So there were open seats in F, and I didn't get an upgrade.
 

As others have done, I wrote NWA a TTU requesting some sort of compensation and was basically told to piss off. No bonus miles, nothing. Here's the email and reply:

Original Message Follows:
-------------------------

NW/KL Customer Care Form:
Title: Mr
First Name: Stuart
Alternate Email Address:
State/Province: MI
Country: US
Flight Date: 08/02/2007
Flight Number: NW0239
Origin City: DTW
Destination City: FNT
Response Required: Yes
====================
Message:
I am a Gold Elite member and was hoping to be upgraded to First Class
for this flight. I checked with the gate agent who confirmed that I
would be upgraded when the standby list was cleared however my name was
never called so I assumed that First was full. I was extremely upset to
learn that after we took off there was at least one seat open in first
class. I fail to understand why after checking with the gate agent that
I was not upgraded. Can you please provide me with a reason for this
and some sort of compensation for my trouble? Thank you.
Submitted: 08/03/2007 00:06:10

And their reply:

Dear Mr.,

RE: Case Number

In your recent email, you alerted us to your concerns regarding your
travel from Detroit to Flint on August 2. On behalf of Northwest
Airlines, we sincerely regret that you did not receive your
complimentary upgrade for Flight 239. I truly understand your
frustration, as first-class was not completely full.

We recognize that passengers have seat preferences, and we attempt to
honor first-class upgrades whenever possible. While upgrades cannot be
guaranteed, we also want to convey to you that some seats in the
first-class cabin are not upgradeable.

Again, Mr., I apologize. Your support is very important to
Northwest Airlines and I appreciated the opportunity to review your
comments. I hope you will provide us with a future opportunity to
restore your confidence.

Sincerely,

Meredith Vaughn
Customer Care
Northwest/KLM Airlines

=============================================

Seats in first are not upgradable? What the hell is that all about? At least she could have thrown some bonus miles at me or something instead of telling me to piss off. Thoughts?

Perhaps someone bought 2 to have the one next to them empty?

I am not sure what she means, but my best guess would be that the seat(s) was (were) non functioning and hence "non upgradable." :confused:

Cheers

I was also told that the FAs aren't allowed to do elite upgrades (this has to be handled by the GAs), and if there is someone who misconnects because the passenger arrives at the connecting airport on time but doesn't make it to their connecting flight on time, the GA holds the first class seat open for them until the flight departs so doesn't get used for another upgrade.

True, but often, when the flight is closed and the GA comes on board, he/she will then find the person at the top of the UG list and let them know that the seat up front is open and that they may move. However, if the flight is running late, etc., this may not happen.
FAs can NOT do this. Everything must be handled by the GA.

The other thing is that the OP asked for "compensation for your trouble". What kind of "trouble" did you experience by getting the seat you paid for? I don't believe that NWA needs to compensate you. Had you paid for a seat in F, yes. If this instance makes you "extremely upset", as you described, I'm sorry.

PEs get 1000 miles when not upgraded....everyone else gets nada.

Kinda sucks not to be a PE

I also agree. You are due no compensation. EUA's are a benefit, not a right. Probably someone misconnected and the GA did not have time to correct in order to keep flight on time. Besides that, this is a 20 minute flight. I am not sure you missed a whole lot.

Not the point how long the flight was. Point was that I checked with the GA who said I would get the upgrade and then didn't, and then saw there were open seats in F. :mad:

I'll be PE via segments the first week of September. Should I expect the same treatment? They could have at least thrown me 1000 bonus miles.

While you may well have been entitled to the upgrade, I generally save my communications via TTU for something more important than a denied upgrade on a 20 minute flight.

I didn't realize there was a quota for comments (good or bad) via TTU. Good for you! ^

I think the suggestion that the time and effort in filling out a TTU (and discussion here) may not be worth it for a short flight. Although, such issues should be addressed. What you do not know is the reason why the seat was not upgraded. You will likely never know.

I can easily think of a dozen reaons why you should not have been upgraded and the seat still remain open. For one, I was once upgraded by the GA from 5A (5B was empty) on a DC9 to a full FC on a short flight. Not worth the trouble. I stayed in my seat. GA left the plane and the seat remained empty. Some other elite might be looking at FC and see an empty seat despite their status.

Just one example of many...

Flightaware shows the flight landed at 11:24 pm, while nwa.com shows it is due to arrive at 11:01, so it does look like the flight was running close to 30 minutes late. It could very well be a case of getting the flight out without further delay. I must agree it is not a big deal for an 18 minute flight.

There is certainly not a quota. However, if you're fishing for a small fish (1k miles) when you spot a big fish, you might be out of worms. :)

I fly quite a bit, and there are always annoyances that you run into. Rather than to complain for every minor thing, I will wait until I have something serious to complain about. I believe that they track your complaints, and if you're constantly whining, they may not take you seriously. I have nothing to back this belief up, but it's just my personal take on it.

I also will compliment service, when it's appropriate. Again, not for something minor, but something outstanding.

If this had happened to me multiple times, I would have complained, but not for a single time. If the upgrade is important, ask again at the gate just before you board.

I think the OP has a right to be disappointed. But when to complain? That is another matter. Save it for when you really get Shanghaied. And if you fly any airline often enough, that will someday happen.

Misconnected seats should open 15 minutes before departure. The GA should have upgraded the OP in this case, if a seat was unoccupied and functional.

But when the flight is running late, sometimes all bets are off ....