in first class at the gate, those are given away based on elite status. Or are they? At several airlines now deadheading pilots now get priority over customers for first class upgrades at the gate.
Trying to use your confirmed international upgrades you’ve earned upon achieving status? American Airlines sells upgrades for cash cheaper than other airlines – as low as $350 to go from coach to business class on Los Angeles to Sydney. No wonder there’s no space available for a systemwide upgrade!
American Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Business Class
It does not surprise me at all to see American offer $500 upgrades to elites waitlisting for an upgrade on New York JFK to Milan. Although – if it happened as described – dropping the upgrade request when declining the buy up, and relegating the passengers to middle seats, seems like incompetence not malice.
For months, we've had a systemwide upgrade request in for Katie's @AmericanAir flight tonight. It never cleared.
When she went to check in, AA was happy to sell her an upgrade for $500! She declined and AA removed her systemwide request!
Now she can't get re-added to the list pic.twitter.com/XZptxOSUCp
— JT Genter (@JTGenter) March 7, 2024
Upgrades used to be the main benefit of elite status. When I was a Concierge Key member at American Airlines my upgrade percentage was ‘ok’ and when I was upgraded it was often into the last first class seat at the gate – a seat that might now go to a deadheading pilot.
Of course others might be flying less peak routes at less peak times and have a better upgrade percentage! Still, if a Concierge Key couldn’t reliably count on the upgrade, what chance does an Executive Platinum or Platinum Pro have? A decade ago an Executive Platinum would almost never miss out on an upgrade domestically or that they’d requested internationally.
Delta Air Lines Domestic First Class
This is why I consider mid-tier status to be the new sweet spot. Just assume you won’t get upgraded. Confirming extra legroom seats at booking is valuable. Having some priority to get onto another flight during irregular operations is valuable. But if you’re not getting upgraded, it’s probably not worth ‘chasing’ higher levels of status.
Sure, if you’re earning it naturally as I do, by all means. Or if you’re really close to a status level and can get there without much extra effort or cost, that may be worth it. But top published airline status levels aren’t worth what they once were.
I used to chase my Diamond status on Delta, but earning medallion status has had zero impact on my flight planning for year.
The joke’s on the elites now. Ya’ll happily paying for first class when you used to get it for free. Fools!
@ Thing 1 — Even as a DM. the upgrade percentage must be like 20%.
Gary – exactly right! BTW, this isn’t one airline since DL, AA and UA all are trying to monetize first class seat sales or upgrades. I’m a long time traveler (now retired) that started with Delta (anyone else remember Royal Medallion status from the 80s/90s) then switched to AA where i was long time EP before retiring. Now simply Platinum for life on DL and same on AA (hope they follow DL’s lead and bump that to Platinum Pro for us 3 million milers). I actually cleared an upgrade on AA from JFK-CLT last week and was shocked.
While I certainly understand high level elite fliers feeling they aren’t getting “what they are owed” or someone thinking the airline has to process upgrades in the time window (same people whine about suite upgrades at hotels that show available and the hotel doesn’t upgrade them). Neither of these is guaranteed and, as you noted, the competition for an upgrade is tough, especially out of hub cities. I live in CLT and am usually 30-40 on the upgrade list as Platinum (like I said I assume I never will clear which is why last week was so shocking). When I board in group 3 I see quite a few EPs back in the MCE seats with me. It is a new world and upgrades will NEVER be like they were. If that bugs you then simply changing airlines isn’t the answer (since all are following the same playbook). I agree mid level to get most benefits except upgrades (eligible but never clear) is fine. Frankly, my lifetime Platinum status w AA and DL is just fine for me.
If you want first pay for it or buy an upgrade (or use miles). It is now that simple and all the whining about how they don’t clear isn’t going to change anything. If anything it will get worse since DL has talked about setting up different classes in first and likely you will see a charge for seat assignment at the lowest level of First Class (and you know the other 2 airlines will quickly follow)
@AC—i never thought I’d see the words “Royal Medallion” again. Brag tags still in the drawer. Still hoping AA will improve our Plat for life status. Maybe someday . . .
I am only a MVP Gold with Alaska yet am upgraded about 2/3rds of my flights, whether booked with money or points.
It helps that I travel on Tu/We/Sa due to lower cost which also usually means greater availability for upgrades
Sitting back with a bowl of popcorn and my cash back card with loyalty to no one enjoying the comments.
I’ve had decent luck as Alaska MVP 100k. My upgrade cleared on a non stop Seattle to EWR. I even found an EWR to SEA nonstop with available upgrade space I could use my gold upgrade. Even as a MVP gold I got an upgrade on JAL flight from HND to DEL. I’ve found it all just comes down to luck.
Bag benefits are what I care about most as I always check multiple bags so AA Platinum/PPro are my sweet spots.
@Gary Great article!
The good old days of the 1980’s. UA gave out so many upgrade certificates you’d go into runaway since every flight generated more certificates that the flight consumed. Pretty soon I had a stack of them in spite of using them to upgrade every flight (there were always seats and everyone was available for upgrade).
To be young again…
@Tom K and Diego – I agree Alaska has better upgrade availability (for now at least) than the “big 3” carriers. However now that Alaska is in One World I wouldn’t be surprised if they don’t follow a similar path. Enjoy it while you can.
The beauty of social media. Where people like Mr. Orban can put their ignorance on display for the entire world to see. He clearly does not understand how it works.
I tried for an award seat on SQ but failed. Right upto flight time they had two seats available for sale but would
Not release an award. Tough to get awards these days regardless of airline.
Airlines are a business and their job is to make a profit. I have no issue with them selling the F cabin as aggressively as they are. If you want first buy first. I have no expectation of UA giving me complimentary space in a premium cabin.
I’m an ExPlat and UA1K. That’s LOTS of flying. Upgrades never clear. I just buy first outright or pay the upgrade. So loyalty means nothing to me these days. I cancelled my expensive UA credit card and will not renew my AA Executive Citi card. The lounges are crowded day care centers anymore, so the credit card access benefit has diminished. I now buy tickets based on schedule, aircraft type, price and availability. Whether it is on AA, DL, UA, AS, etc no longer matters.
I’m off the hamster wheel. No more credit card spend or chasing elite status. Zero loyalty to my long-time preferred carrier. What they have sacrificed (millions of miles on their airline, large credit card spend, many, many yearly flights) is now gone for good. Good luck replacing that revenue with the once a year flyer in the back. You just traded me for the guy who buys a single $299 ticket, and maybe he went for the $100 upgrade.
Let’s recap: you ‘gained’ a once a year flyer for $399. You lost the guy making 30 flights a year (domestic + international combined) worth $40K, plus $100K in credit card spend, and additional dollars on affiliated partners (Hertz, Avis, etc).
As they say here in Texas, that dog don’t hunt. Airline math = crazy bad math.
@ Ft Worth native – feel good about yourself but frankly the airlines won’t miss you. Their load factor is high and for every AA flyer that swears they are “off the hamster wheel” and won’t fly them I bet you will. If you live in Ft Worth I doubt you will connect if there is a non-stop (usually AA). Also for everyone like you that somehow thinks they are hurting the airline by not flying as much understand there is probably a DL or UA flyer doing the EXACT SAME THING that will be buying the ticket on AA you otherwise would have purchased. In other words – be as self righteous as you want but you don’t really matter.
BTW, talk about “off the hamster wheel” I’m lifetime elite on AA, DL and UA but lifetime elite on most major hotel chains (including Marriott lifetime Titanium which isn’t even offered anymore) so I NEVER has to fly a specific airline or stay in a specific hotel. I’m now retired and book all my travel around what best suits me for timing, convenience, comfort and location (with price a secondary consideration all things being relatively equal). Life is good to be me. Feel bad for all you “road warriors” slogging away on planes and in hotels every week. I did that for almost 40 years but now can just chill and do what I want, when I want. As I said, life is good.
@AC probably needs to have another Geritol with a Metamucil chaser and quit worrying about @Ft Worth native’s spend habits. Frankly I’m right there with @ Ft Worth native. My travel habits are not designed to “hurt” an airline. They are more a reflection of common sense rather some “self righteous” virtue signaling. Business people know the cost of customer acquisition is generally higher than retention.@ Ft Worth native makes some accurate and valid points. I’m based in Dallas and still fly UA enough to be 1K, more by accident than design. Yes, it is a fortress hub and I fly a lot of AA, but by no means will I be married to them.
@AC
I only did it to feel better about myself. I haven’t stepped foot on AA metal in 8 years. I have earned different status on Delta and Southwest at the same time. I could hit diamond if I were loyal only to Delta. But Southwest has direct flights. I book direct first (unless it’s AA). I really don’t care if AA makes 100 billion or goes bankrupt. As long as I don’t give them a penny I feel good. Also flew Air Canada once. No one should do that to themselves. My first 25 hour “delay”. I might try AA again. But only if they go bankrupt, fire all management and decertify the union.
It is clear the US airlines can fill their planes without spending anything to earn loyalty. And that is their right.
I just buy F or J and fly the flights I want. It gets me low to mid-tier status on a couple of airlines, with some nominal benefits (though right now, free seat selection on BA Club World adds up to a lot for me). it all works fine.
@H2oman
I beat you, haven’t flown AA since September 2009 !
I have 2 AA systemwide upgrades that are going to expire at the end of the month. I’ve tried to use them on flights, but to no avail. It’s crazy that they advertise it’s a perk you get with Executive Platinum, but you can never seem to use them.
@David
I wish I had stopped abusing myself sooner. I liken it to abused spouse. I just kept thinking things would get better. Realized after multiple incidents in DFW and CLT it wasn’t. Took a little effort to avoid them but been well worth it.
I’m happy with Delta Silver. I don’t even request upgrades to comfort+ anymore. We fly NYC-ORD regularly and appreciate being able to select the preferred seats for free. We don’t even bother to request comfort+ upgrades, which are usually separate middle seats. We’ve come to prefer flying Delta over AA and UA, because they’re a bit better than the other majors. . I just “bought” Silver by adding the Delta Reserve to my Delta Plat so I don’t have to think about earning the 5K MQDS . The much more useful companion fares, Resy credits , rides haré credits, , lounge access and hotel credits provide good value for us .
I have been Exec Plat on AA for over 20 consecutive years. To a large extent I am captive since I fly from a regional airport to a hub. It is either AA or UA and there is no difference. I went years being upgraded on every flight. I could book System Wide upgrades months in advance. The perks were really worth something. A few years ago, it all changed. Started seeing upgrade list at the gate with lots of Exec Plats including me that did not get upgraded. System Wide upgrades became a joke. AA agent would say we can book your regional flight to the hub with a System Wide, but you will be wait listed for your connecting flight. The connecting flight of 3-4 hours was what I wanted guaranteed and of course it would not fill at the gate, so I burned a System Wide upgrade on a 40-minute flight. My System Wides now expire worthless every year. It was not rocket science to figure out what was happening. AA was holding the seats to sell even for a few bucks rather than upgrade elite passengers. The perks of Elite status are almost worthless. I agree with many of the comments here. Rather than chase elite status on AA for sure, but also on any airline is futile. Get rid of the AA card and the loyalty mentality and get a card usable on multiple airlines or hotels and just fly the airline that makes the most sense for that trip. I think as more frequent flyers figure this out the airlines will find swapping someone who racks up 400,000 miles a year in credit card and flights for a guy who travels twice a year and a generic credit card just to make a couple of hundred bucks upgrading him is a losing proposition.
Honestly, they’re all the same now. Have been EXP since 2015 and have seen benefits diluted (with the most rapid decline in the 2022-2023 timeframe) and now it’s just a sad joke. We talk about how there aren’t upgrades for EPs, well typically due to the LP system there are now at least 15 -20 EPs on the upgrade list (I have access to the non rev app and can see the specific UPG code for each name on the list) for any hub-hub flight. So even if you take the infamous buy ups out of the equation, the lists are simply too top heavy now and there aren’t enough seats. Forgetting upgrades, if you don’t book at least a month in advance there aren’t even MCE seats available that aren’t middles.
The ONLY reason I stick with AA for now is because my partner works for them so I get 20% off every flight (including mileage awards). If / when that arrangement ends for whatever reason, buh bye AA credit cards. All spend then would go to CSR / Amex, and all flight options searched through google flights.
Am I wrong…..on AA the $$$ spent buying an upgrade earns miles but not Loyalty Points.
I stuck with the “new” AA after the US merger and saw that Parker and his team made things better (low hurdle, of course). Then I moved to SFO and got tired of disaster that was PHX morning bank connections. I’m relatively happy with UA though less so with Scott Kirby, but they are still much better than AA or Delta or SW IMHO. But the main point being made holds true. Upgrades are rare now even for UA 1k’s for reasons well stated above and by Gary. I guess it’s “life as transactional”.
It’s a bus. Get your free bag with your credit card, put your head down, and fall asleep.
Travel in America by plane. All the same. Pick the cheapest
It’s a bus. lol
Welcome to the rest of the world approach to upgrading. EU and other airlines try to monitize these seats, hence the quality of service is much better
The only losers here are OPM flyers whose corporate overlord only pays for Y.
And thats ok.
Leave the front for those of us who pay for our own tickets.
I agree with Bob. If you’re upset that your company’s/client’s spend is not getting you, and your family, upgraded to F (or J on international flights,) you are barking up the wrong tree. Those options disembarked when 11 FF programs became 4.
I’m sure I’m not the only one who saw this coming several years ago. It was an awful wrench when I gave up my United status (segued over from Continental) about 6 years ago. But it hasn’t made a bit of difference, UA still treats me just fine. Those of us who flew first class for twenty years for next to nothing now pay for that privilege. A SFO-EWR flight that used to cost $326 plus miles is now $1800. $1500 to Paris is now $4K. Or worse. I check upgrades before booking every flight. There just aren’t any; I got lucky with a flight to Beijing in 2018 and one to Paris a couple of years ago, but don’t remember seeing a domestic upgrade in ten years. There’s no point in howling about it, it just IS.
The only howling done is by OPM flyers.
Tell your boss to pay for J.
Thats who your beef is with
To all the posters who are saying “I am gonna be a free agent, the airlines are gonna suffer when they lose people like me as a customer by chasing after the once a year flier..”
You do realize this is generally a fixed / slow growth capacity business right? If you switch your business from AA to Delta, someone else is switching their business from Delta to AA.
Where it could hurt is stuff like credit card spend, but it seems like customers are still spending on their cobrand cards.
Oddly I have been upgraded on my three most recent Delta hops as a Platinum, so someone is still getting upgraded out there
Agree with Bernard. Business service is much better on Lufthansa and Swiss, for example. OK the seats are economy seats with space between but overall service is much better than US.
The whole obsession with the pilot upgrade is stupid. I work for an airline that does this and honestly I only see it a couple times a day. Besides, if the people who have my life in their hands need a comfy seat before they start flying so be it. You know who doesn’t have my life in their hands??? ELITES. Buy the damn seat if its that important to you.