I am currently confirmed in NY (20K coach award) for NRT-BKK. I called and asked to be waitlisted for XC (30K biz award) on the route. When I pull up my itineraries, I see the waitlist. So far, UA has only pulled the 20K miles for the coach seats.

I usually sleep on the flight, so the idea of doing a standard award at 60K miles is not attractive. But a saver award would be great.

I am a bit concerned, though, about the process... If the XC inventory becomes available, does UA have to call me and authorize the removal of the extra mileage for business? If that happens, it is extremely likely that the inventory will vanish before I return the call. Is there a way to have them remove the extra mileage now and maybe return it to me if the waitlist does not clear?

(I realize it is a tough upgrade, even though my flights are on the recently-reinstated 744 in Nov/Dec. And I realize that any new XC inventory is likely to appear in the few days before the flight - I'll be traveling then, so it is even less likely that UA will be able to reach me if they need me to confirm clearance of the waitlist.)

Any suggestions on a better way to do this? Thanks for your help!