Suppose:
- I have a confirmed, unrestricted J ticket on a later flight (eg DEN-SEA at 5pm)
- An earlier DEN-SEA at 3pm has J0 right now but the J cabin is big and I think there's a good chance of someone getting off the upgrade waitlist
- It's 1pm on the day of departure and I'm at the gate
I want to maximize my chances of getting a J seat on the earlier flight. I would accept the risk of sitting in Y (if J0 never opens up) and also would not expect a refund (of the J-Y differential) if that happens.
Is there a way for me to switch to the 3pm DEN-SEA and be at the top of the J upgrade waitlist because I originally had a confirmed J seat on a later flight?
I've tried to do this a few times at the gate (well before things got busy, to avoid needlessly annoying the GA) and the gate agents have said it's not possible. But they seemed confused about what I wanted to do, so I didn't take those refusals as definitive.