Sorry to ask a question which may have been asked many times before, but I've only ever had award tickets before, and not for some years. I'm now in a position where I have to book an economy fare from London to NYC for a short visit. Fare will be high as it probably won't include a Saturday night, so probably be B or M class.

The website seems to suggest that if you want to upgrade, you need to book the ticket and then check online if an upgrade is available. Is this true? Is there no way of knowing for sure if you can bag an upgrade before making the booking? Seems strange that you have to commit to buying the ticket before you can potentially get an upgrade. A straight award ticket is available on the days I want to travel, does that mean an upgrade will automatically be available or is it not that simple?

I'm much more used to doing this with BA, where you can see availability of paid bookings that need miles to upgrade before you have to finalise the booking.