jimbous

Hey, if you run into a flight attendant in a good mood and a healthy sense of humor you'll probably be upgraded with a laugh and a glass of champagne!
In a bad mood, the plane may be diverted to Reykjavík, you'll be arrested, and spend some nights in an ice jail!!!

itsmeitisss

You're joking, right?

I find it kind of funny that some of the people saying NOYB are the ones that moan about service standards dropping. If people think they can sit where they want, why bother paying for it?

Steve in Olympia

He was obviously joking when he said that empty seats in the premium cabins have no economic value.

TravellerFrequently

Thanks to the OP for reporting what he/she heard and observed.

GM1985

This could be a win-win. Beautiful Reykjavík (even if it is in an ice jail) is infinitely more preferable to the dreary destination I’m heading to. There appears to only be two setbacks with this:

My employer may take a very dim view of this.

If recent posts on meal service length are to be believed, we’ll have long passed Iceland by the time the meal service is over

Crofton138

We had a self-upgrader on BA1402 LHR-MAN yesterday. He casually plonked himself down into the last row of CE during boarding and the CSM noticed before take-off. He was politely dispatched down to his assigned seat in row 25 (or thereabouts) with minimal fuss - good work!

Misco60

To be fair, it is probably not apparent to an infrequent flyer that the front rows are business class, especially not before take-off when the curtain is drawn back. He might simply have seen an empty seat in what looked like economy class and decided it was better than his assigned seat way down the back.

AJA_

Really???

That plastic divider that the curtain attaches to is pretty obvious, as is the curtain, even when it is drawn back.

it's also right between the seats that demarcate the two cabins in the very row that the passenger sat in. You'd have to pretty blind not to see it.

Besides that since BA operates a seat assignment system, I.e. it's not a free for all to sit in anywhere you choose, that person assumes that no one else is going to arrive afterwards to sit in the now occupied seat.

Misco60

You know that, and I know that. But we shoudn't over-estimate the knowledge that the casual flyer has about BA and its product and procedures. I quite often travel with once-a-year flyers and, quite simply, they simply don't know these things. I don't agree that the plastic divider is obvious - or, if it is, that its purpose is obvious - to someone who usually only flies with single-class airlines.

It's quite possible, of course, that the "self-upgrader" referred to above knew exactly what he was doing, but in the absence of further information it shouldn't be assumed.

AJA_

I did a quick search of images of BA aircraft interiors and this came up::

https://www.businesstraveller.com/ne...seat-roll-out/

it's an article on BA roll out of changes to short haul seats but it very nicely has an image taken from CE looking towards ET and shows the divider and curtain. It also shows that the CE seats have headrest covers while ET seats do not. Even a first time traveller can see they are different.

Misco60

We can agree to disagree; it's really not worth arguing over.

Wembleygal

Not trying to stir up this thread anymore than necessary, but a few years ago on a Dublin to London City flight, I happily received a gate upgrade to Club Europe. The previous flight had been cancelled, so the flight was heaving. While sitting in my seat, I noticed the FA counting passengers and looking perplexed. He finally approached a passenger sitting in the aisle seat across from me, and asked to see his boarding pass. The passenger was not ticketed for the cabin and was supposed to be many rows back. The passenger whined that the flight was very full and this appeared to be an empty seat, so he grabbed it. The FA patiently explained that it was for Club passengers only. Grumpy passenger continued to argue and said that he was an AA Platinum, a CEO of a company, etc. etc.

At this point, the FA told the passenger he could keep his seat, but he would not be provided with any food or refreshments.

Later in the flight, while I was munching my salad and sipping my champagne, I noticed the grumpy CEO giving me a death look, as everyone seemed to be partaking of the liquid hospitality with much enthusiasm. As promised by the FA, he was not given any food or drink.

wilsnunn

On a flight to JED a few years ago in a very empty WT+ cabin with a very full WT cabin, there was an older couple a few rows behind me and the CC looked very confused as to why they were there, having only expected 3 people in the cabin. He approached them and asked to see their boarding passes and then explained that they were meant to be in WT and politely asked if they would move back to their allocated seats. It was all done very politely and the couple were at first very confused as they thought they were in the right seats but understood once it had been explained properly.

mikem004

Surely BA have established procedures for dealing with self-upgraders and cabin crew are trained in those procedures?
If so, there should be a simple and consistent response to any self-upgraders, on all BA flights: If you are not ticketed for this seat, get out and return to your allocated seat.
None of this "you can sit here, but we won't feed you" , or "if the FA is in a good mood, you might be able to stay".

Badenoch

I am impressed with the number of caring and committed BA passengers who are so concerned about the economic viability of their favourite airline that they self-appoint themselves seat monitors. They are ready to pounce when interlopers attempt to financially undermine their carrier of choice by moving into a cabin for which they have not paid. Perhaps they should form a little club like "Neighbourhood Watch" or "Community Patrol."