Originally Posted by
sunnyjl
Next thing I know, F is being filled with what are clearly oversold and/or standby coach passengers. The reason I know they are not typical F passengers is that none of them knew any of the F etiquette, what they could/could not order from the beverage menu, or how the food service works. Several did not even know where the F lav was.
Someone please tell me know this happens, when I paid $2600 for my RT ticket, and they get a free upgrade??? Surely there had to be DM passengers (or at least some soldiers on the plane) who could have been upgraded? Something is very wrong. Either that or I am really mistaken on how the upgrade process works, which I doubt...I have been elite for 8 years on USAir...
So they are "clearly oversold and/or standby coach passengers" because they don't know F etiquette and didn't know where the lav is?
Couldn't be people who paid cash for Go Upgrades at the gate?
Family/group traveling on miles tickets or miles upgrades?
One of those promo vacation packages they Twittered about a few months ago? I think F travel was part of the package.
Could have been people who VDB from an earlier flight and got F seats in the bargain (which I absolutely think is a fair deal, and someone who takes a VDB would be *in my opinion* more entitled to an empty F seat than an elite would be)
Honestly, to be
so convinced that someone is being upgraded out of turn over an elite just because they don't know where the lav is or don't know that food is free in F and are wearing flip-flops (on their way from an ISLAND) is just over the top elitism. There are quite a few reasons why you may see an inexperienced traveler in F even if the back of the plane is completely full of elites, and unless you know for certain that some upgrade protocol has been broken, then there's no reason to complain about it. Just mind your business and stop trying to figure out if the other guy got a better deal than you did.
And as for bad behavior and acting like free drinks equals loterry win.... yeah... being elite does not break one of that bad behavior! I think we ALL have seen worse from elites in our time. At least the inexperienced travelers have a lack of experience as their excuse.