US Airways Dividend Miles (Pre-FlightFund Merger) - upgrade on award tickets

Before you all say no, just bear with me. I'm flying to BWI-PIT-LAX the evening of this Friday the 20th (anyone else doing this?). My mother and sister are flying on 2 award tickets I booked for them TYS-PIT-LAX. I, like a good US2, am confirmed up in first for the PIT-LAX flight, however, my poor mother and sis are sittin in row 19 (ugh). Anyone ever have any luck talking a GA or FA into putting them up front? I'll support the upgrades if asked, but I don't want to give up my FC seat and sit in steerage with my sister. I looked at the seatmaps and the flight is WIDE open in FC. Any suggestions?

From my experience and from everything I've read on this board, I would venture to guess the answer is "no." However, I would ask to have your mom & sis moved to the bulkhead or exit row. They probably won't release these seats in advance, but they may be able to select these seats if they do web check-in 24 hours in advance.

It never hurts to ask. Your best bet is probably to get a sympathetic gate agent or FA. If the F cabin is relatively empty, the FA may move your mom & sis up to the front. But this is probably a long shot, and my guess is they would not get a meal.

On an Caribbean award ticket, I asked to upgrade once using Space Available certificates and once using 500-mile ones and both times it was approved. This was on a 30,000 mile award on off-peak days and the outbound required station manager approval. The agent in the Caribbean could not have cared less and upgraded me the same as it happens every other time. So, it does happen!

Any other suggestions? Flight's tomorrow.

Its purely a gate agent discretion thing. A gate agent is more likely to do this than a FA, FA's usually defer upgrade issues to GAs. They certainly technically can do it in the system. It is normally of course not done, and I suspect you may be unlucky because you would be asking for more than one pax to be upgraded and it is a long flight. However, again, it can be done, and the best advice would be for you to carefully pick out what agent you ask, depending on how good you are at reading people.

I have managed to upgrade one person in this sort of scenario, but it is quite rare. Having to move two people, I don't think you can do it. The GA is definately the person with the best ability to do it and if you are really good at working people you might be able to do it with the right approach, but I would bet long odds against you. The only way I think it will work is if they are in a situation where they have to do operational upgrades because of a full plane.

The only other approach I can think of that might work is to tell the GA that you were on a flight recently where they offered to sell vacant first class seats for a fee and to ask if you can do that. If F is really empty, they might try it. I don't know what the rules on this new program.

Kreeft - are you going to be on Flight #9? I'll be trying to upgrade as well (using space available coupon).

If you are on that flight and think I might be able to help you then drop me an email.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Global Explorer:
Kreeft - are you going to be on Flight #9? I'll be trying to upgrade as well (using space available coupon).

If you are on that flight and think I might be able to help you then drop me an email.</font>

Yup. Flight 9. See you there.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by MikeLaw:
The only other approach I can think of that might work is to tell the GA that you were on a flight recently where they offered to sell vacant first class seats for a fee and to ask if you can do that. If F is really empty, they might try it. I don't know what the rules on this new program.</font>

I talked to the GA at MCO a few weeks ago when they were offering paid upgrades. He said it was only being tested in Florida at the time. They were advertising it as being avaialable for "any" fare.

on the way to CUN about two years ago, I was on an award ticket sitting in the back with Mrs. Terminal. Friends of ours were sitting up front and F was empty. He asked the FA to upgrade me and the wife and she went back and upgraded us.

I'm headed down there with the family (wife and I are up front and parents and brother are in the back). I'd like to upgrade them...they are all on paid fares. Hopefully I'll be able to pull some strings...don't want to use my miles to do it either.

Two weeks ago a familiar RDU GA upgraded both my wife and I although we were both on award tix. The GA was only able to upgrade the first leg, however, but we were given drink tickets for the coach leg from CLT to STT.

I've been an 8 yr US1, and I know several of the GAs at RDU, so I think that was of benefit. My thanks to US for the empowerment to let this happen. Mrs. Outoftown thinks I have some clout! http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

Well, just a little update. I got to BWI on Friday night a little later than I would've hoped, but it was ok, because the plane was late coming in. So late in fact, that I would have misconnected in PIT, so I came back home and flew out of DCA the next morning. Special thanks to Global Explorer for his offer to help me and hold his cert until PIT. Ended up not being an issue, although the GA at BWI was very nice and said she'd put a note in my PNR for the PIT agent to upgrade Mama and Sister Kreeft. She said she couldn't do it because they weren't in BWI with me. Sounded like BS to me, but I was thankful for what she did do. Thanks again too all who threw feedback my way.