Wait listed for upgrade with points - how does it work?
 

I asked at the lounge last week if they could wait list me for a Y-J points upgrade on this week's flight. They did that and it looks like this in the booking:

Flight Depart / Arrive Time Airport Duration / Stops Class / Aircraft Booking Status
EK414 DepartSun 23 Mar 14 01:50 Dubai International Airport (DXB) 13 hr 40 min
0 Stops Business
Airbus A380-800 Waitlist
ArriveSun 23 Mar 14 22:30 Kingsford Smith Airport (SYD)

The guy at the desk told me that I had to check each day as they would only hold it for 2-3 days... it is now 6 days later and I have only 3 days until the flight.

What do I have to do here? Just monitor it and click on "upgrade with points" to see if it lets me do so? Do they email me?

Yes, just keep checking every day and when it says "Confirmed', call up the EK call center to release your Y seat and upgrade to J. You still have a day or two to go.

ok, thanks for the reply. I guess that the lounge when I arrive at DXB is the last chance if it doesn't get released before then

Actually, if your waitlist has not got confirmed by the time online check-in opens, the system will automatically knock it off.

ok. EF is showing some availability, so I am still hopeful:
F4 A4 J5 C5 I0 O0 P0 Y9 E9 R9 W9 M9 B9 U9 K9 H0 Q9 L9 T9 V9 X9

So, nothing has happened over the last 6 days and I was still waitlisted. I just called EK in Dubai and got straight through to Play service... after 2 minutes, I was confirmed in J.

The guy told me that they can usually push them through if there is any availability in J.

Very nice, now confirmed

How is this? I am looking to upgrade myself from Y to J on EK385. I asked both on the phone AND in the lounge and I was told on both occasions that we are not able to be wait listed for a miles upgrade. Is there anything I need to tell them to allow me to do this? I will be upgrading my fiancée and myself, though we're both on separate PNRs.

PS. Sorry for hijacking this thread!

Hijack away!
Maybe it is different for Platinum... I asked at the lounge and they put me straight away on the waitlist. The guy told me on the phone that they can process the upgrade straight away for Plat, as long as there are available seats. I see on EF that there were 4 J seats left on the flight, now there is only 1. If I hadn't called, then I doubt that I would have gotten it either at the check-in in CPH nor when I got to DXB.

I sometimes find I can get very different answers depending on who I talk to. For example, I phoned up the UK call centre a few hours ago to ask them to put me on the waitlist for a flight from LHR to DXB, and another from DXB to TYO. The first guy said he couldn't and that waitlists were centrally controlled from Dubai. He also said he finds the process rather confusing and didn't understand much about it. So I phoned back and got a lady who immediately put me on the waitlist for both flights and advised me to call again in a few days.

What I don't quite understand are the benefits of waitlisting for us lowly Gold members. Will it be confirmed regardless of whether any upgrade seats (D, in this case) are released if they feel it necessary? And if not, what's the point?!

I have very little experience in this... but in my case, I called after a few days and it was pushed through. I'm not sure if it ha anything with plat status, but it is worth a try. Mine was not confirmed on the net an required a phone call to confirm

It may not ever be confirmed. If no availability opens up until OLCI, the waitlist is removed. The benefit is, if an upgrade seat becomes available, you're first to get it if waitlisted. You still have to log in / call to confirm it cause they can't deduct miles without your consent. The free seat is "held" for you to upgrade.

This is correct.

I was waitlisted at Xmas and it came through, today's flight hasn't worked out by olci so it was removed.

The issue is the inconsistency of whether they let you do it. My recent success was in the lounge - I have no idea if it's only for golds and plats but it probably should be because when a seat comes up the ug is confirmed and you don't have to worry about checking every 5 minutes, that said as mentioned above you still have to call to confirm and I certainly wouldn't risk waiting until the airport.

So after speaking with a very helpful EK rep, she informed me that Platinum members are in a whole other ball game when it comes to upgrades. There are upgrade seats reserved for platinum members ONLY, and only plats are allowed to be wait listed if there are no seats available.

That's great to know. Till now, F lounge access was the only tangible benefit of Platinum. Upgrade rewards are the only other thing I really care about and if EK can confirm upgrades so long as seats are available in the higher class, then it makes my qualifying for platinum really worth it.

I got waitlisted when no seats available this week y to j and I'm gold...