A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Minneapolis: DL DM charter 2.3MM
Programs: A3*Gold, SPG Plat, HyattDiamond, MarriottPP, LHW exAccess, ICI, Raffles Amb, NW PE MM, TWA Gold MM
Posts: 100,417
Earlier this week I saw the new companion upgrade priority rule at work. A domestic A320 flight with 16 FC seats had 4 FC seats available when check in opened and then one disappeared that morning, probably a SDC from a FC ticket, but it also could have been a last minute FC ticket purchase or FCM offer during OLCI.
By the gate, the FC upgrade list had about twenty names, with a married couple in the #1 and #2 positions. Sure enough, they were upgraded after PREM boarding, probably during zone SKY. On board, they proceeded to insist that people change seats so that Mr. and Mrs. SIL could sit together. I refused to swap my aisle for a bulkhead, but after annoying several other people, they managed to find someone who was willing to swap with them out of a bulkhead seat to take a nonbulkhead window and become my seatmate. Not surprisingly, they first tried to offer to swap their less desirable seat for a better seat.
BTW, I was upgraded several days before the flight, although not at the DM window. No upgrades were done at the DM window and mine was then the first upgrade that cleared, with maybe a half dozen upgrades clearing after me (none at the same time) and before the day of departure.