Thanks for all the responses. I do think the Platinum Elite people I phoned after checking in should have sorted out the truth for me whatever it is. I do accept that it was a busy flight, and I would not have been upgraded before others who had paid money or miles for an upgrade - that is fine.

I just object to the whole message to check online for your upgrade status only to find you are not even listed in the eligible list, and no-one actually getting to the bottom of that when challenged on it.

I have no idea how to use these system wide upgrades - if they are not eligible for busy flights, which international flights are not busy between now and Christmas (I already tried and failed in February, IAH-LHR)? If not ever for that flight (IAH-LHR) then they are not truly system wide.


I have written an email to customer services asking about these experiences, and will let you know if Continental responds at all. Not expecting anything.

There are a number of people who have cleared IAH-LHR. It *does* happen.

You're arriving at the wrong conclusions again I'm afraid. They are system-wide upgrades. But like any upgrade that CO offers, there are capacity restrictions until the day of departure. They may or may not choose to make upgrade inventory available at any point up to the day of departure. In the vast majority of cases, they do. On specific flights (not routes - flights) where they don't, it's because their inventory management system is telling them they will sell these seats to paying customers based on history, major event happening, etc.

The point is you have as good a chance as anyone else (better than most in fact, based on your status) to get access to this inventory if/when they open it up. But you have to be waitlisted for this to happen.

My personal experience using last year's SWUs was extremely positive - I used them on flights to LHR and FRA on very cheap fares without the slightest issue.

OK let's see if I fare any better on my return journey to IAH in 3 week's time.
Meanwhile, will keep you posted if I get any reply from Continental regarding waitlisting for SWU on the "eligible for upgrade list"

"Upgrade-eligible customers" just means customers that are entitled to be on the list because they are eligible to receive EUAs in the case of non-BF flights, or because they have requested an upgrade using miles or SWU.

It's really nothing more than that :)

Oh dear, sorry to labor the point, but my original question to Continental was why I was not listed on the eligible-for-upgrade list when I had made a request for a SWU some months previously for that flight, by phone with Continental reservations, and had received an email telling me 24 hours before the flight that I had not been upgraded but to watch the online upgrade and eligible to upgrade lists.

I checked in 23 hours before the flight. I never made it onto the eligible-for-upgrade standby list even after querying it with the Presidential Elite phoneline staff some 12 hours before the flight

What I was told was that there was a "secret" eligible-for-upgrade list. Maybe what this means is that you might reach the eligible-for-upgrade list if the flight is empty and then after that they might consider you, maybe, all things being equal, etc

Whatever, the SWU are not quite what they seem, and it is certainly not a transparent process if even Continental employees can be mistaken in what they tell passengers

I understand the situation - but quite simply, you are wrong. The agent that you spoke with is also wrong. There is no "secret" eligible-for-upgrade list. You've repeated this phrase that the agent (incorrectly) told you a couple of times now, but it simply is not true.

What occurred in your case was an IT error, nothing more than that. I'm not defending CO in any way on this (and I certainly wouldn't have let the point go if it had happened to me) but you have been given wrong information.

I just used 3 of my SWU to upgrade the Mrs., Me and the Darling Daughter, HKG-EWR-ORD and both segments for all three cleared imeadiately about 1 month before the flight. I had done some extensive homework before picking that date, but they do work. And with 18 total hours BIS that day, a very nice perk.

I am waitlisted for the EWR-HKG outbound with one SWU and 2 miles and copay, but from research, I like my chances there also.

As others have stated, your SWU has exactly the same priority as money + miles upgrades. You would be upgraded based on your elite status and reservation date (and perhaps your fare basis ??), but having an SWU is just as good as miles + money.

And as others have stated, you should have been on a Non-Secret Upgrade list from checkin time to flight time. It was an IT error that didn't put you on it, and an uniformed agent that didn't correct it as they should have.

Also, SWUs earned in 2010 for use in 2011 expire on Feb 28, 2012, not Dec 31 of this year.

I've seen a couple of times over the past few months where I (or my companion) do not appear on the upgrade standby list yet the agents say I am. Usually I will show up on the list at some subsequent point. There could be a systems issue with delays in showing names on the publicly-viewable standby list.

That said, there's no excuse for gross misinformation from the airport agents.

i burned two SWUs on RT EWR>><<HKG in June, the outbound clearing upon booking short of one month out on a Thursday flight and the inbound ~2 days out on a Sunday flight (10 upgraded at that time, w/ 3 more clearing at the airport on that one). 30K miles + 500USD per cert saved in my mind. i'm happy these worked for me.

i think it all goes back to rev management - if they can sell the seats they will and hold off on R availability accordingly.

i'm reading more about the limited fare eligibility for the 2011 earned SWUs on UA and a bit leary about having to buy up to the lowest eligible class just for the chance of the cert clearing.