vernonc

I was on YYZ-YVR two weeks back. Saw that I was way down on the upg list so decided to board. GA made an announcement to not board if you were waiting for an upgrade and then a GA told me that I would come off the list if I boarded. I did not care as I had little chance of being upgraded but that's what they said.

5mm

yyznomad

What was the flight load at T-1h15m?

vernonc

I know and have read the other posts. Just listing my experience where one GA made the announcement about not boarding of on the upg list and then another GA telling me that I would lose my upg if I boarded. So maybe this is being followed inconsistently

vernonc

Do not know what the actual load was but I was 7 on the upg list and looked like there was one seat that had already been upgraded. And PE seemed to have been checked in full. This was a weird trip, I did not get upgraded to either J or PE on both the outbound and return.

WaytoomuchEurope

delete

marke190

Another data point: the GAs in YYZ made the same YBYL announcement on AC137 a few weeks ago.

JordanYVR

I had this on YVR-YYZ this morning. Same announcement. I was 5th on the list, J was 28/28 so I everyone boarded. I somehow got a seat as I waited in the boarding area and slowly moved up the list.

canopus27

I've been told before that the system does remove you from the list once you've boarded.

I was further told that they have a policy (guideline) (aspirational goal) (hopeful wish) that the GA will note who's at the top of the list, and then if any late seats open up then the GA will upgrade people who were at the top of the list even if they have boarded .... but it's a manual action, and therefore not always done (or done right).

That explanation seems consistent with the inconsistent results that people here have experienced.

RatherBeInYOW

You get removed from the list in the app when you board for sure.

I actually talked to AC on Twitter last year as I watched it happen sitting on the plane (at CDG in this case) to me - boarded with no upgrade, seats available on the plane - and got a comp upgrade on a later flight as compensation.

Relying on GAs, who are frequently overloaded and under pressure to get flights out something approaching on time, seems like a risky proposition. Especially at outstations. Especially when board by bus. Too much to go wrong.

mamau

You will be REMOVED from the list as soon as your BP is scanned and you board. Hence, YBYL. This, and lazy GA that will manually put GTE holders in J instead of up-ups for loyal customers.

rage

It shouldn't rely on the GA. The system should do it automagically.

canadiancow

Yep. When they finalize the flight, it should spit out a couple more boarding passes that can be handed to the SD with the paperwork, who can then call up those upgrades.

RatherBeInYOW

Yeah, I agree this would be the better solution; the final manifest has different seating arrangements and the BPs to make it happen, which get walked down the jetway to the SD.

I think the larger issue is that the GAs are expected to ensure on-time departure and they frequently seem very harried / under pressure to me. Frequently I see a single agent, sometimes two, trying to deal with:

• People who want to switch seats or are GTE, or just like to walk up to the podium and ask random questions
• VDB in an oversold situation
• Standbys
• Asking for volunteers to gate check bags and then tagging said bags
• No-shows
• Special assistance pax
• People who have upgrade requests
• Starting boarding
• Getting the manifest finalized

Somehow I doubt getting us moved in to J is at the top of that list. Sometimes I think it is a miracle they get it all sorted out and the plane boarded.

Last week I was waiting for my YYZ-YOW connection home from Europe and there was single agent until about 2 mins before boarding when a second showed up and started boarding. Gate a total gong show, prior YYZ-YOW flight cancelled so this one overbooked, and the usual E190 so they need bag check volunteers. The SE behind me in the zone 1 line says something like "I think I have an upgrade that should clear but the agent looks so overwhelmed I don't even want to ask" and then just YBYLs in to his Y seat. For a 45 min flight not as much of an issue I suspect (it certainly isn't for me).

They need more automation or more people or more time to board the planes and less ridiculous turn times or all of the above. YBYL is a function of timing (there could be a J no-show at T-20 and then a seat opens when you are already on the plane) but also a function of trying to get all of that stuff done and the plane boarded at the same time as sorting out upgrades and not enough time to make it all happen.

canadiancow

They need more automation. Then they can make process changes system-wide without having to re-train people. And things can be processed instantly.

You're not a no-show until they decide to close the flight, which should never be at T-20. T-15 at the earliest. That's why they can't fill the seat until the very end, which is why it should just be automated.