HenryE1005

I have MVP Gold status. The upgrade window opened and there was upgrade space available based upon a dummy booking on Alaska.com using the Gold Guest upgrade option. I waited an hour and the upgrade wasn't automatically processed. I contacted Alaska via text to request that the upgrade be manually processed and was advised by the representative that I have to wait for the system to process upgrades automatically per a supervisor (after waiting 45 minutes while they checked with a supervisor). I asked to speak with a supervisor.

I received a callback very quickly from a Mileage Plan supervisor who informed me that they stopped processing manual upgrades as they no longer can see the waitlist. This is the result of adding the 100k status. I explained that customers generally work hard to have status and count on the published benefits. Being told to wait when it is clear that either they should upgrade everyone ahead of me on the waitlist and the U space will no longer show available, or simply process the upgrade for me as there is no one ahead of me.

I wrote to the Alaska executive office to express my dissatisfaction with their outdated IT/programming and to request that they give the representative access to see the waitlist if they are unable to correct the automatic upgrade processor due to the 100k status level.

As an aside, the upgrade happened overnight and I was able to select my preferred seat. Being required to wait when there is upgrade space available is poor customer service and is totally avoidable by Alaska.

PDXPremier

In my experience the upgrade is never processed exactly when the upgrade window opens....you typically have to wait 4-6 hours for the processor to run.... annoying but at least it's predictable.

HenryE1005

I understand this; however we shouldn't allow them to not provide the published benefits they created and we paid to receive. They need to receive as much feedback as possible to facilitate change.

Finkface

The problem with this is that people (like me) will go in and snipe that space with a GGU. That is where it becomes unfair to those on the waitlist who should have gotten that space if the processor ran as soon as the window opened. Why not just program it to run at that time?

anteater

I am sorry to hear of your experience, but welcome to the current state of AS. AS' own literature says:

"Immediately" isn't well defined but I think all of the elites agree that the current system is broken. Waiting until well within one's elite UG window or even until =<T-24 while U sits open is not immediately. Also, Finkface is completely right. People can and do snipe that U space (e.g. GGU or a qualifying fare); so, AS refusing to fix the UG professor or even honor their published benefits is poor customer service indeed. Additionally, AS used to empower Reservations to assist when the UG processor was clearly broken, but you will find that is no longer the case. AS seems to be taking a step backward here, sadly.

Interestingly enough, AS used the opposite logic when revoking the 75K (4) GGU benefit, citing that the website was to be considered the policy: even though they had been issuing the (4) GGUs to every 75K since the 75K tier was introduced, with their agents empowered to assist elites regarding the matter. Even their own staff would acknowledge this benefit if contacting Res/CC prior to the policy change. So, if the AS website states upgrades should be processed immediately, AS should also empower their agents to assist when their system is broken.

I applaud you for taking the time to elevate your complaint. Now, if more of us would take the time to express our displeasure to AS, I believe things would change.

🤙🏻🍹

buschoi

It is frustrating with the glitch, but I have been able to take advantage of it with SDC at 24 hours from departure. Had the upgrade processor run as intended at T-120 (or any time before T-24), all the F seats would usually be gone. Now that it usually doesn’t run until T-22, I can SDC and still get upgraded.

anteater

Here's another datapoint. I have an upcoming flight where U>=5, UG processor hasn't run and I pinged AS solely asking what my position is on the waitlist, and the response was:

I know the UG professor has tenture, but he really needs to be fired.. 🤙🏻🍹

Ford Fairlane

Seems like on most of my flights since March, upgrades generally didn't happen until between check-in and T-23, even when U>=5.

Surprisingly, for a couple flights this weekend, one upgrade happened at T-108 and the other at T-84. I hope it's a good sign for all and not just a couple glitches in my favor.

sbedelman

Spouse and I were one and two on the waitlist for first. Both of us are G75. A few hours later the person immediately below us is no longer there and one of the two seats in first is gone. The rest of the upgrade list is unchanged.

Seems like Alaska released one upgrade and bypassed us.

Has anyone else experienced this?

anteater

This is correct behavior.

Since there was J=1 and at some point AS decided to open U=1, the UG processor then looked at the waitlist and found the first available entity that was 1 pax. Since your reservation was pax=2, you were skipped over correctly. Now, however, if U did not open and the flight moved to Gate Control around T-1.5 hours, the GA should page you (pax #1 on the WL) and ask if you'd like to be UG'd since you were pax=2).

AS describes this, here:

Link: https://www.alaskaair.com/content/mi...ntary-upgrades

Now, the problem that pax usually face is when J>=2 and then U becomes = 1. This doesn't happen as often, but when it does it can be an issue. For example, if the flight has J=7, but AS opens U 1 at a time, it'll iteratively go down the UL searching for the first pax that is a solo traveler, until U is exhausted. However, more recently, AS is opening U>=2, so elites traveling with a companion may not see this issue as often.

jrl767

fixed that for you

sbedelman

That is exactly the situation I've seen in the past. Might be what happened here too since as of yesterday U=4 and ticked down one seat at a time.

stephem

I don’t understand this either, we are a family of five with status on both Delta and Alaska. When I book all of us on a single PNR w Alaska we won’t even get premium seats. With Delta they put each of us on the upgrade list and process as many of us as they can. There’s an IT fix for this, it’s silly to require customers to break off each passenger into a separate PNR for give up on upgrades.

PDXPremier

I was under the impression that on DL if you have 5 passengers on the record with one elite, nobody is eligible for upgrades (not even Comfort +). If Delta is processing upgrades individually ("as many as they can"), aren't they essentially splitting the records while they do that? When traveling with my wife and kids, I prefer that our PNRs aren't split so that our kids get our 75K benefits.....I accidently said yes to an upgrade on SEA-PDX last Sunday since my wife didn't want it and stayed in premium with the kids but later I realized that I was removed from my sons reservation on the flight after that which isn't until December so now he won't be able to get upgraded at my 75K window...ugh.

Barbella7

Checking in with the FT braintrust to see if anyone has any thoughts on what may have caused this, or if it is just another instance of the upgrade processor not working correctly. On hold with AS now but not hopeful it'll lead to anything.

At T-24 (and previously using the AS flight status page to confirm), I was #1 of 16 on the list with 2 open F seats. 24 minutes later, it appears the 2 F seats were released but instead of upgrading #1 and #2 as you'd expect, #3 and #6 were upgraded (and 2 seats in premium were vacated). Is there anything I'm missing as to why the upgrade list in the app may not be correct?