America West FlightFund (Discontinued Program) - Day-of Paid FC Upgrade Question

Regarding those day-of paid FC upgrades, does HP allow you to pay to upgrade on certain segments of the flight, or do they require you to pay to upgrade for the entire flight? For example, if I am flying from El Paso to SFO via PHX, can I pay to upgrade only the PHX-SFO segment or must I upgrade the entire trip?

There should be no problem just tell the check in agent or the gate agent what portion you want to upgrade. BTW, it would be easier to try and pay for the SFO portion in El Paso as you can confirm your seat sooner. Also, dont forget that paid upgrades allow you to get into the America West club for $20 before your flight if you have time to wait.

The price for day-of-flight upgrades are based upon the actual
mileage (as opposed to the Flight Fund credited minimum mileage) of the one-way trip being flown, from origination city to destination city. If the trip is multiple segments, the segments are added together for the total mileage and then applied to this scale:

Less than 500 miles = $50
501-1000 miles = $100
More than 1000 miles = $150
Coast-to-coast = $200

(Note that there are a few specific city pairs that are exceptions.)

In other words, you pay for the upgrade based upon the total distance of the trip, including all segments. If one or more segments are not available for the upgrade, then you only pay based upon the mileage of the segment(s) that are available.

If all segments were available, I don't know if they would let you pay and upgrade only certain ones. The structure they have is pretty specific, so I'm doubting that they would do it, but, as with most issues, it would most likely depend upon who you get on the phone.

BUT, in your specific instance, you'd be foolish to try. Your trip is ELP-PHX-SFO. That is 347 miles for ELP-PHX, plus 650 miles for PHX-SFO, for a total of 997 miles. (Based upon Expedia mileage calculations.)

That one-way upgrade, of both segments (997 miles), would cost you $100.

To fly only SFO-PHX (650 miles) would also cost you $100.

As you can see, in your case, there's nothing to be gained by trying to split them up.

One more thing: You don't have to wait until you get to the airport. You can call reservations up to 30 hours in advance of your flight and confirm & pay for it over the phone, so that you know the seat is secured.

All the details on this program can be found via this link (http://www.americawest.com/services/ticketingoptions/sv_upgrades.htm#terms) on AmericaWest.com

The price for day-of-flight upgrades are based upon the actual
mileage (as opposed to the Flight Fund credited minimum mileage) of the one-way trip being flown, from origination city to destination city. If the trip is multiple segments, the segments are added together for the total mileage and then applied to this scale:

Less than 500 miles = $50
501-1000 miles = $100
More than 1000 miles = $150
Coast-to-coast = $200

(Note that there are a few specific city pairs that are exceptions.)

In other words, you pay for the upgrade based upon the total distance of the trip, including all segments. If one or more segments are not available for the upgrade, then you only pay based upon the mileage of the segment(s) that are available.

If all segments were available, I don't know if they would let you pay and upgrade only certain ones. The structure they have is pretty specific, so I'm doubting that they would do it, but, as with most issues, it would most likely depend upon who you get on the phone.

BUT, in your specific instance, you'd be foolish to try. Your trip is ELP-PHX-SFO. That is 347 miles for ELP-PHX, plus 650 miles for PHX-SFO, for a total of 997 miles. (Based upon Expedia mileage calculations.)

That one-way upgrade, of both segments (997 miles), would cost you $100.

To fly only SFO-PHX (650 miles) would also cost you $100.

As you can see, in your case, there's nothing to be gained by trying to split them up.

One more thing: You don't have to wait until you get to the airport. You can call reservations up to 30 hours in advance of your flight and confirm & pay for it over the phone, so that you know the seat is secured.

All the details on this program can be found via this link (http://www.americawest.com/services/ticketingoptions/sv_upgrades.htm#terms) on AmericaWest.com

Right you are. Thanks for your advice. Although not warranted in this specific ELP-PHX-SFO example, what I was wondering is how (and whether it's allowable) to avoid paying an extra $50 to upgrade on the first, short leg of the flight and only upgade on the long-haul segment.