[PeterMorgan]

Gooner & Mrdobba are on target, I have had many upgrades on Gulf out of Bahrain, even from E to F, never had any problems with FAs, in fact got many little extras left for me or dropped in my lap, politeness cost nothing and can get good rewards
on a related issue, use of comment cards can help, in my regular hotel in Bahrain i have not paid for a drink for over 10 years and get exceptional service, a call or txt to the room boy can get confirmed booking

pieerepmm

[VintageKrug]

I have absolutely no objection to the upgrading of cute passengers.

It’s the ugly upgrades which rile me!

[GeeGee1]

Binman62 – there is no longer any way to pay for an upgrade onboard. The facility was removed some time ago

[SOLITAIREPLATINUM]

As the spouse of a FA of a top Asian Airline, I can tell you that there are very strict guidelines related to upgrades on board which make them virtually impossible. Approval has to be gotten from the OPC or if there is not enough time, the captain.There is NO way a FA can just go around and upgrade someone he or she likes.If they did they would be fired immediately.
On the other hand, upgraded passengers often have the habit to be extra demanding on the crew and want to sample every possible amenity. I guess this must be something psychological…..
Anyway, to all of you who complain or praise FA´s, please remember that they are human beings too and they do a lot more work than what you get to see as a passenger.
I am happy to see in this forum so many comments that indicate the right mindset: you will be treated as you treat others. A “thank you” and a smile go a long way…

[amacuk69]

Dear dutchyankee, I am a Gold through revenue, but also know a lot of people on the inside. I am one of those who – through loyalty and relationships – infuriate you. Sorry!

I get the best of both worlds and I think you should focus on your seat and cabin and not that of those around you. I wonder if you would say the same if you were so fortunate? Don’t waste your time and life getting “infuriated” – remember what’s important in life.

Next time your taxi firm send their best Mercedes because of your loyalty, or that restaurant seats you in a wonderful table because they see you often, or even your bank refund that charge for a one-off miscalculation remember this post and ask yourself are you “infuriated”.

Cheers.

[drwayne]

What a thread…..and with very interesting responses too….

My attitude would be more inclined with VintageKrug’s, namely I would be happy for the person being upgraded rather than getting myself all worked up about it. After all, other people’s matter is other people’s matter and is not of concern to me. In fact, I would be very happy in J with an empty seat next to me!!

A few years ago, I had a rather unusual upgrade in that I got double upgraded to First on my redemption economy ticket, and I was only a basic level member. I wonder if this was a common occurence, double upgrading on redemption ticket….

[Metmanmart]

I think ” bets of luck ” to anyone who gets upgraded..Yes it would be great if we could all benefit from an upgrade but in reality we can’t ..Its as simple as that..In fact most of the people who complain are the ones that can afford to purchase a better cabin or their company is paying for the seat..If you want to travel in luxury then you have to pay for it…

[NTarrant]

I think you have to look at why airlines upgrade passengers, irrespective of carrier. If you don’t regularly fly in a particular cabin be it World Traveller Plus, Club or First an upgrade may tempt you to travel in that cabin again. Certainly my first experience of Club was as a result of an upgrade, never fancied travelling backwards, but the opportunity to try it at no cost gave me the experience. I liked it and now would not go back.

Perhaps in HBHLondon case the cabin crew thought that the person in 10B not only becomes an easier passenger to deal with but travels again but next time in First but on BA instead of United.

There is little point in getting upset about it, if you don’t expect to be upgraded then when it does come along it is a good feeling, in 11 years as a BA traveller I have only had two upgrades, some get more and others like HBHLondon get none. But if I did not get another in the next 11 years it won’t be the end of the world!

[JonathanCohen09]

Can we please bring an end to this particular forum. I have read all of the comments and can see that there are some bitter and twisted frequent travellers out there with nothing better to do than winge and complain about not being upgraded. I have had top tier FFP status with several airlines, some of them upgraded me for no apparent reason, otheres due to overbooking and some never upgraded me at all. In the end my view, shared by many other contributors to this forum, is that you are entitled only to sit in the class you have paid for, anything else is simply good fortune that may or may not be helped along by your FFP status. So please, either buy yourself a J or F ticket and if you are not then seated in cabin you have paid for then I will be most interested to hear about airlines which downgrade or bump you from your PAID FOR premium seat as that would be useful information and worth talking about!!!

[Airpocket]

A cautionary tale for those who might want to upgrade unilaterally!: I was flying DXB-LHR in J CLass on EK last September. A short while before we took off from DXB, an Arab pax decided to come and sit in the J class cabin. Perhaps he felt that EK being a Middle Eastern carrier and he being Middle Eastern, he could do what he liked!Well,no. He was asked by the CSD to pay $2,000 to upgrade himself from Y to J.Obviously, he couldn’t and was subsequently ejected from the J Class cabin.How humilaiting.
So, stay in the cabin you’ve paid for and been assigned.If you’re lucky, you might get an upgrade.If not, accrue enough miles to get yourself upgraded the next time you fly.By the way, if you DO get upgraded, it wouldn’t hurt to get the name of the ground staff member or flight attendant that upgrades you and send her/him a thank you note or, better, flowers.
Personally, my family and I have received the most upgrades on EK. Shame their service is variable now and its a shame that DXB is often a drag to transit through. Would have gladly stuck with EK otherwise.

[SimonRowberry]

There are also “upgrades” and “upgrades.” I usually travel in J (I own my own Company, so it’s a choice I’m free to make – I choose to depress my profit margins by spending the extra!) and therefore have sympathy with Frequentraveller09’s comments. I do, however, travel in Economy on very short trips. Last week I was travelling (in Y) Vilnius-Helsinki and back on AY. I am only a Silver member with AY, yet they blocked out the seat next to me so I had more space (it was an Embraer 190) on the way out. On the return flight, I went to the loo just after take off (it was by the cockpit). On my return, the Attendant asked me if I’d like to sit in the Business Cabin to have more space, as I was a Silver member. I had economy catering, but was the only passenger in the single J row, on a fairly busy flight, so this was extremely welcome. I also asked whether it was possible to have a cup of coffee. He said that it was a ‘coffee-free’ flight as it was so short. I said that I understood, and that it was no problem. However, a few minutes later he came back (totally unexpectedly) with a cup of coffee for me (hidden from view from other passengers by a strategically-placed napkin!) and said he was happy to make an exception for me. I felt that both flights actually made me feel special to AY, through their relatively small but extremely effective gestures.

I am a Gold Member with Star Alliance. For the last two or three years I have always flown in J with their members (largely SK, LH and TK) so I can’t comment on their upgrade policies these days. However, prior to this, when I flew Y on a weekly basis, I found that both SK and LH would regularly upgrade me, usually at the gate (never on board). This was definitely on the basis of my FFP status (it definitely wasn’t on the basis of appearance as I always travel dressed very casually if I can, and I wonder if BA are the only airline to employ the Suitable For Upgrade criteria these days).

I guess the moral is as others suggest: if you want to fly in comfort, buy a ticket in F or J; if you do get upgraded, treat it as a welcome bonus and also show your gratitude by, at the very least, smiling and being a model passenger on that flight!

As a footnote, I also have some sympathy with those who buy a premium ticket and then see others upgraded, especially when that directly impacts on you and your flight. I remember years ago, when you could smoke on board (around 1991 or 1992), I was flying Auckland – Honolulu with Continental in F. I was in a designated smoking seat (the rear row in the cabin, as it happened). In those days, there was an interim policy in place, which meant that, even in a smoking seat, you could only indulge your habit if others did not object. The guy sitting next to me proudly told me that he had been upgraded from C and would object to me smoking. The FAs were very helpful and invited me to sit on a jump seat in the galley and smoke there. This was immediately behind my seat, and was only separated from it by a curtain (the plane was a DC10, if I remember rightly). I do confess to taking great pleasure in smoking more than I would have done, and in wafting the smoke in the direction of the objector. Before others state the obvious, I know that it wasn’t big; not was it clever. However, it was exceedingly satisfying at the time to get revenge!

[CornishExile]

Frequenttraveller09, In answer to your question: “… I will be most interested to hear about airlines which downgrade or bump you from your PAID FOR premium seat as that would be useful information and worth talking about!!!” My wife & I had just such an experience with BA. We had paid in full via ba.com months in advance for a wedding anniversary trip, LHR -YUL outbound in WT+, return in ‘Club’. Due to aggressive overbooking, BAs policy of not allowing seat requests for non status EC members (I was using AA Gold =OW Ruby) and some difficulties I had accessing OLCI, we were both involuntarily downgraded from WT+ to Y. Although BA offered us lounge access and fast track, it hardly made up for spending 8 hours cramped up @ the back of the plane. We eventually received the approximate fare difference in compensation, so not worth fighting over EU 261/04…but we have not flown BA since, and *A have been the main beneficiaries as a result.

Judging by BA’s attitude to the issue, I would imagine that for every passenger who has had the pleasure of an unexpected upgrade, there are probably several who have had the misfortune to be on the wrong end of BA’s arrogance.

My experience contradicts those who say the only way to GUARANTEE a seat in premium cabins is to pay for it…..

[AlexSW1]

I have to say this is not the BA I’ve come to know over the years. I mostly fly BA long-haul maybe 3 times per year (eg, 6 segments) and normally in Club. The cabin crew are fantastically professional and one of the reasons I prefer BA over most airlines – though I will pause here to say it’s nothing compared to the likes of Cathay whom I’ve also flown and would prefer over any other carrier any day. It’s rare I’ve experienced a poor standard of service on board the air craft, however Exec Club, the lounge staff, gate/check-in staff and the like are definitely hit and miss (especially exec club / customer service actually). In terms of upgrades, mine have been rare and normally because I’m on a very full flight, am with a silver card holder (I agree it seems to be better to be silver rather than gold in this case!) or because I had a service complaint. Don’t think it’s fair for any of us to gripe about upgrades – it’s right person, right time really.

[JonathanCohen09]

Thank you CornishExile, this is exactly the type of information that I believe to be useful and worth talking about. I am sorry to hear about your experience but like many of us you will now vote with your feet. I gave up my BA gold card some time ago and have not regretted it at all.
By the way, I am not a BA basher as they have excellent products and service in the air but it is their attitude and pricing policy that pushed me away.
Any more stories about involuntary downgrades out there?

[DJ_London]

I can truly agree with you regarding the attitude of BA Cabin Crew, especially the Cabin Service Directors… I find the women CSDs lack care and attention for their customers. They are compassionate when they need to be but otherwise hide in the B-747 office… As for the men, they are too pompous, arrogant and extremely rude to customers. I also find the majority of crew to be false. The un-genuine smiles as you board says it all… I think BA need to take note of how the cabin crew of airlines such as Cathay Pacific, Korean Air or Emirates are – their service is unquestionable, consistent and I find the crew the most helpful in the skies.

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