Can this be done with minimal penalty/change fee? I am trying to advise a friend on flights to Rome and want to get it right. I have previously changed an award seat in J to a different date in the same class (J) and there was only a small change fee, like $42 per ticket ( I believe now it is more like $55).

But can one change to a different class of service on the same flight with the same change fee? My friend would like to fly in Business Class and has the Avios. No seats are available for the preferred dates in J, but there are seats in Economy. Should I suggest that she book those now, and then watch for seats in J to appear later? Could she make the change online as I did with the date change?

She is flying out of SFO but I am advising her to look at other airports, like SEA, LAS, etc. I am also advising her to book one way at a time.

Thanks for your help.