[Anonymous]

[SwissExPat]

I had a strange experience on a long haul into LGW last week with BA. I was booked in Y+ (and doing my usual of eschewing the BA J product since the arrival lounge has disappeared and spending stg69 on a day room in Hilton LGW)

I checked the flight the day before departure and all but 1 seats in Y+ were allocated so I though there would be a good chance of an upgrade (i am BAEC Silver) during this busy holiday season.

I checked in on line 6 hours before departure and my seat was now 10F (rather than my initial 22G in Y+). Happy days I thought! My iPad now had the electronic boarding card showing 10F.

When checking in a bag, I was given a 22G boarding card. I chatted with the agent and showed him my electronic boarding card showing 10F. He did not say much other than I might end up in 12C (still in J).

Again at the gate, there was no (expected) ‘ping’ to denote a change of boarding card.

At this stage, I decided to rely on an experience I had once before on SWISS when I had my usual boarding card for an exit row seat and then had been ‘bumped’ out of it at the gate when I was issued with a new less favourable one (I later found out that a highed ranking SENATOR status flier demanded an exit row seat although SWISS eventually compensated me with CHF100). The lesson learned was that I should board the plane (tear up the new boarding card and only have my ‘new’ one to present to crew)

Onbroad the BA flight I showed my electronic boarding card and the crew directed me to 10F. This might have been the end of it but 10F was occupied. The crew member asked to see the cards of the person seated in 10F which they produced and they also had a 10F card. (I am wondering if it was empty if that would be the end of it until the crew did checked the manifest etc.

As I expected, they checked their iPad and after 4-5 minutes told me I was in 22G (Y+). At this stage we were closed up and ready for taxi.

I did my usual hand waiving and saying I would be very disappointed if I was downgraded etc and the amount of letters etc that would be sent etc.

J was maybe 60% full and the purser took the decision to seat me in the last row of J saying “there might not be any catering for me if they ran out”. This I accepted and sat down for the flight.

During the flight I walked into Y+ and there was only 1-2 seats empty.

My guess is that there was a projected sizable overbooking in Y+ which in the end did not materialize and I was initially upgraded but then downgraded.

All told the crew did the right thing (IMHO) and managed the incident.

Anyone with similar experience or advise?

[Cheeryguy]

Prior to boarding you were advised that you were seated in the class of travel you’d paid for. You boarded knowing this and proceeded to bully the crew by threatening behaviour re letters etc.
BA did not mislead you in any way.
You got what you wanted, but not in an honest way.

[Henryp1]

Cheeryguy

+1

I feel for cabin crew having to manage such situations, I think they should have enforced the correct seat or offloaded.

[PatJordan]

It seems that BA allocated SwissExPat seat 10F, as he discovered when checked in online. A boarding card for this seat was sent by BA to his mobile device.

In so doing, BA created a situation whereby SwissExPat had a legitimate expectation that he had been upgraded (for whatever reason). The BA agent at the airport added to this by mentioning 12C.

Bear in mind also that two passengers had (BA generated) boarding cards for 10F.

If for no other reason than to show goodwill to a high spending customer, the Purser made (I believe) a correct decision. It was not the fault of either the Purser or SwissExPat that this situation arose: the blame clearly lies with BA.

[SimonS1]

I can see positives and negatives each way. BA created the wrong impression that the customer had been upgraded but I’m not sure pressuring the crew is a good approach.

Not being funny but does being a silver member and travelling Y+ make one a high spending client?

[Henryp1]

I think the changes to the FFP is already or will be reducing the number of silver and gold members due to the requirement of spend rather than miles and cheap tickets.

[EU_Flyer]

“I was booked in Y+”

As much as I love upgrades, being asked to sit in the class I have actually paid for is rarely something I feel the need to [legitimately] complain about.

You pay for Y+, you get seated in Y+ unless the airline needs to move you.

In this case, they didn’t (in the end).

Being issued with a J class boarding pass may give you the legitimate expectation that you’ve been upgraded. But not a legitimate expectation that you have a right to demand and obtain a product you haven’t paid for.

“I did my usual hand waiving and saying I would be very disappointed if I was downgraded etc and the amount of letters etc that would be sent etc”

Words fail me.

Well handled by BA, but if I were the purser, I’d have been far less accommodating and the author of the original post far less satisfied.

[SenatorGold]

The words “trying it on” come to my mind.

You boarded the plane knowing that your electronic boarding pass for 10F had been replaced by one for 22G. Somehow the system at the gate allowed you to board with the 10F boarding pass.

Had 10F been unoccupied you may well have been confronted by cabin crew as their records would have shown that no one should have been sitting there and you should have been in 22G.

It was somewhat disingenuous to remonstrate with the purser that you had been downgraded. This might have given the impression that you had paid for a Club seat but were being moved to Premium Economy. In fact you had paid for Premium Economy. That was the cabin in which you were entitled to sit.

Any involuntary upgrade to Club on account of overselling in Premium Economy must be contingent upon there actually being an overselling. In this case it appears that ultimately the airline was able to accommodate you in the cabin in which you had bought a ticket.

It seems to me that you were calculating that as a a Silver card holder you would be upgraded. You had your hopes dashed – and with that I can sympathise – but it’s another matter to demand that you were entitled to sit in Club.

You are fortunate that the purser was so accommodating.

[MartynSinclair]

I have only ever been upgraded at the gate, but I think I would feel pretty miffed if I was upgraded at check in and subsequently downgraded at the gate.

I would not though involve cabin crew in this situation..

[theflyingnurse]

The most “up to date” boarding pass was 22G, which seems to have
been destroyed by the passenger. Very dishonest. Whatever BA initially lead the passenger to believe regarding the cabin of travel, it was quite obvious that his final allocated seat was 22G as he was given the boarding card for this seat when he checked in baggage. This is therefore where he should have been seated. However, lying to the crew and intimidating them managed to get him an upgrade which he has just admitted to on this forum. That’s pretty low.

[Simon01]

Travelling a lot myself I have found an absolute sure way to get
a business class seat, now if I tell you all promise you wil keep it
to yourselves !! Works every time for me without fail.
Simply buy a ticket in business class.
The cabin crew from I seem are busy enough without being bullied
by passengers wanting an upgrade !

[Bullfrog]

Simon01, “my advice precisely’. However, I think all contributors have valid input here.

To ‘upgrade’ a passenger creates an expectation. Air travel is not a particularly pleasant experience, and coupled with airport stress, seems to make passengers more irritable or it ‘brings out the worst’ in them’.

BA should better manage its ‘overbooking’ & ‘check in’ rather than potentially irritate passengers by ‘upgrading’ them & then downgrading them.

[LuganoPirate]

Imagine buying your favorite Gin (or whatever) and then being told it’s a 2 for 1 day and handed your second bottle, except at the cash desk they say oh no the offer is not valid and take it away? I think we’d all be pretty miffed.

In reading this I think Pat was quite happy to sit in Y+ but like most of us, was delighted see he’d been upgraded. To then take it away from him I think is wrong. In future BA should only give upgrades at the gate when they know the passenger load and thus avoid this type of situation.

[BEYbrit]

You paid for something, was promised more, was then told it wasn’t going to happen so you threw your dolly out of the pram and had a DYKWIA hissy fit. And then decided to tell the world. Wow.

Sounds like an incredibly cringe-worthy and embarrassing scenario to me. One of those moments where afterwards you ask yourself why you behaved that way, and then try your hardest to block it from your mind. Certainly not personal behaviour that I would publicise.

See the recent string on “what irritates you most about other passengers”.

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