HighPotter

AA 1062 LAX-ORD on 5/17, is has been showing one seat open in F, yet my sticker upgrade still hasn't filled. If not me, then who?

Is this F seat just a mythical mirage?

HP

ESpen36

Seat maps are notoriously inaccurate indicators of inventory availability. Oftentimes paid F passengers do not select seats in advance, particularly if they bought their ticket in connection with another carrier, especially a foreign one where seat assignments typically are not given in advance.

But even if the loads were F1 on your flight (as opposed to F0), it is likely that AA is holding back that one unsold seat for a last-minute potential sale. If it is released to upgraders at all, it will be released at the gate--unless something dramatic happens and the cabin suddenly opens up.

ty97

Assuming it really is F1 and not just a seat map anomaly, AA is holding that seat for now, to see if they can sell it. If they are unable to sell it last minute, then they will give it to whoever is #1 on the upgrade list.

nrr

With only F1 showing it is extremely likely that they will hold the upg until T-4 hours, or even dole it out at the gate 30 minutes before flight time.

Apieinthesky

In this case, EF is showing this flight to be F1 with one seat open. Assuming you only looked at the seat map, you cannot conclude that the F cabin is sold out, with one person having yet to select a seat.

That aside, how are you so sure there is no one above you on the upgrade list? Your profile lists you as a PLT, and there a solid number of premium seats filled. In addition, this is a hub to hub flight, likely EXP heavy.

With one seat left in F, it is highly unlikely any upgrade will clear before the gate.

HNL

OP are you saying there is one seat occupied on the flight, or 15 seats occupied? If the later then that seat will not be released for an upgrade until boarding time at the gate. Highly unlikely that it will go to a Plat.

JMN57

I checked EF and it is F1 with 3F open on the seat map.

Honestly, there should be no expectation of an upgrade pre-gate on something with this profile even for an EXP. AA would be nuts to fill that seat until gate. As a PLAT, you should thank them for the favor for if you want the seat, call AA and see if you can upgrade with miles & $. From their perspective, an F pax or the upgrader generates more than they get for sticker upgrade on EXP (=$0) - and I would bet that you'll never see that seat unless you upgrade it.

JMN57

I still see F1 and a lot of 0 in coach.

metallo

When a flight is F1A1, as in this case, it means that there is only one seat left in the first class cabin. Per the seatmap, that particular seat is currently 3F. As others have mentioned, it would be rare for the seat to be given to a passenger as a complimentary or 500 mile upgrade at this point. If it's still available on the day of departure, it will likely clear at the gate. On the other hand, since it is F1A1 (rather than F1A0), it means that you could still potentially upgrade using miles+copay (15,000 miles plus $75) or use someone's systemwide upgrade.

To answer your question, "If not me, then who?" That's pretty easy. A few options from AA's perspective:
1) Anyone higher than you on the upgrade list (all EXPs and any PLTs who upgraded before you or have a full fare Y ticket).
2) Anyone willing to use miles+copay, regardless of AA status.
3) Anyone who wants to use a systemwide upgrade (EXP, or someone designated by an EXP, with available SWUs).
4) Anyone willing to pay full price for First Class, regardless of AA status.

My advice... definitely don't count on getting your PLT upgrade. You'll likely have to be proactive for this one and use one of the other upgrade instruments.

Apieinthesky

Yea, you're right. I'm not sure what was going on there. I also misread your post to mean F1 with 3 F seats open on the seat map. I've gone ahead and removed my post.

JMN57

Well it is F0 now so if OP wanted to be in F he needed to have gotten the A1! Of course there's a chance of a gate upg but I'd bet $ to donuts that would go to an EXP. This is a subtle point but the fact that AA doesn't upgrade when F inventory is low but does open to A is an opportunity for Plat/Gold. If AA just did the upgrade, non-EXPs would always get closed out in these circumstances. When I was Plat and saw this I knew I had to act if I wanted to fly F. It's one example of how an EF subscription is worthwhile.

BTW, I intentionally did not post that it was A1 as I'm not sure whether doing so violates FT copyright.

brp

So, you're asking, yet again "hey, why hasn't my upgrade cleared- there's a seat open, so why won't they give it to me?" Seriously? Because no one has ever wondered why they didn't get the seat before.

Actually, seat maps are often more accurate than inventory for premium cabins as flights get close. the instances where inventory is reduced, but seats really are open, due to Y oversell. The inventory is less accurate in terms of real seats than the seat map.

Cheers.

bagold

I would expect they leave it for revenue passengers that want to book last minute or change flight times to this one. And yes, there are people who do pay for F.

cynicAAl

Clearly, the days of reliable free upgrades to someone just because of their elite status are going away.

For years, I booked $ 248 transcons, and always upgraded on all 4 segments. I was a loyal customer. But I was not a profitable customer. AA finally figured that out.

I booked a transcon yesterday, and was given the option to upgrade for an add'l $ 269 (over my $ 440 coach fare). Obviously, I bought the upgrade. Another seat unavailable to upgraders, and more revenue for AA.

metallo

IME, this phenomenon is still very route-dependent. I don't doubt that it's possible to grab a few extra upgrades on certain routes by paying for F/J at the time of booking, particularly on transcons. However, you might also be jumping the gun and blowing several hundred dollars when the upgrade would have cleared later anyway. I hate playing the upgrade lottery as much as anyone else, but patience often pays off.