Iberia airport check-in, OLCI or app upgrades - reports
 

Is there a thread in the Iberia forum detailing average prices and historical data points for proactive online upgrades or paid airport upgrades? Wondering what kind of price might be reasonable for BOS-MAD, if it's available.

I don't think there is - but on that route, MAD-BOS, I recently had 350€ to go from Y+ to J.

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/35246967-post18.html

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/35247130-post21.html

I did MAD-BOS last week for 240€ for Y to Y+

Hi, for IB POUGs/AUPs, do they change the fare codes for calculating EP?

No. You earn based on your original fare.

Thanks. Too bad, was trying to get around/along Y-only travel policy...

Bumping this to ask what people think the best strategy is for trying to upgrade BOS-MAD from Y to J on Iberia?

Details:
Ticket is BA-coded and Iberia-operated
Current ExpertFlyer details show the following (but we’re over 45 days out from date of travel):

IB 6166 BOS 5:20p → MAD 6:20a
J9 C9 D9 R9 I9 W9 E9 T9 Y9 B9 H9 K9 M9 L9 F0 V9 S9 Z0 N9 Q9 O9 A9

BA (IB) 4264 BOS 5:20p → MAD 6:20a
J9 C9 D9 R9 I9 W9 E9 T8 Y9 B9 H9 K9 M9 L9 V9 N9 Q9 O9 S9

Is is possible to use Avios to upgrade the reservation to Y+ and then do an AUP or POUG from there to J?

Or is a further upgrade somehow disallowed or blocked if you have upgraded an underlying paid fare with miles already?

And how does the codeshare or prime flight number issue affect all this? Does having the BA code preclude possibilities that would otherwise be available if the ticket had an IB code instead?

You need to be booked in Y, B, H to upgrade using Avios. (usually more expensive than just booking T) The BA codeshare also makes things messier, although maybe BAEC can do something that IB+ wouldn't... In any event, you will need PE award space.

I recommend that you put away the Expertflyer and just monitor your booking regularly for possible upgrade offers...

I don’t see any upgrade section on Iberia’s website or app, using the BA PNR. Doesn’t seem to be a corresponding five character PNR for Iberia’s RESIBER system — maybe because it’s a BA codeshare?

Nor do I see an upgrade section on BA’s Manage My Booking. Would it appear later?

edited to add: I do see it now. Pricing the upgrade on the MMB section of the BA website as:

$1302 for two passengers Y to Y+
$21,920 for two passengers Y to J (!!!)

Neither seems especially compelling. Do these prices change and if so when?

Those prices will be the fare difference. Because of the BA codeshare, it's quite likely that the only place you will see a discounted upgrade offer is at OLCI or at the airport...

Hi, since your ticket was issued by BA on an IB-operated codeshare, jurisdiction for Avios upgrades rests with BAEC, rather than with IB+. So you should redirect this query on to the BAEC forum.

As a reminder, through BAEC you can upgrade British Airways, Iberia and American Airlines flights, and only the lowest economy fares (Q, O and G) cannot be upgraded with Avios .

https://www.britishairways.com/en-it...ing-with-avios

This is very helpful: thanks for the details.

So it turns out that the fare is O class — could it be upfared without a change fee by paying a fee different to the lowest economy bucket that would allow Avios upgrades, and then upgraded using Avios? Or is it stuck and it can only be upgraded using cash at the airport checkin if a special offer is made by Iberia then?

IF you find award space in PE, then you could:

1. Call BAEC and see whether the flight can be upgraded
2. When told "no", ask whether you can upfare and then upgrade

Personally I am far from convinced that BAEC can upgrade a BA codeshare flight into IB award space. But if somebody asks the question then we'll know... :)

To start with, you could check on ba.com whether there are any award seats available in PE on the date you 'd like to travel. If that's the case I suggest you call BAEC and ask them if it's indeed possible to do an Avios upgrade from an eligible Y fare (i.e. in a class other than Q, O and G) to PE on that flight. If they confirm it is then you can safely proceed with a fare change from O class. Ideally if the BAEC staff were able to process both the fare change and the Avios upgrade in sequence on one call, then you'ld be set.