Upgraded at Check-in but Downgraded at Gate Because of.....Meal Reservation?
Feb 9, 2019, 8:42 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2016
Location: ORD
Programs: AA PLT PRO
Posts: 34
Upgraded at Check-in but Downgraded at Gate Because of.....Meal Reservation?
Currently sitting in seat 2D (yes, they put me back in J in the end) on AA181 from PEK to LAX, and thought I'd share this unusual experience with the forum.
I booked a trip from ORD to PEK via LAX in PEY cabin. On the way to PEK from LAX, they oversold the flight and upgraded me to J at the gate. I had a feeling this was going to happen, given how empty the J class was and how full PEY and Y classes were 1 day prior to departure. It turned out that there were 13 pax on the standby list of this international flight. Not sure if they missed the flight from DFW to PEK or if some other airlines rebooked them on AA. Anyway, I was happy about the upgrade.
Today on the way back, it turned out that AA oversold the flight again, and I was upgraded at the check-in counter. Of course I was very happy about it, as when I did OLCI yesterday, the system offered me $665 to upgraded to J, but I declined. The rollercoaster started as they were boarding me - the system wouldn't recognize my boarding pass, and soon the ground staff said "sorry sir, your seat is still 9L, and your upgrade was unsuccessful". As there were other pax waiting behind me for boarding, I didn't argue with the staff or ask the reason why the upgrade was unusuccessful. As I walked to the aircraft door, the ground crew manager was welcoming the pax, and I asked why I got upgraded and then downgraded. She said it's because I had reserved a meal online for PEY cabin, thus the system wouldn't let them upgrade me. I was pretty shcoked to hear this reason, not only because that I didn't order any special meal, but that AA's system prioritizes meal orders before upgrades. Puzzled, I went to my original seat of 9L.
She probably realized that it wasn't right to "downgraded" me because of a meal order, so she then talked with her staff, and eventually gave me a seat in J class. Not my original selected 4L at check-in, but I wouldn't complain. Before she left, she said to me "if you want higher chance of upgrade, remember don't reserve any meal online". I thanked her, but still do not understand the rationale behind this.
Have any of you folks experienced something like this before - voided upgrade because of meal reservation? Thoughts?
This was just so bizzare to me. Kudos to the ground crew manager to go through the trouble to put me in J again.
I booked a trip from ORD to PEK via LAX in PEY cabin. On the way to PEK from LAX, they oversold the flight and upgraded me to J at the gate. I had a feeling this was going to happen, given how empty the J class was and how full PEY and Y classes were 1 day prior to departure. It turned out that there were 13 pax on the standby list of this international flight. Not sure if they missed the flight from DFW to PEK or if some other airlines rebooked them on AA. Anyway, I was happy about the upgrade.
Today on the way back, it turned out that AA oversold the flight again, and I was upgraded at the check-in counter. Of course I was very happy about it, as when I did OLCI yesterday, the system offered me $665 to upgraded to J, but I declined. The rollercoaster started as they were boarding me - the system wouldn't recognize my boarding pass, and soon the ground staff said "sorry sir, your seat is still 9L, and your upgrade was unsuccessful". As there were other pax waiting behind me for boarding, I didn't argue with the staff or ask the reason why the upgrade was unusuccessful. As I walked to the aircraft door, the ground crew manager was welcoming the pax, and I asked why I got upgraded and then downgraded. She said it's because I had reserved a meal online for PEY cabin, thus the system wouldn't let them upgrade me. I was pretty shcoked to hear this reason, not only because that I didn't order any special meal, but that AA's system prioritizes meal orders before upgrades. Puzzled, I went to my original seat of 9L.
She probably realized that it wasn't right to "downgraded" me because of a meal order, so she then talked with her staff, and eventually gave me a seat in J class. Not my original selected 4L at check-in, but I wouldn't complain. Before she left, she said to me "if you want higher chance of upgrade, remember don't reserve any meal online". I thanked her, but still do not understand the rationale behind this.
Have any of you folks experienced something like this before - voided upgrade because of meal reservation? Thoughts?
This was just so bizzare to me. Kudos to the ground crew manager to go through the trouble to put me in J again.
Feb 9, 2019, 8:52 am
#2
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: UK. BAEC AAdvantage
Programs: Mucci Des Oeufs Brouilles et des Canards
Posts: 3,671
This is something that is mentioned quite often on the BA forum. Special meals will prevent you from being upgraded. If you want a chance of an OpUp then don't order a meal. Sure, you could say bring my meal from the lower cabin, but they don't like to do that as it makes you stand out.
I'm guessing it could apply to any airline. I recently heard a travel writer mention this as something not to do if you want a chance of an upgrade.
I'm guessing it could apply to any airline. I recently heard a travel writer mention this as something not to do if you want a chance of an upgrade.
Feb 9, 2019, 8:59 am
#3
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Minneapolis: DL DM charter 2.3MM
Programs: A3*Gold, SPG Plat, HyattDiamond, MarriottPP, LHW exAccess, ICI, Raffles Amb, NW PE MM, TWA Gold MM
Posts: 100,413
This is pretty standard: airlines generally won't give OPUPs if you've ordered a special meal because (1) they assume that the special meal is needed for health/religious/etc. reasons, (2) the special meal can't be acquisitioned on short notice for the higher cabin, and (3) presumably the meal you ordered will be loaded in place of a regular meal, so if you're moved up, someone else in your former cabin will be forced to consume your selected meal as it will be the only meal remaining (assuming that the flight isn't catered with extra meals), (4) the airline thinks it looks bad to serve a lower cabin meal (including the tray, dishes, silverware, etc.) in a premium cabin, and (5) doing so would make clear to other revenue passengers who paid for premium cabin tickets that you were upgraded for free.
You were very lucky that someone was willing to bend the "rule" (OPUPs aren't a FF program benefit and are done for the convenience of the carrier at the operating carrier's sole discretion with the GAs generally given lots of latitude to do an OPUP for whatever passenger is quickest and easiest to upgrade at the last minute to fill a seat when a lower cabin is oversold) and give you the OPUP in the end.
You were very lucky that someone was willing to bend the "rule" (OPUPs aren't a FF program benefit and are done for the convenience of the carrier at the operating carrier's sole discretion with the GAs generally given lots of latitude to do an OPUP for whatever passenger is quickest and easiest to upgrade at the last minute to fill a seat when a lower cabin is oversold) and give you the OPUP in the end.
Feb 9, 2019, 10:36 am
#5
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Redding, CT
Posts: 604
No Special Meal
Feb 9, 2019, 12:09 pm
#6
Join Date: Dec 2011
Programs: AA EXP
Posts: 317
Exactly..I am curious as well before I delete my regular meal order from my planned LAX-LHR next week in PE...hoping for the elusive upgrade.
Feb 9, 2019, 1:53 pm
#7
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2016
Location: ORD
Programs: AA PLT PRO
Posts: 34
I did not order any special meal. I reserved a standard meal offering - chicken breast with cheese stuffing. Did this because it happened to me before that the meal I wanted in PEY was gone by the time I was served.
Feb 9, 2019, 3:44 pm
#9
Join Date: Nov 2018
Posts: 1,285
Feb 14, 2019, 4:59 am
#10
Join Date: Jun 2018
Programs: AA PPro
Posts: 632
Just adding a datapoint here, my wife and I flew PE from CDG on AA last year, she had pre-ordered the asian vegetarian meal and yet she was offered a paid LFB upgrade to J at check in. If special meals prevent upgrades I don't see why that would have been any different than a status upgrade, which we were not eligible for.
Feb 18, 2019, 9:54 am
#12
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: California
Programs: AA EXP...couple hotels and cars too
Posts: 4,548
I just ran across a similar (?) glitch over the weekend...
REGULAR meal. Just the chicken option.
Flight to US>>EU, upgrading J to F...flight was A0 up until T-34 (aka "10AM in DFW", if that matters)
Had requested a SWU at time of booking/purchase, 3 days previously. Flight was at F5 the entire time...
This AM flight went to A4 (F5). Watched for 30 minutes, nothing changed. Pinged my TA, who called AA. They were perplexed, but then said "oh its the special meal'. In any event, got it cleared.
Spoke to the TA who said "dude, whats with the special meal?" To which I replied "it was the chicken option, hardly special"
Odd. Something changed? Or did the agent just grasp for an easy explanation?
REGULAR meal. Just the chicken option.
Flight to US>>EU, upgrading J to F...flight was A0 up until T-34 (aka "10AM in DFW", if that matters)
Had requested a SWU at time of booking/purchase, 3 days previously. Flight was at F5 the entire time...
This AM flight went to A4 (F5). Watched for 30 minutes, nothing changed. Pinged my TA, who called AA. They were perplexed, but then said "oh its the special meal'. In any event, got it cleared.
Spoke to the TA who said "dude, whats with the special meal?" To which I replied "it was the chicken option, hardly special"
Odd. Something changed? Or did the agent just grasp for an easy explanation?
Feb 18, 2019, 10:07 am
#13
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 5,632
Regular meal, special meal, what's the difference? The logic is the same either way. If you booked a specific meal in advance, that can prevent an upgrade.
I suspect that both are coded exactly the same way in the record.
.
I suspect that both are coded exactly the same way in the record.
.
Last edited by SeeBuyFly; Feb 18, 2019 at 1:58 pm
Feb 18, 2019, 10:13 am
#14
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: ORD (formerly SAN)
Programs: Hilton Diamond; IHG Platinum; Bonvoy Gold; AA Platinum Pro and United Premier Silver (DH = AA EXP)
Posts: 1,929
Is this only for international flights? Because similarly, we were on LAX-HKG in November in PE. We pre-ordered a meal (not special meal) and saw people from regular Y getting oped up to J. We were Plat and EXP but didn't put in for upgrades. They cleared all the upgrades, but then were calling people from regular Y - we couldn't figure it out. It would make sense if it was due to the meal selection.
Feb 18, 2019, 10:43 am
#15
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: California
Programs: AA EXP...couple hotels and cars too
Posts: 4,548
Thats the difference.
If this is the new policy, pretty easy to work around. (I dont fly to eat...happy to eat whatever is left over in F.
)