Originally Posted by
bocastephen
Slavish?
Yes, slavish. Your requirements seem to leave little room for interpretation, although the post to which I'm responding seems to be modifying your stance a bit.
Anyway, I didn't say you can't give your upgrade to a traveling companion - I said you should not give your upgrade to a total stranger so you can sit with a travel companion who did not get upgraded. If you want to sit with someone in Y, tell the GA you don't want your upgrade and will sit in Y - see if they can find a seat with, or near your companion (or trade when onboard), and let the GA upgrade the next Elite on the list.
My travel companion may not otherwise have any more "right" to the upgrade than a total stranger. If I may give the upgrade to such a travel companion, why
not a total stranger? I'd get to actually sit with my travel companion, the person I've inconvenienced by requesting a seat swap gets rewarded, and perhaps most gratifying: offers a very personal "thank you" for the upgrade. The person behind me on the standby list is no worse off than he was before.
Leaving the upgrade in the GA's hands rewards only some anonymous elite who is unlikely to show appreciation to the individual directly responsible for their good fortune.
Plenty of posters here have given their upgrade to a spouse and sat in the spouse's seat in Y - there is nothing wrong with doing that, and as any married person knows, it's probably better for your health and safety to let the wife sit in F.
My wife would prefer to sit next to me, regardless of which cabin we're booked into; she's not a fan of flying. More unfortunately, we get to travel together only rarely and usually on short notice.