OpUps as Gold vs Silver
Jun 6, 2018, 4:33 am
#31
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: US/UK - and elsewhere
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 2,563
Probably because 'TKWIA (usual routing, usual checkin agent - known them for 20+ years).
If only..., although clearly if you're in the highest cabin, not a chance. My travels are almost certainly in WT, WTP or ET... .
If only..., although clearly if you're in the highest cabin, not a chance. My travels are almost certainly in WT, WTP or ET... .
Jun 6, 2018, 6:11 am
#32
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: London
Programs: BA Gold, Eurostar Carte Blanche
Posts: 712
If I were to pin my upgrades on anything, besides solo traveller with status, I’d suspect sequence number from check-in. Particularly on ex-EU itineraries where you get to “beat” the 24 hour check-in for everyone else. Maybe that’s the view the ops team look at?
Jun 6, 2018, 9:54 am
#33
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Berlin, Germany
Programs: LH SEN, BA Gold
Posts: 476
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 awestphal; Jun 6, 2018 at 9:55 am Reason: grammar
Jun 6, 2018, 10:02 am
#34
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Flatland
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold 1MM, BA Gold, UA Peon
Posts: 6,112
You can get a lot of upgrades as a freshly minted Gold member, to try to persuade you to buy up more often for all that travel you did to get Gold status.
The grass dries out and is not greener after a while.
But you get some solid benefits as part of Gold status which aren't arbitrary: the better phone line, award availability, the LHR checkin experience, the better lounges. Since you seem to be likely to reach Gold without any extra travel effort, do that and enjoy it.
Whether you want to push it as far as GGL is up to you - the benefits are significant, but quite specific, so if they aren't something you can use then it's not worth it.
The grass dries out and is not greener after a while.
But you get some solid benefits as part of Gold status which aren't arbitrary: the better phone line, award availability, the LHR checkin experience, the better lounges. Since you seem to be likely to reach Gold without any extra travel effort, do that and enjoy it.
Whether you want to push it as far as GGL is up to you - the benefits are significant, but quite specific, so if they aren't something you can use then it's not worth it.
Jun 6, 2018, 10:06 am
#35
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: London
Programs: BA Gold, Hilton Silver, Marriott Gold, Avis Preferred Plus
Posts: 139
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".
Jun 6, 2018, 11:11 am
#36
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: UK
Programs: BA Gold / Hilton Diamond / IHG Diamond Ambassador / Marriot Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 2,536
It’s been more than 10 years since I have had an upgrade on BA. Partly because I have the temerity to fly with kids and BA and kids don’t mix.
That said even solo and packed I have never been upgraded but have been shunted further back by the seating fairies.
i handy been upgraded on other carriers either
pre 2005 I had few J-F but mainly to club Europe as business was generally F. In the 90’s I had a few i F to Concorde.... happy days
That said even solo and packed I have never been upgraded but have been shunted further back by the seating fairies.
i handy been upgraded on other carriers either
pre 2005 I had few J-F but mainly to club Europe as business was generally F. In the 90’s I had a few i F to Concorde.... happy days
Jun 6, 2018, 1:38 pm
#37
Join Date: May 2013
Location: SMF / SFO
Posts: 226
I've had a handful of OpUps when Y->W when I used to fly LHR-BLR frequently as a Silver. A few times I was offered a relatively cheap upgrade upon check-in at BLR (~£150). However I declined and was upgraded anyway. I think I was also upgraded Y->W on YYZ-LHR once as well.
Since BA changed their FFP in 2015 to make it virtually impossible to attain meaningful status by flying only in Y, I switched to AAdvantage as my main FFP.
Since BA changed their FFP in 2015 to make it virtually impossible to attain meaningful status by flying only in Y, I switched to AAdvantage as my main FFP.
Jun 6, 2018, 4:06 pm
#39
Join Date: May 2001
Posts: 4,772
I've been using BA for about 7 years, first year I made Bronze, 2nd year Silver and Gold the remaining years. Not once have I ever received an Op Up and have also never had the Gold Greeting, ever. Contrast that to both AA and QR where I am welcomed as an Emerald 99% of the time even though I am not in their respective FF programs....
Jun 6, 2018, 7:40 pm
#41
Join Date: May 2013
Location: MAD
Programs: IB+, BAEC
Posts: 3,106
I've had a handful of OpUps when Y->W when I used to fly LHR-BLR frequently as a Silver. A few times I was offered a relatively cheap upgrade upon check-in at BLR (~£150). However I declined and was upgraded anyway. I think I was also upgraded Y->W on YYZ-LHR once as well.
Since BA changed their FFP in 2015 to make it virtually impossible to attain meaningful status by flying only in Y, I switched to AAdvantage as my main FFP.
Since BA changed their FFP in 2015 to make it virtually impossible to attain meaningful status by flying only in Y, I switched to AAdvantage as my main FFP.
Fwiw, while I'm with IB, requirements are similar and I have emerald with Y only travel policy. There are those of us who exist.
Jun 7, 2018, 12:17 am
#42
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: SFO, LON
Programs: BA GGL/CCR, Bonvoy Tit, Hilton Dia etc etc
Posts: 2,354
MM ffom an upgraded 1C pn the party plane to end all party planes - three stag dos on their way to PRG for the weekend
Jun 7, 2018, 1:06 am
#43
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Edi
Posts: 2,203
My personal experience is that there wasn't much difference between gold and silver for OpUps, I had a good hit ratio at both levels. One interesting note is that as a Silver, I tended to get OpUp'd sooner, at OLCI or on the app way before I got to the airport. At gold most of my OpUps were at the gate/in lounge (On arrival or name called out). That said, the rate of OpUps was the same.
Don't got above gold however, haven't had a UpOp since!
Don't got above gold however, haven't had a UpOp since!
Jun 7, 2018, 1:54 am
#44
Join Date: Aug 2012
Posts: 2,676
The problem with all this is that simply comparing gold to silver doesn't mean anything.
There are posts in this thread (for example) where people were silver before DUT (the upgrade prioritisation system) came in but have been gold since. There are attempts to compare the op-ups from CW to F to WTP to CW (which won't work).
Let me give you some concrete examples:
Prior to DUT - I was a silver. I became friendly with certain ground staff at my regular outstations, to the point I was name recognised. On arrival, a quick query about how busy the plane was would result in something like "well - hold on Mr MPH1980, we'll be needing your seat later" and I would be prioritised into the upgrade list for WTP to CW. Post DUT, my rate fell from 70-80% down to 10%. It *happened* that my upgrade to gold occurred around the same time but it wasn't related directly.
We also know that DUT has some idea of balancing upgrades out. That it won't give too many to one person. This was originally described as 'three and out' here, but was disproved as being that harsh, but, in my experience, your hit rate will be greater in the earlier flights of the calendar year the higher up you are - I will typically get 2-3 very quickly grouped together in Jan/Feb and then fewer spread out over the year.
To make some decent comparisons, you need some actual numbers, and they need to be recent experiences, spread out over multiple years (to account for the balancing). You also need to know where the person has been flying to and from, and what cabins they have been doing it in.
For example - a silver might get 2-3 bumps out of WTP early in the year and then they make gold, but the prioritisation routine will now push them down the list because they've already had several upgrades. To that person, it might seem that silver got more than gold, but actually it's down to DUT's 'balancing' act it does.
Equally, someone who spends their time shuttling back and forth on a high-gold route as a silver might find 0 op-ups in their path.
And those people who fly CW might never get a whiff of F simply because it's 86 into 14 and only when oversold enough in Y and W to overspill the CW cabin (which takes work). Yet a regular WTP flyer will be thinking "wow - I like this" when they are doing 787-8 runs because it's the smallest WTP cabin in the fleet and could easily have half the people moved forward every time.
Or we can all just agree it's in the lap of the DUT gods and agree to be happy when you do get your upgrades.
There are posts in this thread (for example) where people were silver before DUT (the upgrade prioritisation system) came in but have been gold since. There are attempts to compare the op-ups from CW to F to WTP to CW (which won't work).
Let me give you some concrete examples:
Prior to DUT - I was a silver. I became friendly with certain ground staff at my regular outstations, to the point I was name recognised. On arrival, a quick query about how busy the plane was would result in something like "well - hold on Mr MPH1980, we'll be needing your seat later" and I would be prioritised into the upgrade list for WTP to CW. Post DUT, my rate fell from 70-80% down to 10%. It *happened* that my upgrade to gold occurred around the same time but it wasn't related directly.
We also know that DUT has some idea of balancing upgrades out. That it won't give too many to one person. This was originally described as 'three and out' here, but was disproved as being that harsh, but, in my experience, your hit rate will be greater in the earlier flights of the calendar year the higher up you are - I will typically get 2-3 very quickly grouped together in Jan/Feb and then fewer spread out over the year.
To make some decent comparisons, you need some actual numbers, and they need to be recent experiences, spread out over multiple years (to account for the balancing). You also need to know where the person has been flying to and from, and what cabins they have been doing it in.
For example - a silver might get 2-3 bumps out of WTP early in the year and then they make gold, but the prioritisation routine will now push them down the list because they've already had several upgrades. To that person, it might seem that silver got more than gold, but actually it's down to DUT's 'balancing' act it does.
Equally, someone who spends their time shuttling back and forth on a high-gold route as a silver might find 0 op-ups in their path.
And those people who fly CW might never get a whiff of F simply because it's 86 into 14 and only when oversold enough in Y and W to overspill the CW cabin (which takes work). Yet a regular WTP flyer will be thinking "wow - I like this" when they are doing 787-8 runs because it's the smallest WTP cabin in the fleet and could easily have half the people moved forward every time.
Or we can all just agree it's in the lap of the DUT gods and agree to be happy when you do get your upgrades.
Jun 7, 2018, 2:00 am
#45
Join Date: Mar 2015
Programs: BA GGL
Posts: 2,447
There's no one rule to it.
BA OpUps only when it needs to (lack of seats) and will do so as the system tells it. It's not done for fun or to be nice, tbh.
If it's done manually - which I've had before, by staff on the flight after boarding/seating, due to a lack of food in cabin as a result of overselling airport upgrades - then it's a different scenario, as they'll use status rather than a computer algorithm.
Ultimately, it should never be an expectation, irrelevant of status.
In order to lure in future customers I've often seen lower status cardholders getting an upgrade (it's perhaps presumptive to assume that's why, but assume I shall), almost like a taster of what they might pay for next time.
I would say, however, that many people I know, having just achieved a status, especially for the first time, seem to get an upgrade fairly pronto thereafter - even if it's the only one ever!
It'll also depend on how many busy flights you board and how 'strategic' you are with your seating.
BA OpUps only when it needs to (lack of seats) and will do so as the system tells it. It's not done for fun or to be nice, tbh.
If it's done manually - which I've had before, by staff on the flight after boarding/seating, due to a lack of food in cabin as a result of overselling airport upgrades - then it's a different scenario, as they'll use status rather than a computer algorithm.
Ultimately, it should never be an expectation, irrelevant of status.
In order to lure in future customers I've often seen lower status cardholders getting an upgrade (it's perhaps presumptive to assume that's why, but assume I shall), almost like a taster of what they might pay for next time.
I would say, however, that many people I know, having just achieved a status, especially for the first time, seem to get an upgrade fairly pronto thereafter - even if it's the only one ever!
It'll also depend on how many busy flights you board and how 'strategic' you are with your seating.