Newbie question from AA regular
I bought a ticket for my son to fly from ORD to CHS on a UA regional carrier (I think GoJet). This was about 2 weeks ago. The ticket cost about $400. After buying the ticket I poked around to see if I could find a decent seat for him. He was assigned a seat in the back (this was a CRJ) but I was offered the ability to upgrade him to E+ for $65 or to F for $265. I passed on the opportunity.
Today I felt a pang of guilt and looked at the seat change options again. To my surprise, I was offered the same options but for lower prices: $45 for E+ or $65 for F! This was a no-brainer and I grabbed the F seat for $65.
My question is: Is this how upgrades work on UA? That they are sold to random non-status people at lower and lower prices as the departure date gets closer (it's still 2 weeks away)? Is this what people mean when they refer to TOD?
If so, all I can say is: I'm very happy not to be a UA elite. Crappy way to treat your elites (even though it benefited me).