<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Track:
Years ago, when I was still working for the U.S. government, we would buy a trans-atlantic ticket (for official travel) at the government rate, pay a very little extra out of our own pocket for an upgradeable fare and then use 20,000 miles to upgrade to round-trip business class (on Pan Am) or 40,000 for first class. Can government fares be upgraded now, or are they still close to upgradeable fares?</font>
From the regulations I've read, if an employee wants to upgrade later, lets say using a frequent flyer benefit, they can, but it's out of their own pocket, plus it's between them and the airline's policy.
The website I use, though, has no option there on upgrading. It just lists flights and fares, and I must choose from what I'm allowed (e.g. choose the YCA fare, not first-class).