Originally Posted by
dkc192
1. Yes.
2. Yes, depending on loads. Based on my somewhat limited experience, AA will release C seats into inventory ahead of airport/gate control if revenue inventory is C7 and the J seatmap is less than 1/2 to 3/4 full. Otherwise, chances are all upgrades will be down to the gate. Granted, this is a very coarse assessment.
3. To my knowledge miles+copay and SWU have the same priority on waitlists, both ahead of airport/gate control and at the airport. As such, swapping out miles+copay for SWU may likely decrease your chances, since the time stamp on your upgrade request will be reset to the time you swapped and requested the SWU, thus putting you lower on the waitlist than others who have the same status. You'll have to weigh whether the potentially lower odds are worth saving the 25k miles + $350.
Just curious, since I never really paid attention to these things before. How long are the wait lists for these international flights since there is no auto-requested upgrades. I'm looking to fly to europe from jfk next year and trying to decide if i should use awards to find flights or take a chance with buying economy and upgrading using miles+copay or SWU. If I do the request 2 to 3 months out with EXP status, would I be close to the first one on their upgrade list?