Travel certainly has picked up. I’ve had good luck this year on mostly regional routes as PM (86% on eligible aircraft so far), but lists are certainly growing longer this month and upgrades are a bit tougher especially on aircraft with an unfavorable F/Y ratio (A319, I’m lookin’ at you!), especially when there are a handful of folks who WFBF.
On one of my routes usually serviced by a CRJ9, we have fluctuated between having multiple open seats in First with all upgrades cleared to an average of 4-7 upgrades not cleared earlier this year. This month, it’s been closer to 10-15 uncleared upgrades each trip.
As others have pointed out, I’m not entirely sure how seat blocking will impact things. First has been relatively full already since they allowed couples to sit together, and since planes will overall be fuller when blocking is over with, more folks will be competing for the upgrades.