Yeah according to the T&Cs, Y and B require the Z upgrade inventory on KE and not the O award that an M fare needs. Agree that a discount biz fare could be less than a B, however it depends on the advance purchase and min stay requirements. For mfong's ticket the B fare may be less depending on his other routing as well.

Yeah I decided to book on DL Metal because I learned KE doesn’t have wi-fi LOL. I’m already booked in DL One and I’ll be home for dinner instead for lunch with the wife. She can have lunch with the landscaper or mailman instead.

I took the advice above and looked through KE’s website for inventory and saw there were some seats in J on certain days. I called DL and asked if my GUC can be applied on those days with openings just to see if I can get the upgrade. Unfortunately, the DL Agent said there were no openings they can see on their end.

Maybe I’ll try again in the future when I have more advance notice. I think I’m going to call 2-3 weeks prior to departure to see if I can redeem my GUC. I usually book < 1 week before departure, but I’ll try to forecast when I can go home.

I appreciate your help guys. I’ve only been upgraded on KE when the flight was oversold and only in Asia.

Thanks again for your help and advice.

To upgrade with a GUC, you need specific inventory on KE, either O or Z (depending on your coach fare class), not just an empty J seat.

Yeah, and probably have to help 'coach' the DL agent on that as well... since they may only look at the O award space and not the more available Z inventory that you can use from a B fare.

I have made several flights on KE booking via Delta. I learned early on to get confirmation numbers from Delta for both DL and KE (which you should always do anytime multiple airlines are involved). Then see a KE agent in-person to confirm everything. It seems no matter what Delta says, whether the KE flight is sold by Delta or operated by Delta, KE will do what they wish and the easiest best way to deal with them is in person. They are sticklers for the details on their forms and never trust anything Delta says.

I have even had to run this gauntlet buying from KE and using miles (via Marriott) to upgrade.

I don't remember the exact details but there was something about using the KE app that made things easier.

Guc ke j->a (ifc)
 

GUC KE J->A (IFC)

I just noticed GUC can be used to upgrade FULL J to FIRST CLASS on KE. (Requires booking DL marketing in J class) Has anyone ever done so?

So you're saying that if you buy a Delta-marketed, but KE operated (on the USA-Korea portion) in FULL J fare (not just Delta One/Prestige)... you are AUTOMATICALLY upgraded to KE International First Class? Or are you waitlisted and only if there is fare-class availability (in "A" class apparently)?

How much would you be potentially saving? I can imagine this is still incredibly expensive.

It wouldn't be automatic if a GUC is required; you need to call DL to apply a GUC. Also, AFAIK you can't waitlist for a GUC upgrade except for DL flights.

From delta.com:

So you can now use a GUC to upgrade a DL*/KE flight booked in J class to First.

I just want to make sure we are getting our terminology right. By J-class does that mean ANY J seat (which on Delta is Z, I, C, D, J)? or does that mean J - FARE class?

NO, it means FULL J, just like some of the SkyTeam mileage upgrade awards require FULL Y (or sometimes B) fares in order to use miles to upgrade to business class.

It means booked in the J fare class (which "full fare" business class fares usually book into).

Sometimes C is considered "full fare" too, but J is last seat availability.

Apparently. I dont remember ever seeing anything about this before.. of course FULL J fares are going to be very expensive. I think most that can afford FULL J, most likely can afford F fares.

Too bad can't do this with AF. I could see more people using with them.

I don't recall seeing that before either... nice that you can actually get real international first class that way on KE... however a J fare may be more expensive than just booking the KE first class fare.