We are flying internationally in a couple of days and the first leg of the trip is domestic, from JFK to LAX. We are booked in business class (award tickets) on two separate PNRs (one for me and our son and the other for my wife and our daughter, so a total of 4 travelers). Both my wife and I are EXP.
1. Does AA do complimentary upgrades from business to first for EXP on the domestic leg of international flights? We are less than 100 hours from departure and there are many first class seats still available.
2. If so, how can I notify AA that we would just all prefer not to be upgraded and keep our existing seats in business class? I don't want to risk only two of us (one of the PNRs) being upgraded, separating our family on the flight into different cabins. The wait time for an agent on the EXP phone line is currently over 3 hours.
Thanks in advance for the help.