OpUps as Gold vs Silver
Jun 5, 2018, 6:30 am
#16
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: London, ARN, HEL, ..... or MAN
Programs: BA GGL / GFL, Mucci Diamond!, HH Diamond, Radisson Premium, IHG Gold, Hertz Gold
Posts: 5,907
I had an amazingly poor run of form for OpUps as a newly minted GGL 6 or 7 years ago. Since then there have been a small number but as others have said, it's route dependent. I'd reckon my overall hit rate as GGL is somewhere south of 5% so don't base any run for higher status on opup chance. Sounds like you've been lucky with your usual route.
Jun 5, 2018, 7:07 am
#17
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: London
Programs: BAEC bouncing from Blue to Gold to Blue VSFC Red CXGreen Club Accor Platinum Hilton Silver.
Posts: 914
I've had one upgrade and that was my first flight with BA as a blue never seen one since and that's going up to gold and down to bronze over 10 years. So I don't miss them unlike you poor 25-50% flyers. 
and don't get me started on Gold welcome I always get a thank you on QR MH AA QF as for BA once as a silver.
John
and don't get me started on Gold welcome I always get a thank you on QR MH AA QF as for BA once as a silver.John
Jun 5, 2018, 7:33 am
#19
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Ipswich
Posts: 7,543
I've never had a W to J upgrade, and only two Y to W as a GCH in five years. That's over quite a few flights as almost all my longhaul travel is in Y or W.
I'm about to drop to silver, having decided to stop favouring BA/OW and will be interested to see if my chances pick up. Certainly reading here suggests that Silvers often enjoy good opup rates. I know for sure a SCH got opupped ahead of me as a GCH, when I was on a full fare ticket and he was on a discounted one. Both solo travellers, simply return journeys on BA, no special meals involved. But yes, I expect to travel in the class I paid for - I just found it an interesting data point.
I'm about to drop to silver, having decided to stop favouring BA/OW and will be interested to see if my chances pick up. Certainly reading here suggests that Silvers often enjoy good opup rates. I know for sure a SCH got opupped ahead of me as a GCH, when I was on a full fare ticket and he was on a discounted one. Both solo travellers, simply return journeys on BA, no special meals involved. But yes, I expect to travel in the class I paid for - I just found it an interesting data point.
Jun 5, 2018, 7:50 am
#20
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: BAEC GGL/CR; Hilton Diamond; Mucci des Puccis
Posts: 5,626
It's a lottery to get into a lottery - you have to be on a flight that requires upgrades, and you have to be one of the chosen ones on that flight. You have some control over the first by choosing Y intensive routes, you have very little control over the second because it's random chance who gets onto the plane. Worry about causal factors and you'll drive yourself mad.
Jun 5, 2018, 7:59 am
#21
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: West Sussex
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 897
As others have said it is very route dependent.
A few years back I was regularly doing LHR - BOS in WT+, as a GCH.
Economy was regularly oversold and the WT+ cabin was small. I was hitting an OpUp to J every 5-6 flights. Primarily on the outbound but occasionally on the red eye which was very welcome.
A few years back I was regularly doing LHR - BOS in WT+, as a GCH.
Economy was regularly oversold and the WT+ cabin was small. I was hitting an OpUp to J every 5-6 flights. Primarily on the outbound but occasionally on the red eye which was very welcome.
Jun 5, 2018, 8:05 am
#22
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Krakow
Programs: BAEC Silver, Miles and More(FTL), IHG(Platinum), Accor, HHonors(Diamond), SPG, Hertz Five Star
Posts: 5,937
I too found my OpUps dried up while I was Gold. I got them as Silver before I became Gold, Since becoming Silver again I have had some. Not one while I was Gold
Jun 5, 2018, 2:02 pm
#23
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Perth WA/ UK
Programs: BA Gold, Priority Club Gold, Accor Silver, Virgin Australia Gold
Posts: 1,752
I agree that it must surely be dependent on the route and even the season of travel. For me as Silver had two BA upgrades to CW ex HKG to LHR and ex SIN to LHR both with travelling companion and into upper deck on 747. As Gold on BA not even recognised as Gold most of the time never mind an upgrade. It's Qatar that excelled. As lovely upgrade from Business to First in January ex DOH to MEL and the warmest welcome I have ever encountered.
Jun 5, 2018, 3:23 pm
#24
Suspended
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: London
Programs: plenty - ggl, ccr, etc, etc.
Posts: 1,704
I agree that it must surely be dependent on the route and even the season of travel. For me as Silver had two BA upgrades to CW ex HKG to LHR and ex SIN to LHR both with travelling companion and into upper deck on 747. As Gold on BA not even recognised as Gold most of the time never mind an upgrade. It's Qatar that excelled. As lovely upgrade from Business to First in January ex DOH to MEL and the warmest welcome I have ever encountered.
despite the counting and comparing being made here you should expect none. Its not an entitlement but just a nice surprise if/when it happens.
(And if it matters a lot, then check in may sell one to you - like the pushy chap on a recent bos-lhr who jumped the F check in without any status, and demanded an upgrade as he was in an E seat in wtp. $959 was the reply which closed that down. )
Last edited by DFB_london; Jun 5, 2018 at 3:29 pm
Jun 5, 2018, 6:42 pm
#25
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: HKG
Programs: BA GGL & CCR
Posts: 600
Never an op-up, 3 downgrades or near downgrades.
I find it amusing on here the culture is such you have to shut down the ‘pay for the class you want to fly brigade’ before you ask your question or voice your concern and they still chime in with that platitude...
I find it amusing on here the culture is such you have to shut down the ‘pay for the class you want to fly brigade’ before you ask your question or voice your concern and they still chime in with that platitude...
Jun 5, 2018, 11:30 pm
#26
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: US/UK - and elsewhere
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 2,563
I personally have seen no real correlation. Even as a lowly blue I managed to get a double opup from WT to CW. As a silver I seem to recall a reasonable hit rate, maybe 20-25%, but as Gold, this dried up somewhat - over the the last 12 months 1 opup in 34 flights/c.100k miles. (I've even had an check-in agent say "I would really like to upgrade you - but I can't"!).
Jun 6, 2018, 2:17 am
#28
Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club, easyJet and Ryanair
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: UK/Las Vegas
Programs: BA Gold (GGL/CCR)
Posts: 15,930
I personally have seen no real correlation. Even as a lowly blue I managed to get a double opup from WT to CW. As a silver I seem to recall a reasonable hit rate, maybe 20-25%, but as Gold, this dried up somewhat - over the the last 12 months 1 opup in 34 flights/c.100k miles. (I've even had an check-in agent say "I would really like to upgrade you - but I can't"!).
Jun 6, 2018, 2:29 am
#29
Moderator, Iberia Airlines, Airport Lounges, and Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Feb 2010
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold; Flying Blue Life Platinum; LH Sen.; Hilton Diamond; Kemal Kebabs Prized Customer
Posts: 63,850
One thing to bear in mind in this debate is that those in the Gold strata are more likely to be CW travellers (in order to get sufficient 280 TPs trips to get to the 1500 TP threshold) , whereas Silvers will typically be hard core WT or middle level WTP travellers. I certainly can't complain, but CW to First upgrades are much rarer than WTP to CW upgrades for well known reasons, and though there are plenty of WT to WTP upgrades too, it tends to get drown out by the numbers involved (plus few posting FTers seem to fly WT for some reason). So if you are a Gold generally flying CW you're not going to get that many upgrades, whereas a Silver commuting fortnightly on a busy USA Thursday night service is going to see these upgrades. But so. in that circumstance, is a Gold cardholder on the same flight if they had the same booking class or higher. The trouble here is that it's very difficult to unpick this topic without filleting a large amount of details and data, whereas there is an entirely understandable inclination to simplify all of this as "Silvers get all the upgrades".
Last edited by corporate-wage-slave; Jun 6, 2018 at 3:02 am
Jun 6, 2018, 2:53 am
#30
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: SIN
Programs: BA, CX, SQ, Accor, IHG
Posts: 95
I have had some whilst silver on BA long haul- from Y to W, LHR-SIN and a year prior to that from W to J SIN-SYD. Plus a long time ago Y to J SFO-LHR. None so far whilst Gold, but to be fair that's only a few months and I have yet to step on a BA plane in this membership year.
As an alternate data point, when flying CX in PEY, I have had a great many upgrades both intra Asia and to the US (am SIN based these days) when a BA silver for a year, and probably a few more when I held CX gold & then diamond for a while prior to that. I'd say, all in, prior to holding gold with BA, my CX upgrade run was north of 50%.
So random luck on BA I would say, but from experience I would say CX have a more proactive approach.
As an alternate data point, when flying CX in PEY, I have had a great many upgrades both intra Asia and to the US (am SIN based these days) when a BA silver for a year, and probably a few more when I held CX gold & then diamond for a while prior to that. I'd say, all in, prior to holding gold with BA, my CX upgrade run was north of 50%.
So random luck on BA I would say, but from experience I would say CX have a more proactive approach.