My understanding is that a MM A100K will trump a A100K, but not a MM A75K etc....

For AC, I'm not sure where Op-Ups are in the listing, but it differs from other airlines. AC will not Op-Up a person just to fill the cabin - they'd rather fly with an empty J seat than fill it randomly with someone who isn't spending credits on an eUpgrade.

Op-Ups can happen for a variety if items: discretion of AC, due to weigh-imbalance (happened twice to me), mechanical/oversell issues, etc.

But AC will not simply upgrade a status passenger to J if they didn't request it, to fill a cabin. I've been on flights where J was at 40% cpacity - and this was a pod-flight between YYC and PVG!

I can confirm this. Boarded YYC YVR last Friday with 24A. 10 minutes later another pax arrives with her boarding pass showing the same seat assignment. I went up to the front and one of the FAs went back to the gate and got me a new boarding pass with 3F.

I believe in this case I was not actually upgraded on boarding, but one J pax did not show up just before they closed the flight and I was next on the list. So the gate upgraded me, and gave my Y seat to a (Tango) passenger. I guess they didn't bother to page the jetway and let them know to come get me.

This is indeed what I had always assumed, but I was very clearly told by concierges in Toronto, Montreal and Frankfurt this last month that at the gate the status of the nominator was the deciding factor, but only after clearing status passengers using their own upgrades. I specifically gave them the example of my E50 wife on my SE credits, and all three stated she would lose out to anyone applying with their own credits, even an E35.

I hope they are wrong also because it is a royal pain to have to switch my wife to her own credits at T-24 each time....

Wouldn't it be nice if it was more transparent?!

I had this happen on Monday, too. Was waiting for boarding to complete on YYZ-YYC when someone comes up with a boarding pass for my seat, 14A. Turns out they had bumped me into J well after I had boarded in order to "make room for everybody" according to the GA who was working with the SD to sort out the double boarding passes. Incidentally, this was after a different GA announced several times prior to boarding that the J cabin was complete and no one else would be upgraded.

I actually work and travel frequently with a Math PhD and have a fairly strong math background as well and we have tried and failed to experimentally determine the tie breaker. This much we have more or less proven:

1) Status first
2) Fare class second
3) Distance of travel prior to flight third (small sample size but seems to work)
4) ???

As we were both Elite last year and E75K this year and usually travel on flight passes (M-class), we should normally clear the first 3) tied. However, it appears that neither time of check in nor time of upgrade are reliably 4) and I have never seen confirmation on this board (long time lurker) of how to break the tie at step 4).

To answer another question on this and another thread, I have been upgraded after boarding on a few occasions although not consistently. It is definitely more likely if the flight is full and arguably more likely if you've had a conversation with the gate agent. It is definitely controlled at the gate. Several FA's have confirmed that they are not permitted to upgrade Pax on board (though I am sure there have been exceptions, as there seem to be to most of the "rules").

If your on a connection. AC to LH code share. First flight yyz YUL is AC flight number. Cnx to LH code share AC metal to FRA. AC is insisting the 2nd flight can only be upgraded at the gate in YUL not at the airport in YYZ. Agent now insists I could only upgd the first leg at 5 days, but not the second until gate in YUL. Anybody have a similar experience. FRA YYZ I am resigned to the back. LH code share is 2k. It is close to 5k to rebook as all AC metal same flight. Flights are wide open. Seats booking into V. Showing 9 available in all fare classes but tango.

I am wondering why AC and LH fought for a pool over the Atlantic. When there seems to be no benefit, and AC is treating LH passangers 2nd class by offering less benefits than their own passangers who fly on tango. The good news is that I will hit 50k off this trip, and don't have to fly AC for another year, unless I want to. Of the fifty k only about 15,000 will have been flown on AC. Last year of the 75 prob 50k was flown on AC. But they have priced themselves off many of the routes I fly. Nice to see their revenue down, and calin complaining that not enough travellers are paying the high fares. Yo Calin, look at your pricing, and the enhancements over the years. An airplane seat is an airplane seat, and you have a lot to do, in the tangeable and intangebale department before your seat is better than most of your competitors. Rant over.

I connect YQU-YYC/YEG-> and YXS-YVR->

to YYZ, YUL and IAH being most of my samples: As an E last year it seems I was getting my upgrade while E's and SE's where told no. As an SE this year I've gotten my upgrade while other SE's who are directs did not. I have never not gotten a upgrade on YYC-IAH when connecting from YQU, where if I'm direct from YYC it seems 50/50.

I fly paid J to asia so I haven't been able to test this on a long haul yet, but I do have a trip to LHR coming up and will see how it works out.

Im E35k but my dad is 75k. I opted to use his credits for the shanghai flight so i could put my request in earlier than my35k request. From what i am reading here i now have put myself lower on the list then i would have at 35k....is this true. Either way, when do i find out if i have been upgraded?

Best to use the E75K upgrade credits. The E35K credits are highly restricted (top Flex booking classes), and are thus practically useless for int'l flights.

In regards to your question, it is speculation that you are at the bottom of the barrel. Nobody really knows how AC's inner IT working go. If you are currently on the waitlist, you (or your father) will get an email if the upgrade clears. Otherwise, it goes to the gate on the day of departure.

Welcome to FT!

One more to the list, IROP with travel implications takes some priority over others upgrades. Not sure how far it ranked.

Did.... YYZ-ORD-NRT on AC/NH, AC went mechanical and missed NH connection in ORD, hence they put us on YYZ-NRT direct with only 3 open J seats. This was on I class with no status........ I am sure that bummed some gate upgraders out.

Not to compicate too much more, but confirmed pax on a given flight (Y requesting u/g) have access to remaining J seats before pax on standby for J that are confirmed (even in J) on another flight, except, of course, where IROPs are concerned... but only when Venus is in retrograde...

I was talking to a concierge in YYZ this morning, and while I had his attention I asked again about the "Frankfurt Scenario" -- specifically, does the act of boarding remove you from the upgrade wait list. Concierges & gate agents in FRA say yes, a concierge in YYZ has previously told me no, and I've personally seen people get upgraded after sitting down in Y ... no wonder there's confusion.

Anyway, the answer I got today was clear, and also explains all that I've seen. The short answer is "yes, the act of boarding will remove you from the upgrade wait list". This is true in every city, not just FRA ... once you board, you have accepted the seat you've been given, and you're no longer an official candidate in the system for an upgrade.

"However", he said, "what most most concierge's and gate agents will do, is print out the upgrade list prior to starting the boarding process - and then run upgrades based on that list". In other words, you're officially off the list after boarding ... but the agent/concierge processing the list has the option of doing "the right thing", including going onboard to upgrade someone who's already taken their seat in Y if that person was next in line.

So, there's still no easy option for what to do when playing aerolotto at Frankfurt ... if you wait to board, you lose the chance to get bin space ... but if you board early, you're officially off the list - and then you're at the mercy of the concierge who may (or may not) go by the original upgrade list.

I may not think it's a good system, but at least I think I understand it better now.

Makes perfect sense -- thanks for digging into this ^

great intel. great post. thanks.