Originally Posted by
AlwaysAisle
Apology for posting this question, because I am sure the answer is somewhere on this thread about SWU.
If I request SWU on domestic flights, such as Hawaii flights or on three-class trans-con flights, will I be slightly ahead on the wait list compared with doing complimentary elite upgrade on domestic flights?
In the wiki for this thread there is a link to the upgrade priority thread, which has a wiki with useful information.
Before the flight goes to airport control, the inventory for comp upgrades (R) is distinct from the inventory for instrument upgrades (C). It's theoretically possible for there to be R space and no C (I'm not sure how often this happens in practice) so it's at least possible for someone to get a comp upgrade ahead of you. I'm also not completely sure if you are also on the comp upgrade list if you waitlist a SWU (ie, if R opens and you are waitlisted with a SWU as EXP, will you clear into the R space as EXP? If so will your SWU be pulled?)
Once it goes to airport control it's a lot simpler. It's merged into one list. Status trumps upgrade type, so if you are EXP, all CKs will be ahead of you and you will be ahead of all EXPs trying for a comp upgrade. If you are PPro, all CKs and EXPs will be ahead of you (so, good luck).
Just to be completely clear, when I say C and R here I'm talking about the upgrade classes, which are distinct from the revenue C and R classes. You can see upgrade-C on EF by searching for "awards and upgrades" one segment at a time (
not flight availability, and
not searching end-to-end through connections). You can't see upgrade-R anywhere.