I have access to AA's priority lists and have reviewed numerous flights where people thing that this happens to no avail. AA's upgrade system is in fact very honest.

FCM FTW
 

As much as I dont like rarely getting an upgrade as a GM, I just bought a trip LGA->BZE via ATL. Cost of first over coach $160 - yes please. Worth it for the MQM alone.

Can totally appreciate why DMs dont like this, but as a GM on a semi last minute ticket I thought it was great (this time, ask me again when i miss my next 10 upgrades). United's economy ticket from EWR was $125 cheaper but their first class ticket was $700 more than Delta's.

Not everyone has liberty of buying those tickets directly from Delta. There are also rules (some times stupid) that sometimes force to buy more expensive coach ticket vs cheaper first class.
Enjoy your flight!

I bought a one way out of SJC a few days before Christmas and economy was selling for the same price as first. I really appreciated that.

Please let me know what company that is. I want to be sure I sell any stock I own in them and make sure I never work for them.

Why would you pay more for first over business? I prefer business.

JK - I know it's a typo and OP means first over coach

Just to be clear, in this case the first class ticket is more expensive. Maybe not as expensive as some would like, but it is more expensive.

US government workers, and their contractors, are not allowed to buy and be reimbursed for first class tickets even if FC is less expensive. I am a government contractor and I've been told to buy unrestricted coach tickets that are quite a bit more expensive than restricted FC tickets. This was despite the fact that the cost difference would have covered two or three change fees had they been necessary (they were not). It's how government travel works, unfortunately.

OK, I'll bite - what's FTW? Is it a backwards ... (Fut The Wuck)? :D

For the Win!

Hahhhaaha

Ohhhhhhhhh. Thank you!

For too long I thought it was "F@#$ the world" :D

When I joined Booz Allen in 2000, they required us to purchase fully refundable coach tickets for all travel, company and government. Several years later, they had us buy the cheapest tickets we could since even with change fees, it still worked out cheaper for them and government in the long run (believe that was based on FAR rules). It stayed that way at least until I left them in 2007.

All the government contractors I interact with these days are also buying the cheapest/non refundable tickets they can. Not sure how it is with government civilian workers.

Me too
 

This. I was bewildered. I finally figured it out when I got a text message from my brother saying "blueberry pancakes FTW!!!" and had to ask why he was so upset about pancakes.