Originally Posted by
trevorwh
Mike_K - Quoting Virgin's new elevate documentation:
"Opt in for free upgrades to Main Cabin Select when there’s space available.
If you’re flying solo, you’ll have the chance to opt in for an upgrade while you book your flight online, through an authorized travel agent, or when booking through the Virgin America Call Center, and we’ll update your flight status with your new cabin (if available) up to two hours before departure."
http://www.virginamerica.com/vx/how-...it-works#seats
I know it's definitely the case, because I was able to purchase an MCS upgrade at 4 hours prior to departure (which is really what makes this benefit useless in most cases of full flights)
"up to" is a bit ambiguous. It could mean "as much as" (i.e. 1 hour, 45 minutes, etc.) or "until" (from T-24 to T-2, say). Maybe the ambiguity is intentional. They can try to sell what they sell and leave the sloppy seconds for whoever is still waiting around begging.
Not all that different from other posts on flyertalk about other airlines and hotel chains. They're all using their newfound data crunching ability to extract more revenue, which means trying to keep loyal customers around with vague promises while selling their benefits out from under them. Get used to it, it's the "new normal" until somebody proves at the boardroom level that it costs them money. At the moment I think they're all very impressed with the sparkly new revenue sources and don't have any way (or inclination) to assess the opportunity cost from elites leaving for greener pastures (if those even exist).