seahawks10177

Alrighty guys, I got a dosey for you and want to get your opinion on what I should do (if anything).

So I booked two one way trips from IAH to SEA (6am) and SEA to IAH (10:40pm) for the same day. I checked in for the 6am flight yesterday and waited until last night at 10:40pm to check in for the 2nd flight. I saw that there was space on the 12pm flight to IAH so I decide to do a same day confirmed change for that flight and being MVP Gold, it's complementary and I am put into seat 7E. I go online to switch my seat to 17F (window exit is better than premium middle) it says I can't change seats until I check in. When I go in to check into the flight online I also see that there is still one first class seat open on the flight so I want to see where I am on the upgrade list, however I am nowhere to be found. I am found however, on the standby list. I reach out to the Alaska Airlines Social Team on twitter and they say "You are on the upgrade list but you won't see it until you check in. It shows you are assigned seat 7e you will request to change seats to sit in 17F" So I go online to check in and it says "See agent for assistance, cannot process check in". I reach out again to the twitter team and they say "I am not sure why you need to check in with an agent. I am sorry."

So at this point I am thinking I will just show up at the airport tomorrow and hope at 17F is avaiable since it won't let me switch and see why I can't get on the upgrade list. So I show up at Houston airport and see if they can help me and I get the response of "Oh we can't help you since it's at a different airport, you will have to ask them in Seattle"

So I land in Seattle at around 9am and go to the Boardroom Lounge and ask if they can help me and the agent there says "Yes, you are on the upgrade list however you are #8 on the list so it's not looking good." At this point, I know that isn't true because there is only 5 people showing on the upgrade list so how I am #8 is beyond me. However, she prints me off a boarding pass with 17F and I leave. So this is at around 10am. I take the tram over to the Main Terminal and go to Customer Service desk and ask them if I am truly on the upgrade list and how I am #8 . She tells me that both the agent at Houston was wrong and that they could have helped me and the agent in the boardroom was wrong because she showed me as #8 on the STANDBY list not the upgrade list. By the time she adds me to the list (which is around 10:20am), the first person who was on the upgrade list had cleared and she says that I am #1 on the list. I ask her if first class is full and she says yes. So the time in between me leaving the boardroom and going to the customer service guest, the upgrade had cleared. At this point, I'm kinda irritated because that could have been me if either of the agents that I spoke with before had just put me on this list instead of passing me off. Now I don't know if I would have jumped the person who got upgraded but I would have at least like to have gotten a shot.

Do you think I should complain to Alaska Listens or just forget about it and move on? Both flights were fine.

beckoa

I'd send a note to AS.

There are some takeaways;

Don't rely on twitter. IME the agents can't help with existing reservations/checkin etc.

Don't rely on the AS BR folks. These folks are very helpful, but limited in what they can do (per contract).

In the future, pick up the phone. When at the airport, find an agent either free at a ticket counter, or at the assistance desk. One can always ask for a manager as well.

As for the waitlist- not certain what happened. The online one can be shorter as not everyone checks in early, but it sounds like that may not have happened here.

rustykettel

In a note to AS, I'd focus on the conflicting (and ultimately incorrect) information from different AS employees and the difference between the IAH and SEA agents' competency in accomplishing a task like adding someone to the upgrade list. Make it short and to the point, avoid accusative terms like "lying", and perhaps emphasize the lack of consistency delivered not the missed upgrade itself.

Tracer_SEA

How did you do the Same Day Change? Via phone or in the app?

That seems like the key -- if you had been able to successfully check in right after the SDC you probably wouldn't have had the ensuing drama.

jsguyrus

I don't get too excited about this SDC stuff. I pretty much know that if I do a SDC (as a gold) I am not going to get an upgrade.

seahawks10177

I did it via the app and tried to check in right after and it wouldn't let me

Tracer_SEA

Yep, I've had the same thing happen too. I've given up using the app for SDC until they fix that. Calling seems to work a lot more reliably.

Tracer_SEA

Agree that you're playing upgrade/seat lotto when you SDC and that comes with the turf. But you shouldn't be forced to get to the airport early and wait in line to check in with an agent because AS technology can't properly process a SDC...

seahawks10177

That's kinda what I am saying! Like I never got a proper reason on why I couldn't check in

jerry a. laska

I don't know if agents even know what is happening with the list after SDC. See:
Agents Saying You’re on the Upgrade List But...
SDC, Checked In, Don't Show on UG List
SDC: Can't Get on UG list

jiburi

Is it possible TSA might be involved? I have TSA precheck via NEXUS membership but both time I used SDC, I lost my precheck.

Jiburi

seahawks10177

No I don't think so because I was pre-check on the flight.

seahawks10177

So an update, I heard back from Alaska Airlines and they gave me a $75 discount code so I'm guessing someone messed up and I could have gotten the upgrade