Originally Posted by
D582
But then what would be the point of the upgrade windows then? AC let's you upgrade at time of booking on a Y/B fare. If at time of booking there is no R space, then you get waitlisted and are upgraded when/if R becomes available. There are your 'automatic upgrades'
The whole point of the windows on T+ fares is to ensure a level playing field:
All SE's can request up to 7 days prior, E's up to 4 days prior, and P's up to 2 days prior, all regardless of when they booked their ticket. You forget to request your upgrade when your window opens? Too bad, how sad.
I do however agree with OP regarding the change to # of hours before instead of days...I think it should go back to 00:01 local time from city of departure as it was much easier to manage that way.
The way it would work would be that Lat tickets would be upgraded or waitlisted at time of purchase. T+ tickets would be added to a separate list (let's just call it the T+ list).
At the 7-day window, all SEs on the T+ list would be processed (upgraded or waitlisted) in the order that their tickets were purchased.
At the 4-day window, all Es on the T+ list would be processed (upgraded or waitlisted) in the order that their tickets were purchased.
etc.
That way it's as if everyone requested an upgrade when their window opened, but it wouldn't be a race; order would be determined by ticket purchase date, which seems a little more fair.