ethernal

So I know the standby list occasionally has passengers that may be booked into W but without a seat assignment. And I know sometimes the top people on the C+ upgrade list are selected only for Window/Aisle and only middle seats are available - but I assume that on an upgrade list 30-50+ people long at least some of those folks have selected the middle seat upgrade option.

I almost never see C+ upgrades clear at the gate. Even when there are 3 seats available (and potentially more if a few pax already in C+ clear into F - although I assume on the routes I fly most of the people clear directly into F as people that get C+ at booking usually have the lowest fare classes), I never see C+ upgrades. Instead, I see 3 people cleared from the standby list into C+.

Now as I said, I know that sometimes people on the standby list may be booked into W. But are there really always 2-3 people on the standby list that are booked into W? I doubt it - and yesterday I was waiting in line for the gate agent to help me with my seat (because apparently being a DM isn't good enough to keep a seat reservation as my seat had been moved to a less desirable one.. as I learned to allow a family booked in E to sit together but that's a separate topic) - and a man came up and asked for an aisle seat. Gate agent said, "no aisle seats available, but I can give you a bulkhead seat if that helps." The only bulkhead seats on a 739 are C+ seats (or F) - so she was clearly willing to put him in C+ before anyone on the upgrade list. He ended up turning it down for an exit row middle seat - but either way that tells me that there were obviously not 3 confirmed pax for W waiting to get their seats.

So who are these mysterious people on the standby list that always clear into W? I know some should be in W, but what about the rest? Non-revs? E pax that get lucky and jump ahead on the upgrade list? Whomever the GA feels like should get upgraded? Other Shenas?

As a DM that spends most of my time in Y-, I would like more transparency on who are getting these magical 2-3 seats held for gate upgrades.

High Technology

From what I've come to understand over the last year or so is that the front row of coach, at least on one side of the plane, is held for special needs. Examples would include the person with the cast on their leg, the unaccompanied minor(s), etc. So those seats are not assigned in advance, rather are held for the gate.

Of course this makes perfect sense if there are people who legitimately need those seats for good reasons, irrespective of whether they get the C+ amenities of free drinks and a snack. But where there aren't people at the gate that need those seats, they should be given to those on the waitlist first, then to standbys. Unfortunately, I think the system/gate agents clear a bunch of standby passengers into C+ far too often just to get the plane boarded quickly (i.e., just to get their job done in the most expeditious manner as possible for themselves).

ethernal

Yes, it appears that there is usually one seat (not a full row from what I can tell) reserved for special needs in the front row. But I am 100% sure that these seats are not filled with special needs most of the time (and most of the seats are middle seats not in the front row - admittedly not desirable, but I end up in Y- middle about 25% of the time so an upgrade to Y+ middle is still a net win).

Your hypothesis on clearing standbys is probably right.

KDCAflyer

That’s why you have to get to the gate early and tell the GA you want one of those seats. They’re not likely to #shena with you standing right there.

ethernal

So the implication here is that the upgrade list doesn't matter at all? Have you had success going up as #5 for 2 and gotten a seat? Or are you saying you need to go up while #1 and ask?

KDCAflyer

SuperG1955

There are 2 seats blocked for special needs, animals, etc.

There's also an effective YBYL situation. C+ seats can open when F UG's are done. If you're at the podium and have spoken with the GA, you might get one. It's almost 100% that the GA will not move you up if you're on the plane already. If you need overhead space, forget about waiting. The GA is going to take care of those who don't have seats before any consideration is made about moving someone up. That means the E Fares, misconnects and SDS's.

You also can't judge by when a seat it taken. I book far enough in advance so that I get an aisle C+ at booking. If I don't get an UG,I'll wait at the podium, just in case (and it does pay off many times). I'll be the last person to board and that vacant seat that everyone is eyeing gets filled. I rarely need overhead storage and if I do, I board with PREM.

SDQBound

At SDQ the common practice is that if you are in the C+ upgrade list, forget about it. When you look at the App close to boarding time, you can see many people from the standby list cleared into C+ while those who are in the C+ upgrade list are left in Y.

HWGeeks

On my Jan 14th flight from SDQ to JFK I actually saw an FA fighting with the GA at SDQ over seating specifically this. I was in 4A and she specifically told him she saw the upgrade list and doesn't understand why someone wasn't upgraded. I didn't catch the entire convo. (It was the mean FA we spoke of in PM)

On my Feb 13th flight from SDQ to JFK I saw another FA the nice one fighting for the same reason, I was in 3A. She asked specifically about the upgrade list. Some people were moved back on the plane. She also kicked people off the plane because the GAs sent them to exit row seats that they could not be in (one of them was an infant) She made the GA fix the mess. GA had told the passengers to board and the FAs would fix it once onboard. FA went multiple times onto the jetway to yell up to the GAs about upgrades and exit row seats.

So I got the feeling that Delta is asking the FAs to police the boarding process better at SDQ or something.

ethernal

You're right, it's 2, although it does not seem like it's always 2 seats in the front row.

Unfortunately I have luggage so I can't wait around at the podium hoping for an upgrade. I guess when I'm stuck in Y- middle I'll try to get to the gate a few minutes early and assert myself If I'm in the bubble. Seems ridiculous that I have to go through that rigmarole to get a mediocre Y+ middle seat (but the alternative is potentially not being able to work at all if my neighbor pax are of size or the person in front of me wins the recline fight so I guess it's worth it).

CMK10

Happened to me last year on a RDU-DCA flight:





I had to ask the gate agent to "upgrade" me to C+ and she was really annoyed about doing it too. Most of the standbys were NRSAs judging by the BPs I saw laid out.

ethernal

Oh man.. that's especially egregious. What a joke. Just shows that there is a systemic issue with this...

KDCAflyer

Email Delta with the screenshots. Someone needs to be terminated.

SDQBound

That was the same reaction of the GA when another fellow PM and I asked to be upgraded. He did upgrade us, but then our names disappeared from the FC upgrade list.

ND76

Because of weather recently, I had to reroute from STL-LGA-DCA to STL-DTW-DCA. On the DTW-DCA leg, I was confirmed but without a seat assignment. I was #5 for 1 F seat on the UG list, but wasn't even listed on the C+ UG list. I was told by the DM line reservationist that I would get an exit row seat, but ended up in a middle seat in the first row of C+. So I cleared ahead of anyone who was on the C+ list.