I don't know that that was pretty standard behavior among PMUA flyers. If it was, and the GA would pass over me, then maybe that's why I didn't get upgraded a few times last year.

My SOP for years, until the red carpet access was opened up to everyone with MP status, was to hang out in the RCC until a few minutes to boarding. Worst case scenario, they started boarding early and I simply walked the red carpet to bypass the long boarding line. If I was previously waitlisted for an UG and cleared, they would have the new pass at the gate for me. Now that the premium boarding process is generally a mess, due to the increased amount of people who have access to it and the general lack of policy policing by GA's and/or the mobs of people who have no regard to boarding priority, I tend to show up 10 minutes prior to boarding. So I would consider that a post-merger standard behavior.

At any rate, recently when I was #1 on the list and boarded with my original seating assignment with 1 F seat still available, I inquired at the gate whether I had cleared. The GA told me no, but don’t worry it’s policy that if I were to clear after boarding they would go on the plane and move me up to first. That was the first time I’ve ever heard of that “policy”, and I certainly have never been the beneficiary of it (not that I would know for sure if I should have been and not received the benefit).