FO Saturday upgrade chances?
 

Hi all,

Longtime FT reader, and had a question on upgrade chances. I recently made Silver status and am flying DL 477 on February 11 out of JFK. It's a Saturday evening flight on a 777--and I'd really like to try out the lie-flat beds...even though I know it's basically domestic FC and only a short hop to Atlanta.

Anyone fly this route frequently? I'm wondering what my upgrade chances on a Saturday evening are...looks pretty elite-light right now but I'm thinking of just UG'ing with miles since I really want to try this out.

Just curious, how many miles would it cost you?

It'd be around 20K miles, as I'd have to upgrade my connecting flight as well--can't just do that one segment per the Delta rep.

Upgrade chance for an FO are probably not all that good on a Saturday JFK-ATL hop. Lots of international flyers with PM/DM status on those routes on Saturdays.

As for whether or not it's worth the 20K miles, only you can answer that. I would probably do it.

Hmmmmm. Maybe one of the mileage upgrade experts here know a way around that.

Good luck, and be sure to let us know the result, and if you get it - how you enjoyed it!

:)

How much is a cash upgrade? Up to the individual on whether it's worth it, and if you have no better use of the miles, then why not.

But if you use lots of miles for other things and the cash price is <$200, consider that you'll also snag some extra MQMs by paying cash vs. miles.

Your chances for a medallion upgrade are very slim. This flight usually has a long upgrade list - as others have pointed out it is a convenient connection from a few international flights. The large FC cabin means a lot of people usually get upgraded but as a FO you may be very low on that list.

You will never upgrade on a hub-hub flight (fellow FO here). Definitely UG with miles for the 777, though! A fun experience on a domestic flight if nothing else.

A long upgrade list could mean a lot of employees on the flight, especially if it's a weekend return to ATL.

FWIW, Flew this flight yesterday (Sat.) and the entire upgrade list cleared on a 767-400 international configuration (well, perhaps some straggler missed out).

I was 10 of 14 with 31 open seats when I first looked at about T-90.

The OP is correct the flight is very elite-light right now. It's the same for the Sat before as very few C+ seats have been taken. It's still a little early but I don't think it's worth it to use miles or pay for an UG, it's a pretty short flight. I've been UGd on many Sat flights that an FO would never see an UG on any other day.

Don't Use Miles to UG - You Have a Good Shot At It
 

I think you have a good shot the complimentary upgrade. I flew JFK-ATL on 477 a week ago on a Saturday and the front had several non-revs in it by the time all was said and done (it did go out full, but again, several non-revs including an FA from my previous flight who worked the flight to JFK then was non-reving home). I SDC'ed to 477 the day prior to get the 777 on the route and only a handful of seats were taken when I made the switch.

ETA: Not always the greatest indicator but something to go off is how many C+ and Preferred seats are taken versus available. If the C+ and preferred seats are mostly gone, you can make a pretty educated guess that the flight is elite-heavy. If most of those seats are available, you have a decent shot at the upgrade.

Thanks for all the responses on this.

I ended up getting an offer for about $100 on OLCI, so went with that. I think I 100% would have gotten it, if not for the NYC snowstorm 2 days prior. Seems like a lot of people got pushed onto this flight--although it looks like all but 2 people ended up getting the upgrade right before boarding.

Great flight, great seat (7A) and a fun experience overall.

shameless opportunist :D

seriously, imo $100 for the lie-flat on a 777 on that 2-hour flight (plus F on whatever your connection was) isn't a bad deal at all

Good to hear that and glad you enjoyed the flight. Just a question, is DL selling upgrades during OLCI and/or at the counter/kiosk before all elites have cleared? Similar to what UA does where most upgrades seem to be sold during OLCI rather than purchased in advance and prior to Primer members clearing the list.