Originally Posted by
flyingjapans
Although that's what I believed up until now, I have a counter experience from no later than yesterday: I inquired the Platinum Line about the upgrade availability on a PEK-CDG-ZRH flight on which the married flights showed up at 90.000 miles in Award Business which is the lowest price on that route. However the agent told me she could see no upgrade availability on that day.
What I said and what you were told are not incompatible.
I said: "If you are not offered a seat for outright redemption at the lowest-possible mileage price when doing a dummy Award booking, then there is no "O" award/upgrade space on the flight."
I did not say: "If you are offered a seat for outright redemption at the lowest-possible mileage price when doing a dummy Award booking, then there is definitely "O" upgrade space on the flight".
(You can only tell for sure
when it is definitely NOT possible to upgrade. )