Bit of a gripe here. Redeye SEA-EWR. For client-contractual reasons, I'm booked in Y. There is still one unsold seat (showing J1 JN1 etc.), and I'm at the top of the UG list. As I go into the UC, the agents there are pretty sure I've got the upgrade wrapped up.
OK, now it's 20 minutes before departure. By now everyone has checked in, and the flight is boarding. The seat is still unsold, so no one has been offered or accepted a TOD; the club agents jokingly congratulate me as I leave. I'm kind of expecting a swapped boarding pass as I get on. Doesn't happen. As I head to the back, I notice that 3B is still unoccupied.
Now boarding is complete. It's still 5 minutes until departure; the seat stays unoccupied. Finally, it's departure time. The gate agent shows up at the door, accompanied by a 16yo kid. He takes 3B (the GA has to show him where it is), the door is closed, and we depart.
So what happened here? And if the kid was a last-minute nonrev standby, couldn't the GA have brought me up front and given the kid my Y seat?
(This isn't a rant, just a gripe.)