Checked in seq 003 for my HKG-LHR flight today. The flight is very full and I was hoping that the upgrade fairy would finally smile my way. When I went to collect my boarding pass at the Airport Express Station in Kowloon the agent looked at me and said "sir, there is a problem, we are very full tonight...". The corners of my mouth started to curl slightly upwards "and we have a family who wants to sit together" - well, that is fine with me as long as that means an upgrade - and we would ask you to move to (seat on lower deck somewhere; did not compute) to allow them to sit together."

"Say what now?"

"Yes, you have already checked in so I cannot move you but you don't mind sir, do you?"
(Let this be a lesson, apparently they can move you if you have not checked in yet!)
"I don't mind if my new seat number starts with 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5. Alternatively 62AK or 64AK are acceptable but nothing else..."
"But sir, we have a family...."

I did not budge. He did smile at my "there are no families on the UD!" joke and he wrote down my phone number just in case.

Probably lady luck will now have me sitting next to a screaming toddler. I found the way in which he tried to persuade me to change seats rather forceful...

Ah well, maybe the fairy will still meet me at the gate later.