I would use the miles + copay. AA 85 is a WONDERFUL 763 flight, featuring PEDs and made-to-order sundaes!*


(*though not in the proper IFS sundae dish, but I suppose one cannot ask for everything)


For the record, I flew AA 85 JFK-SFO several Saturdays in January and my electronic upgrade cleared every single time, usually at 100 hours. Most of the cabin did seem to be folks connecting from international F/J, as well as nonrevving FAs based at JFK and heading home to SFO.