Originally Posted by wldtrvlr
If, NW is not selling the seats that they usually sell, than it is bad for NW. However, the "fall" season has started and fall and winter (with the exception of the holidays in Nov and Dec) tend to be the shoulder season for the airlines. So yes the cause could be that people are buying away, but you really need to be comparing your upgrade percentage to August of Last year, NOT to May,June and July of this year which would have been Peak travel season.
Just like everything that happens today is NOT a direct result of 9-11, everything that happens with NWA is NOT a direct result of the strike. Some things are being affected by both events, but that does not mean that everything is being affected by either or both events. There are busy and slow seasons every year.
Of course you're right (dunno why you quoted me...). I didn't make any comparisons, just stated my rate this month. I assume people are smart enough to say "Hey, I was/wasn't getting this upgrade last year". Then again, there are routes that are always full, regardless of day or season. You also have to take into account that passenger loads across all airlines may have been higher/lower last year when compared with this year. Just as looking at short-term rates can be misleading, looking at the bigger picture can be misleading, too. YMMV always applies with this sort of thing, but I suppose we'll have a better idea as the next month or so passes and we have a larger set of data.