xliioper

Since he said he could see their position on the upgrade list, this implies the upgrade happened after check-in (since you can't see your position prior to check-in).

jdrtravel

right, good point.

rylan

This seems to be an ongoing strange issue with companions that have status... for some reason they get placed higher than the primary/higher status pax. Doesn't seem to matter with last name either, as we've seen reports of last name both alphabetically before and after being ahead.

acrophobia

mnredfox

rkoechel

TBH our concern was more about picking seats in economy. We like to put whoever has the best chance of getting upgraded in the middle seat while the other takes the aisle...that way we are next to each other if neither is upgraded and if only one person is upgraded at the gate then one of us is in the aisle in coach and not stuck in a middle seat.

kxc262

Since you're higher on the upgrade list, put yourself in the middle seat.
Also recommend not splitting PNRs as your piggybacking as a DM and are higher up the chain.

jdrtravel

slightly OT: Did you know that, according to this page on DL.com, you can still add general members that are not on the same PNR as a companion for an upgrade, and that they can clear at T-24? I thought that when the new upgrade policies came out a year or so ago that they removed this option and that both pax had to be on the same PNR? This page also states that general members are not eligible for C+ companion upgrades while traveling with a medallion at anytime. Is this true? A non-medallion can get a first class upgrade but not a C+ upgrade?


Traveling with one companion:

• If you and one companion are in the same reservation, upgrades to domestic Delta One, First Class and Delta Comfort+ work the same way: your upgrades, if available, will clear based on the Status of the higher-tiered Member. This applies to companions who are Medallion Members themselves as well as General Members who do not have Medallion Status and partner airline elite members.
• If you and your companion are in different reservations, upgrades to First Class and Delta Comfort+ work a little differently:
  • For domestic Delta One and First Class, your upgrades will clear based on your individual Member Status and confirmation windows, if available. For example, if Platinum and Silver Medallion Members are traveling together, the Platinum Medallion Member will clear at the Platinum window and the Silver Medallion Member will clear at the Silver window. If your companion is a General Member who does not have Medallion Status, their upgrade will clear no sooner than 24 hours prior to departure.
  • For Delta Comfort+, General SkyMiles Members are not eligible for Complimentary Upgrades. The Medallion Member will clear for their upgrade at their respective window.

Beltway2A

Not having been brought up in the 1800s, my fiancee and I are happy to share our UGs, often going to whoever has been flying the least or is having a particularly bad day. In OP's example, his wife appears to fly more, and as a DM is probably upgraded more than OP.

In any event, I can't think of any reason why someone's gender is a factor into which part of a couple takes an UG.

yytleisure

SEXISM
prejudice, stereotyping, or discrimination, typically against women, on the basis of sex.
SEXUAL DISCRIMINATION
discrimination in employment and opportunity against a person (typically a woman) on grounds of sex.
MISOGYNY
dislike of, contempt for, or ingrained prejudice against women.

Making a decision based solely on someone being "da wife", is actually the very definition of sexism. I'd hardly call this example something to get excited over, but treating someone differently based on sex, whether it is a positive, negative or neither for the "victim", is sexist. A bit of a stretch for misogyny, but again, you could say singling out a woman as "needing" the seat more to be kept happy is a form of misogyny, particularly if the man is deciding and dictating the plan.

NOLAnwGOLD

Yeah, that's happened to me as well, I'm the DM, my partner PM cleared first though I'm first in terms of last name in alphabetical order, his first name is before mine. We were in the same PNR (reservation) with the same class of service and both had the AMEX waiver already (we've canned our DL AMEX since the $250k is ridiculous!). He ended up in FC, I was left in C+ but all is fine.

acrophobia

ATOBTTR

Well, as long as divorce and alimony laws seem to favor women, I'll stick to the principle of "Happy Wife, Happy Life". Seems like the more financially sane principle to go by.

Fortunately when it comes to upgrades, Mrs. ATOBTTR has always told me to keep the UG if I get one and she doesn't as I'm 6'4 and she's just barely over 5 feet tall and fits comfortably even in main cabin seat. Though this year we're both PMs so even if we're on separate tickets, we'll still be clearing pretty close to each other.

flyerCO

You have always been able to upgrade a companion on separate reservation. All that changed is if on the same PNR, then the companion gets the higher status and can upgrade at the window. Before, they caused everyone to drop to lowest status, including none. However nothing changed for companions on separate PNR. They can only be done at airport DoD.

The FC, but not C+ has been a long known issue. DL was supposed to fix that. However I'm not sure they have.

xliioper

I believe they have addressed this and companions can be upgraded to C+ now. They just haven't updated the text on the website. Also, while they now allow non-status companions to be upgraded when on award, PWM, or companion cert tickets, it's only permitted when they are on the same PNR as the Medallion member (for companion certs, it's already a condition of the companion cert). If they are on a separate PNR, non-status pax must be flying on a revenue ticket to be eligible for companion upgrades to C+/F.