Originally Posted by
jackiedada
Calflyer, I can empathize with you. I've experienced this before and have felt as frustrated as you. Once I understood that check-in agents are contract staff whose priority is to run through the whole queue of pax in the Y queue at check-in as fast as they can and with several of them operating in tandem without any idea of where premium FF are seated, I didn't feel as frustrated. I quickly figured out a way to get over this.
The best place to get seats blocked or get your seat changed is the Lounge. The folks in the EK lounge (at least at JFK) are permanent staff who recognize Premium FFs, and will accede your request to the best possible extent that they can.
I totally agree with you - most outstation check-in are contract staff, who put little notes on the system, but the person who has the final word is the controller, and he/she is a permanent employee who doesn't generally know the contract staff that well as the contract staff rotate every few months, where as lounge staff are actual EK staff members and they will know each other and can make those requests directly, on the phone to the controller, instead of "in the system" where check-in agents can't/won't put a little text note saying "this guy is Plat".
100% success when flight is not full in my experience. Even better is that the lounge can check/call to find a row where there is no seat next to you, after check in has closed (but you should do this around T-60 before the controller closes up the flight - DXB will start to call the station to see why the flight isn't closed "on time" and no platinum member is worth that hassle!)