Jan 2, 2013, 4:01 am
Last edit by: Prospero
Glossary:
500 mile upgrades: earned by Gold and Platinum Elites, can be used to upgrade segments in 500 mile increments of North and Central America, Caribbean flights from Economy to the next class of service.. Read below.
e500: Occasional nickname used for 500 mile upgrades.
Electronic or 500 mile upgrades: non-expiring electronic instruments used for near Americas and Caribbean elite upgrades; please read below.
MTEU: Miles Toward Electronic Upgrades. The MTEU earning year zeroes February 28.
Stickers: Holdover name from when 500 mile upgrades were actual stickers applied to tickets when upgraded.
UDU: Unlimited Domestic Upgrades granted EXP and PRO members in lieu of earning or using 500 mile upgrades. (Consequently, they do not earn “stickers”.)
Related thread: End of Feb insufficient miles for 4 500 mile upgrade stickers (2017). (Requesting "stickers" for incremental MTEU threshold accomplishment.)
NOTE: CHANGES in effect as of 1 January 2017:
Upgrade priority:
Platinum Pro status holders join Executive Platinum members with complimentary "Unlimited Domestic Upgrades / UDU.
Companions:
ONE passenger traveling with you can “borrow” your status for upgrade purposes. They do not have to be on the same PNR. When this is done, you’ll not be upgraded unless sufficient upgrade seats become available to upgrade two (or more) people. This link often is broken when the flight control goes to the airport, and it can be reestablished there (e.g. at the gate). A good clue that the link has broken is if you’re #1 or 2 and your companion is significantly below that on the upgrade list, such as #11. Finally, because of IT flaws, the 500 mile upgrades for your traveling companion will by necessity come from your account, even if your companion has their own “stickers”. This has not been true for some time, if your companion has status, the system will try to pull the stickers from the companion's account. If there are not enough stickers, you will have to check-in at the airport to have stickers pulled from your account
For questions about whether to split or consolidate PNRs for itineraries involving multiple parties, please see this thread:
Companion upgrade issues including "link" / split PNR for status etc. (master thread)
Link to aa.com 500 mile upgrades (AKA "stickers") page.
Link to aa.com to "Upgrade your experience".
500 mile upgrades: earned by Gold and Platinum Elites, can be used to upgrade segments in 500 mile increments of North and Central America, Caribbean flights from Economy to the next class of service.. Read below.
e500: Occasional nickname used for 500 mile upgrades.
Electronic or 500 mile upgrades: non-expiring electronic instruments used for near Americas and Caribbean elite upgrades; please read below.
MTEU: Miles Toward Electronic Upgrades. The MTEU earning year zeroes February 28.
Stickers: Holdover name from when 500 mile upgrades were actual stickers applied to tickets when upgraded.
UDU: Unlimited Domestic Upgrades granted EXP and PRO members in lieu of earning or using 500 mile upgrades. (Consequently, they do not earn “stickers”.)
Related thread: End of Feb insufficient miles for 4 500 mile upgrade stickers (2017). (Requesting "stickers" for incremental MTEU threshold accomplishment.)
NOTE: CHANGES in effect as of 1 January 2017:
Upgrade priority:
- Elite tier
- Systemwide and Mileage award upgrades
- Business Extra and certain Agency upgrade certificates
- 500-mile / courtesy DODU / UDU upgrades on purchased tickets
- 500-mile upgrades on PRO, EXP award tickets
- Last 12 month rolling EAD spend
- Fare code
- Date if purchase
Platinum Pro status holders join Executive Platinum members with complimentary "Unlimited Domestic Upgrades / UDU.
- Usable to upgrade from Economy to next class of service (Not Business to First)
- Flights 500 miles or less: Unlimited, auto-requested complimentary upgrades*
- Flights over 500 miles: Complimentary "domestic" (North & Central America, Caribbean) upgrades
- Upgrade one companion traveling with you on the same flight with 500-mile upgrades*
Companions:
ONE passenger traveling with you can “borrow” your status for upgrade purposes. They do not have to be on the same PNR. When this is done, you’ll not be upgraded unless sufficient upgrade seats become available to upgrade two (or more) people. This link often is broken when the flight control goes to the airport, and it can be reestablished there (e.g. at the gate). A good clue that the link has broken is if you’re #1 or 2 and your companion is significantly below that on the upgrade list, such as #11. Finally, because of IT flaws, the 500 mile upgrades for your traveling companion will by necessity come from your account, even if your companion has their own “stickers”. This has not been true for some time, if your companion has status, the system will try to pull the stickers from the companion's account. If there are not enough stickers, you will have to check-in at the airport to have stickers pulled from your account
For questions about whether to split or consolidate PNRs for itineraries involving multiple parties, please see this thread:
Companion upgrade issues including "link" / split PNR for status etc. (master thread)
Link to aa.com 500 mile upgrades (AKA "stickers") page.
Link to aa.com to "Upgrade your experience".
AA "Sticker" / 500-mile & EXP "UDU" Complimentary Upgrade Policy / FAQ
Jul 30, 2022, 8:28 am
#661
Join Date: Sep 2006
Programs: Some more than others
Posts: 771
Hi: I have been lifetime gold for decades (literally) and have never asked for or gotten any kind of upgrade. From what I understand now, it appears that when I book a trip I would automatically be put on an upgrade list? I do not mean I will get upgraded as many are more elite than i, but is that what it means? I used to be much more knowledgeable but in recent years have not traveled as much
Jul 30, 2022, 9:00 am
#662
Join Date: Aug 2017
Programs: AA PLT, IHG Spire
Posts: 550
Depends where and when you fly, hub to hub you will be so for down the list you probably have no chance, but on the other hand small airports at inconvenient times it can be fairly likely. When I was gold I probably got upgraded 25% of the time out of BUF or to small airports I was travelling to, especially on the early morning flights.
As a Gold I also cleared a DFW - HNL upgrade on a widebody plane to lie-flat seats so sometimes you can get lucky too. But if you are not on the list then you have 0% shot of clearing.
As a Gold I also cleared a DFW - HNL upgrade on a widebody plane to lie-flat seats so sometimes you can get lucky too. But if you are not on the list then you have 0% shot of clearing.
Jul 30, 2022, 9:47 am
#663
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 10,904
When I last flew CUN-PHX all the upgrades cleared and we left with an empty seat in F. But this was before upgrades were complimentary so it's possible that there were elites in the back who didn't want to buy/use stickers.
If you are flexible with travel dates and book the cheapest flights you can find you will get upgraded a lot more often (as a nice bonus to saving money on your tickets). Those cheap flights are usually cheap because they have low loads.
If you are flexible with travel dates and book the cheapest flights you can find you will get upgraded a lot more often (as a nice bonus to saving money on your tickets). Those cheap flights are usually cheap because they have low loads.
Jul 30, 2022, 10:42 am
#665
Join Date: May 2008
Location: PHL (kinda, no airport is really close)
Programs: AA Exp, but not sure for how long. Enterprise Platinum woo-hoo!
Posts: 4,550
The recent changes have been bad news for golds. In the old system, Plats and Golds had to request an upgrade and pay for it with stickers if it cleared. Under the new system, as a gold you will be behind ALL plats and all golds with higher 12-month moving LP's than you.
That said, I did occasionally get upgrades on DL and US when I was gold there and they had free upgrades for all elites. On Christmas Eve 2009 my girlfriend and I got upgraded LAX-PHL, into a nearly empty F cabin, which was a real treat since I think it was the first time I had flown with her.
That said, I did occasionally get upgrades on DL and US when I was gold there and they had free upgrades for all elites. On Christmas Eve 2009 my girlfriend and I got upgraded LAX-PHL, into a nearly empty F cabin, which was a real treat since I think it was the first time I had flown with her.
Jul 30, 2022, 1:22 pm
#669
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: The World!!!
Programs: Some of them not all ...
Posts: 1,532
I'm gold out of DFW. In most flights, I'd be on the list around number 25-30. Of about 15 flights this year, not a single upgrade cleared. I was close in two occassions for a route that's not veyr business-heavy at odd times. I think in routes like DFW-LGA, I was like #40.
Jul 30, 2022, 1:31 pm
#670
Join Date: Aug 2012
Programs: AA PLT, SPG Gold
Posts: 2,405
Dramatic much? Neither you nor I know OP's flying patterns. Maybe he/she regularly flies OKC-LAX on Wednesday afternoons. In that case he/she would get upgraded >90% of the time.
Jul 30, 2022, 1:34 pm
#671
Join Date: Aug 2012
Programs: AA PLT, SPG Gold
Posts: 2,405
The recent changes have been bad news for golds. In the old system, Plats and Golds had to request an upgrade and pay for it with stickers if it cleared. Under the new system, as a gold you will be behind ALL plats and all golds with higher 12-month moving LP's than you.
That said, I did occasionally get upgrades on DL and US when I was gold there and they had free upgrades for all elites. On Christmas Eve 2009 my girlfriend and I got upgraded LAX-PHL, into a nearly empty F cabin, which was a real treat since I think it was the first time I had flown with her.
That said, I did occasionally get upgrades on DL and US when I was gold there and they had free upgrades for all elites. On Christmas Eve 2009 my girlfriend and I got upgraded LAX-PHL, into a nearly empty F cabin, which was a real treat since I think it was the first time I had flown with her.
Jul 30, 2022, 5:43 pm
#672
Join Date: Jul 2019
Location: Tokyo
Programs: *G (NH); OWS (JL); STE (KE)
Posts: 35
Indeed. I was recently upgraded on a BGR-ORD flight so there is some value to lifetime gold status. It just depends on when and where you’re flying to.
Jul 31, 2022, 4:52 am
#673
Join Date: May 2022
Location: Arlington, Virginia
Programs: AAdvantage Platinum, Aeroplan 25k, Hyatt Explorist, Marriott Gold
Posts: 194
But...aren't all AA flights either INTO our OUT OF a hub, given how the legacy carriers operate their networks? I've never understood the idea I've seen on various travel blogs that "it's better to be an elite based in a city not the hub of the airline in which you hold status," because aren't their an equal number of elite/status passengers in both directions between a given city pair? Elites have to come home as much as leave home, right?
Jul 31, 2022, 5:39 am
#674
Join Date: Sep 2016
Posts: 1,158
I've never understood the idea I've seen on various travel blogs that "it's better to be an elite based in a city not the hub of the airline in which you hold status," because aren't their an equal number of elite/status passengers in both directions between a given city pair? Elites have to come home as much as leave home, right?
Jul 31, 2022, 9:38 am
#675
Join Date: May 2022
Location: Arlington, Virginia
Programs: AAdvantage Platinum, Aeroplan 25k, Hyatt Explorist, Marriott Gold
Posts: 194
The real distinction is hub to hub versus hub to/from non-hub. If you are based at a hub of your airline (say DFW), then whenever you fly nonstop to another hub (say ORD), you will be competing with the DFW elite herd heading out and the ORD elite herd heading home. If you are based at a non-hub, at least you know that every trip starts and ends with a flight on which there is only one city's elite herd.