jsguyrus

AS needs to invest a little money in upgrading the interior of the 700's if they are going to keep them around. The last one I flew in was in pretty sad shape.

drewcwsj

I'm a PDX based MVP for four years now. My first two years I got upgrades 50% of the time. Last year I got one upgrade. This year I'm just hoping to keep getting exit rows. On my first flight this year, a Monday morning PDX-SJC, there were over 60 elites on the waiting list. I take that flight regularly and in the past never saw more than 25.

On the plus side I have two South America and one Japan trips this year in paid business that will get me to MVPG. Of course once I get there I expect upgrades to be even rarer. C'est la vie.

dave1013

A goodly number of them are soon to be converted into freghters (replacing the -400 combi aircraft). So I doubt they'll see any enhancements.

ncorman

3 will be converted to freighters.

pdxasflyer

Lots of freshly minted VX elites (now MVPG and 75ks) have doubled most of the waiting lists. Saw on average 32 on the UG list for all my flights this week. Premium class should help, but not sure how much.

drewcwsj

I just wouldn't expect many VX elites in PDX. I wonder if the VX elites are seeing their waitlists grow too?

Orwaid

Hi -

My travel put me at 40K for MVPG renewal last June. Then I was grounded for a few months, only starting up again in November. I added 4 Transcon MRs in December to the 10K of West Coast/Midcon trips I had booked to get me to 75K for this year. With that as a backdrop:

1) The new colors – I like the new colors, especially on the scarves and ties worm by the FAs. It reminds me of the Northern Lights.

2) Y/Y+ Service Levels - I certainly felt that the FAs were more active in the cabin. Carts, water service, trash/recycling pickup and interacting with the passengers all seemed elevated over what I experienced previously in the year. I find the credit card solicitation annoying and invasive.

3) Y/Y+ Status Recognition – Without fail, I was addressed by name and thanked for my business. Nice touches to be sure. The candy bar and/or free drink reminds me of someone getting a participation trophy in Little League. “Sorry you didn’t get a FC upgrade, here’s something a little extra for you.”

Instead, maybe let flyers decide between a drink or a snack (not a meal). For non-drinking pre-diabetic folks, that is a meaningful perk. It would not disrupt the service flow. This provides more flexibility for the customer at little incremental cost to AS.

4) FC Upgrades – I know it is a small dataset, but I was 1/9 on Transcons, 1/3 on Midcons and 2/2 on West Coast flights. The one long haul UG cleared at the gate on a 16-seat FC cabin; all other flights were in the new 12-seat cabin. The midcon UG was thanks to a GGU because of the fare class I was in. (I am usually in R/T/G class). Otherwise, I was always the 1st or 2nd person to not clear. I know now what the “bubble boy” at the World Series of Poker must feel. As a comparison, my UG rate prior to this was over 90% (I am based in PDX). I am sure the combination of downsizing the FC cabin and handing out more status matches are the principal contributors to this.

I conclude that for upgrades in 2017 and beyond, 75K is the new MVPG and MVPG is the new MVP. You will need to be 75K to have any reasonable chance at a long-haul UG. MVPGs should not expect to be in front of the curtain (unless you use your GGUs) except perhaps along the west coast; better get used to Y+ being the new normal. And MVPs should be content with their free checked bag and finding space for their carryon and occasionally getting bumped up here and there.

Seat 2A

Hey Lane!

I was just curious how your 2017 upgrades have been going so far? I ask only because as a fellow 75K, I feel like Alaska's looked after me quite nicely. That's not to dispute that for whatever reason you've not enjoyed the same level of upgrade charity as have I. Hopefully however things have improved a bit for you. Here's my breakdown for this year so far...

16 JAN FAI-SEA Upgraded prior to flight
17 JAN SEA-RDU Upgraded at the gate
18 JAN RDU-SEA Not upgraded. Sat in Premium Coach
19 JAN SEA-DEN Upgraded at the gate
28 JAN LAS-SEA Upgraded prior to flight
29 JAN SEA-ATL Upgraded at the gate
30 JAN ATL-SEA Upgraded at the gate
30 JAN SEA-PDX Upgraded prior to flight
31 JAN PDX-ANC Upgraded at the gate
03 FEB FAI-SEA Upgraded at the gate
04 FEB SEA-LAX Upgraded prior to flight
04 FEB LAX-SEA Upgraded at the gate
04 FEB SEA-FAI Upgraded prior to flight
08 FEB FAI-SEA Upgraded prior to flight
10 FEB SEA-BWI Upgraded prior to flight

14 out of 15 flights! Yeah, Baby! From my perspective at least, Alaska's doing a very nice job of looking after us 75Ks. But then, I don't expect to be upgraded when I buy a $109.00 SEA-FAI ticket, and if I do end up sat in back with The Great Unwashed, at least I'll have a pretty good seat. And a free drink. And a Digi-Player on occasion. Maybe it's karma...

cblaisd

Four for four this month as an MVP

SEA-COS-SEA

mmaster737

According to the earnings call only 3 of them.