Originally Posted by
magendim
Anyway, at some point, a young dude rushes up our aisle from back in Y saying he got an upgrade. Guy next to me says ..., how did that guy get an upgrade from Y to biz? I look at the upgrade list and i'm now #2. Biz still shows full but seat map shows 2 empty seats in front. Hmmm, guy tells flight crew WTH, how did that guy get upgraded. They say they will look into it. Nothing happened for a while and I can see up the aisle the door is still open so I go up and inquire...
There's a dozen things that could have happened here, including as you said overworked staff making a mistake.
However, there's also a really dumb "travel hack" that makes the rounds on TikTok occasionally. It says if you see an open seat after most people board, just pretend you have an upgrade and take it.
Actually saw someone try a self upgrade from the back to the front last week and the FA caught it while doing a count before takeoff. Could maybe pull it off in April 2020 but good luck with full flight loads.