Originally Posted by deephouse
Odd. I was under the impression that when you're in F, you get all of the benefits normally given to F pax, regardless of how you got there... cash, miles, Elite status, or op-up.
They try not to board too many meals. Each F meal costs them. A last minute call to the caterers to top off the flight with an additional F meal can potentially delay the flight. So the agent will stipulate that the person's Y meal is what is to be offered.
What usually happens is that somebody in the F cabin declines the meal. If the FA crew is a good one, they'll offer that meal to the non-revs or special medical op-ups, as in this case. If the the FAs are hungry and selfish, they save those meals for themselves.