OK, that makes more sense, though still not sure how you know there are a full nine seats available for upgrade. Remember, just because J tickets are available for sale for cash does not mean a redemption is available.

Be warned: That 80,000 redemption is available only if both your outbound and return clear at the same time. Otherwise, you have to ticket each upgraded segment as it clears the waitlist, at the one-way level (45,000 miles for this route). This is true even if you have requested a roundtrip upgrade, and even if both legs do eventually clear. Since I've rarely had both legs clear at the same time, I generally end up spending 90,000 miles for a roundtrip upgrade.