Priority for First Class/Business Class Elite upgrades is determined by:

Full Fare Economy Y Allows all Elite members to upgrade at the time of ticketing when a seat is available on eligible flights operated by Continental

Discount Full Fare Economy B and Platinum Elite Members in M Allows all Elite members to upgrade at the time of ticketing, subject to capacity controls, on eligible flights operated by Continental

Elite level: Members are prioritized according to their Elite level — Platinum, Gold and then Silver. When traveling with other Elite members or non-Elite members, Elite members should purchase their flight on a separate itinerary.

Restricted fare class: Upgrade priority within Elite level will be based on fare class purchased. The fare class structure in priority order is as follows: M, E, U, H, Q, V, W, S, T, L, K, G and N.

Ticketing date/time: All else being equal, the sooner Elite members ticket their itinerary, the better their upgrade chances.

Check in time: If your upgrade is processed from the standby upgrade list at the airport, check in time will be used in place of booking date/time.