So yes I've also been checking on SE and J seems fairly wide open as does Y but just with PE being full.

Do you think this could be a deliberate tactic from AA to encourage more pax to purchase without realising there is a high chance to be spilt up from party?

What I do find interesting is that they're still selling PE on the BA website which also makes me think they're potentially blocking seats.

As mentioned my flying status is pretty low with BA due to also being able to use my dad's staff travel however that ship has long sailed..... Just in your opinion is there anything else that would potentially help my case in getting bumped to J?

i.e waiting to get to the airport to assign seats etc or do I more than likely run the risk of getting a worse seat this way?

Thanks again