StayingHomeIsBetter

Only FA diligence.

And there have been some posts here about FAs preventing such seat hopping.

^

CJKatl

Again, how or why is it unfair? (Try writing a sentence that starts with "It is unfair because..." and avoid terms like, "I feel." Stick with facts.) What business is it of yours how or why others are sitting in whatever seats? If there are five seats available in F and nothing in Y, is it fairer to leave five passengers at the gate? How would that make your life any better? What difference could it possibly make to any other passenger? How does it change what you "paid" for one iota? Is what you paid for any different when the others in the cabin paid thousands versus when they are sitting there for free? Are there more bananas in the basket when everyone pays?

And how would you even know how others get into F? Granted, I've had people tell me that they had never been in F before and weren't sure how they got there, but how do you not know that every flight you've been on in the past year didn't have people randomly assigned to F?

Honestly, I wish I had enough free time to worry about what others get, but am thankful that even if I did, I wouldn't.

FlyDeltaJets87

Boohoo. Life isn't fair. I paid for EC at times to ensure I got it when I was a Silver, rather than wait till T-24 at check-in to take what was available. That's why people pay for it. To ensure they get what they want - and that extends beyond the airline world. I don't feel I was cheated because someone else may have gotten it for free. If someone wants to forgo selecting a seat to take the chance of getting EC for free, then more power to them. Based on your theory, people who buy their stuff before Christmas should be able to get a refund for the price difference that people pay for stuff the day after Christmas when stores drop their prices to get rid of inventory.

Those of us who pay in advance pay for the comfort of not having to worry and knowing that we'll receive what we pay. To some of us, that comfort is worth paying for. You either understand it or you don't. No further amount of explanation will make a difference.

Maybe SQ has determined it's cheaper to rebook passengers rather than "OpUp" (assuming what you say is true), where as for US carriers, it's cheaper to OpUp passengers than offer them Involuntary Denied Boarding Compensation (which can be $1000+ in vouchers, plus other costs such as hotels, meals, etc.).

I've seen flight attendants speak up to prevent passengers from moving up to EC from regular Economy seats. Of course, if a passenger is sneaky enough, they can do it without getting caught.

HongKonger

If SQ doesn't op-up in case of oversells or IROPs, what do they do, just IDB people?

FAs are supposed to keep people from moving from regular economy to EC and they usually do a good job of this. They are of course supposed to keep Y pax out of F/J and are very good at that. Nothing prevents people from moving around within their cabin though. If a person is assigned the middle but the aisle in the same row is empty and it is a preferred seat the middle can move there and nobody will do anything about it. It's not a big deal.

FlyDeltaJets87

So what is the airline to do? Rebook passengers on later flights? Play musical chairs on the plane? All because of what seats are and aren't available when the G/A is making final seat assignments? And by the time it gets down to this point of who is and who isn't in "preferred" seats, the gate agents should be more worried about getting the flight out on time rather than who is and who isn't in preferred seats. Heck, most of the "preferred" seats, except the exit row, are nothing special anyway, other than being further forward in the cabin, which unless you have a tight connection, is not a big deal in the grand scheme of things. And what is "preferred" to one person may not be "preferred" to another. I even started a thread a while ago about an upgrade list for EC, just asking opinions about what people thought. But unlike how going from a regular Economy seat or even EC to F is an "upgrade" in 99.99% of cases to everyone, going from a regular Economy Seat to an Economy Comfort Seat is not necessarily an upgrade. I may not want to be "upgraded" from my aisle seat to an EC or "preferred" middle seat further forward in the aircraft. And the airlines have determined it's not worth the time and effort to call up the elites in rank order and say "Do you want this preferred or EC seat?" The airlines have determined the time required is not worth the little to no return on investment for doing so.

People need to stop worrying about "what others get" and worry about what they get. As long as you got what you paid for, you have no argument about what's "fair". The only complaint someone should have about something "not being fair" is if they don't get what they pay for.

Sankaps

They just dont overall coach by as much, I assume they are willing to take more risk on no-shows in coach. Op upgrades are RARE, even if you are top level elite PPS. And they actually state the reason is they do not want to dilute the premium experience.

I guess they would be abused, personally attacked, and mocked on this forum too.

CJKatl

Are you talking domestic or international? Or have you switched? I've received an International Op-Up before, so I know that it does happen. Y was oversold, I was on a SM ticket and they put me in Row 8. Should someone have been left in ATL when there was an empty seat in F?

You have not been abused, personally attacked or mocked. You have been asked to explain your elitist point of view. Again, exactly how does the fact that others who didn't pay are put in F impact your experience? How is having a full F cabin anything different than what you expected when you purchased your ticket? Why does it matter how the others in the F cabin were placed there?

HongKonger

Well it's their airline they can do as they please.

TheRoadie

Agreed. I swear sometimes people come across that the SIGHT of others in THEIR cabin ruins the expected solitude. As if an empty vista devoid of fellow travelers was part of the ultimate airplane experience.

Only in a private jet, maybe. Otherwise you have to share the cabin air, lavs, and sightlines with others.

ILovetheReds

I have been oped-up on international before a few times as both a DM and a PM and my wife was once as GM. And you better believe we NEVER turned those down If we would have told the GA we felt it was unfair to the people paying to be in J for us to take the op-ups I can assure you there were plenty of people in Y that would gladly taken my seat

If people on here are upset over op-ups, I wonder how they feel about NRSA's and their family and friends sitting in J for free. I would rather see an op-up go to a DM on a paid ticket who flies 125,000+ miles a year than a family member of a NRSA.

Bicostal

Have you ever been on a party plane with an FC cabin full of NRSAs?

I honestly dont think that SANKAPs took issue with op ups - but rather with the idea that just because a "better" seat is empty it is OK to move to it when the airline explicitly differentiates the seats by charging extra. This applies to a Y to EC or a Y to FC switch.

I much prefer an empty seat next to me, thank you very much, especially in long-haul coach. In your world it apparently would be OK for 42 E to sit in 15B even though 15B is a $59 upcharge? How does this work for you at the ballgame? Ever try to move from Row 42 right field bleachers to Row 1 behind the home team dugout?

WECBEC.

FlyDeltaJets87

Sankaps has also failed to outline how he/she would handle the situation. I asked (but it wasn't answered) in my last post: And how would you like if it you had an important business meeting to get to or a wedding to get to and there was only a First Class seat left and no Medallion to give it to so as to open a regular seat, so the airline said "No Op Up to F for you or any 'regular' passenger. That seat's going empty and we're rebooking you for a later flight. Oh that later flight doesn't get you there in time? Well, too bad so sad." Don't tell me you'd honestly sit there and go "Well, that's okay. I didn't want the people who paid for F to have their experienced cheapened by me being there".
Seems like a simple question for which Sankaps could provide a simple answer based on his/her own reasoning in the thread. I just want to him/her to defend that reasoning and see if they really believe it - would Sankaps be willing to miss important events rather than take an "OpUp" out of "respect for the atmosphere that those in F have paid for".

troyintn

I tend to agree. I really love the looks my kids get at times in F.

StayingHomeIsBetter

IBTL...

CJKatl

You would think, but that wasn't what he thought to be unfair. He objected to people being moved to F when the flight was full and there were no other seats available. Here's his quote:

The issue you outline is a different story entirely. Skankap objected to people being moved to F when the plane was full and there were additional non-F passengers needing to fly. Somehow it is unfair to him that rather than leaving people on the ground, the airline would move passengers into F. Somehow he is okay if the F cabin is full of medallions on A fares, but it becomes a different experience for him when it's kettles on LUTs. Maybe the Biscoff are cinnamonier when the cabin is full of people that meet his standards?