This problem not only applies to upgrades but also changes including same day changes to AC33/34. I was recently on a full fare J ticket SYD-YVR-YYZ with the YVR-YYZ segment on a later flight AC108. While in Sydney (day before flight) I tried to change the second segment to the continuation of AC34 to YYZ. The concierge couldn't do it and reservations (including a supervisor) couldn't do it and they couldn't figure out why not "we should be able to do it". On the day of the flight, same thing. They couldn't do it manually at check-in at the airport, the concierge (Robin) also tried but couldn't and the reservations couldn't do it either. By the way, there was space in the J cabin on both occasions when I asked.

Apparently AC33/34 are aberrations when it comes to marrying the segments up. Once it's separate, you're out of luck, paid or upgrade - not unless you want to cancel and re-price the whole trip from scratch!! No one could tell me why it couldn't be done.

One of the res agents thought it might have something to do with seat assignment. Because it's just one boarding pass if the same seat is not available throughout both segments then they can't do it. Don't know how much I put in that.

They told me to try in YVR as they should be able to do it manually there. Of course by the time we landed the cabin on the onward AC34 YVR-YYZ was full.

This was the same flight AC34 SYD-YVR that I (as SEMM) was almost last to be asked for meal preference in the front cabin 7A (while we were still sitting at the gate). I enquired (politely) why I couldn't have been asked sooner and the very young fa just said we don't have the priority list yet! And that was it, out of luck. She did rub salt in the wound by telling me If I really wanted a particular dish I could have pre-ordered online, which of course is not the case.

Struck out twice on that flight.

.