OP-UP Question
 

Hi all,

Many people say, if one asks for an op-up at check-in, his/her upgrade priority will be put at the bottom..!

Then, does it mean that the check-in lady would over ride the system and put a message like "never upgrade this person because he/she asked for one!"??

How does it work? Anyone know?

Note: I had tried to ask for one at the lounge before, I did not get op-up, but the lady seems to be helpful to check wheather I can receive op-up. May be she was just pretending to give good customer service...? I am not sure...

You really need to read the FAQ and sticky

Read the FAQ, but I am suspicious of this myth that check-in agents will bounce you if you dare to ask for one. I have seen people who made a scene at the check-in and the supervisor came over and gave them op-ups!

The best answer is op-up are determined by system pre-set rules, and asking for one will only get you a reply of "no"

Use your points at check in, it's easier

Yes, I did read the sticky post already. Below is the quote of the sticky post. It tells how a person get upgrade and how Cathay determine who gets op-up first, I understand. But my question is: how does check in lady put you the bottom of the list, when you asked for one?

If my question is already answered in another FAQ section etc, please do let me know where I can find...

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1. How do you get upgraded? (credit to Sam7 and kchika for editing)
Ans: You can get upgraded 3 ways.
- Mileage Upgrade
- Cash upgrade
- Operational Upgrade
Operational upgrades (op-ups) do not occur frequently, usually when the cabins in a certain class is oversold. Op ups usually are given to Marco Polo members first, followed by OneWorld Members, and then non-members, either at check in, at the lounge, or at the boarding gate. The order of op-up priority is:
1. CX Diamond Plus
2. CX Diamond, CX Invitation
3. CX Gold
4. CX staff
5. CX staff nominees, Non-CX staff
6. Oneworld Emerald
7. Oneworld Sapphire
8. CX Silver
9. Oneworld Ruby
10. CX Green
11. Asia Miles
12. Non status

Note: Asking for op-ups will put you at the bottom of the list for upgrades. Boarding number (BN) has to do with upgrade priority. When there are more members of the same status than there are seats that are available for upgrade, the person with the lower BN gets upgraded. However, as with any airline, there are certain exceptions, and unique situations.


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there is a possibility that "NSFU" will be placed next to your name... but i think this applies more to attire than for any other reasson

however having said that, I personally dont agree that asking for an upgrade will be detrimental to your chances for an upgrade... if it is the case that they have pre upgraded you, you will find out in check in and when you ask the question they will answer you in the affirmative *but asking or no asking, you will have been upgraded anyway

however, if its the case that its too early to determine... they will simply leave it to passenger control to determine - you asking therefore really does nothing!

but the FAQ does answer your question in the sense that op up is determined by first and foremost the loading, even if you are DM on a not full flight there is no chance... then it comes to MPC priority ... so really asking for an upgrade is a bit pointless IMO... you are better off asking the loadings and whether a) your class is overbooked b) the class above is not to capacity (and indirectly CX staff will know what you are getting for!)

Looking at how people dress in CX J and F class, clothes have no bearing on upgrades.

that is because these people will most likely have paid for their J or F tickets in the first place...

Just wanted to share my experience regarding an op-up then op-down for HKG-FRA last night. I was at the Pier and knew that I was op-uped through expertflyer. I went to the counter then they printed out my new boarding pass 4K. At the gate, the machine gave the red light and there was my 81K. I found out later that because J was not fully booked as they suspected and hence there was no reason for them to give the op-up. anyway, I was happy as I didn't want to leave my parents alone on the upper deck. so, it worked out just fine. Merry Christmas to everyone and a very happy new year! :D

You mean expertflyer.com ?

Never heard or experienced the attire being a factor in op-ups on CX (which I totally agree with).

Using attire to decide is pretty stupid since most rich people dress very casually, and most fakers will dress nice. Many DMs have shared in this forum that they get ask to go to the "economy line" when they dress in jeans and T-shirts. Anyway, my son of a ..... rich friend frequently gets ask to Economy line ex-LAX with paid J, they don't even bother to check his boarding pass, but he is one of those jeans, T-shirt, and looks like a jerk... :)

Anyway, saw a funny Yahoo Question-Answers exchange today:

Q: "How do I get free upgrade with Cathay Airline?"

A1: "Use your miles. They are not likely to upgrade you unless the plane is very full and you have high frequent flier status" (so far so good)

A2: "Just walk up and sit at the empty seat and refuse to move. They will eventually give up on you, but bring your own food and drink as they won't serve you" (LOL, sounds like the answer person did this before, LOL)

Based on experience, on an NRT-HKG leg, i tried to ask for a free upgrade, the check in staff in NRT politely gave me one, saying the flight is full so i will be given one. On an YVR-HKG leg, i requested for one but was declined saying that i can only get upgraded if i use my miles which i dont want to, so i was given a Y boarding pass, but upon boarding, i was surprised to know i was upgraded to J. All these happened within the last 6 months, that as a silver MPC

you also have to bear in mind that thanks to ft the spongers out there have increased ten fold and just how many upgrade seats are there to go around

Yes. I did use the seat alert function to track if I was moved. I know that it could have been for quite a few reasons e.g. aircraft changed etc...