First real op up was last summer - YVR-LHR. I was euro cheating my way home to Kent via AMS, and was in 62K on the upper deck, and my hubby who had upgraded to Club using his miles was in 64K....

I handed passport and BP to the girl at the gate and got the beep - she vanished with our tickets - going to talk to a supervisor and returning tearing up our boarding passes and handing us new ones - me for 4K and hubby for 5A in First class. (He had also managed to get a free upgrade from WT+ to Club on the way out as well!

A couple of weeks later - on the way back to YVR - I was in 62K again, and got the beep at Heathrow for 4A.....

I've probably had a few more but recall only two. Used to fly Biz as a kid (lucky) back when Biz seats were not as nice as now.

Was flying back from Japan to the US (LA? SF?), most likely on Northwest back when it was JAL, Pan Am or Northwest only, and I got bumped from Biz to First. I don't think I had status as I don't think they had such things back then. Was my only experience in first trans-pacific. Was nice, but probably would be much nicer now.

I had a bump from economy to biz once going to Japan on ANA JFK-NRT. No idea why. I had a lot of miles on United, not even in the ANA program. But they called my name at the gate and I was upgraded. Again nice, but no lie flat seats back then. Still couldn't sleep a lick.

June, 2003. AA JFK-SJU on a 767-300 (those were the days when AA cared for SJU :(:rolleyes:)

I was 17 years old and an AA Platinum. My Dad and two of my brothers and I were going to San Juan for a baseball game. My Dad had bought four coach tickets and then upgraded himself with miles and used a sticker upgrade to sponsor one of my brothers. At the gate I found out the flight was oversold by 33 and that I had the highest status on board. They not only upgraded me but they upgraded my brother who was in coach at the same time. I remember being paged to the podium and going up with my Dad. I said to him "I think they're going to op-up me" and he said "shhh! Don't say that!". The agent said "I wouldn't have called him up here otherwise".

Ended up being a great flight.

Glad I started this thread. There are some great stories here.

I got my first and only OpUp in February from SIN to MEL on EK, I was travelling home with a friend he was a few people ahead of me at the gate, they told him he had to be moved and he automatically thought that he was just being moved to another Y seat as the person in front of him was, he asked to be seated with me, I get to the gate and they cross out Economy on the boarding pass and write Business, most exciting news ever.

Probably 20 yrs ago from LAX-MPS. I was in my best suit and checked in early on NWA in coach - probably a 757. When I double checked my seat with the gate agent she told me there was a plane change to a 747. I told her I had never been upstairs in a 747 and hoped I could try that. She told me the upstairs wasn't open. About 20 minutes later she called my name and handed me a boarding pass to First Class upstairs.

Turned out it was a brand new 747. Boy did I enjoy that ride!

Mine was just last week. A 12.5 hr overnight flight from HKG-LHR on BA. Upgraded at the gate from WT+ to Business. A very welcome bonus!

Royal Brunei Airlines from DXB-BWN, the flight was completely packed in economy and my dad got an op-up to J. I was stuck in economy with my mother and had to sit on her lap for take off because my seat was allocated to someone else! After take-off, the hostess moved both my mother and I into business!

join the crowd. had one ugly involuntary move with a 12 hr delay that ended up with a move from y to c.

Many years ago, possibly even before FF programs existed, I was traveling with a boyfriend from Boston to Paris. I think we checked in late enough so that our seats together had been given away, or maybe we didn't even have seat assignments. Bump up to business. Wow! Reclining seats with footrests, amenity kits, champagne, cognac after the (relatively) lavish meal...and the morning after, the very worst headache (i.e. hangover) I've ever had before or since. I've had a handful of op-ups since but you always remember your first time, for better or for worse.

I'll never forget my first time :) I just landed my first decent job in 1979 and was flying UA SFO-ATL-PHL. I was a flying Noob. Some UA union had a strike deadline on the day I was scheduled to fly in the middle of my first flight segment. I asked my new boss if I should be rebooked on a different airline. He said not to worry (he was like that). He said hopefully they wouldn't strike that day and if they did then the company travel agent would take care of me.

I got on my SFO-ATL flight and enjoyed it thoroughly on the DC-8 listening to the pilot chatter on the seat headset. When I arrived in ATL I immediately discovered that the UA union had gone on strike and all UA flights were grounded. I called the (Fortune 100) company travel agent and found out that they had proactively rebooked me while I was in the air for standby on an Eastern Airlines flight from ATL-PHL. I got to the Eastern gate and it was pandemonium, people everywhere. They boarded the confirmed passengers and there was still a huge mass waiting to clear standby. I was called as #1 on the standby list and they Op-Uped me to First Class! How sweet it is! That was back in the day when domestic First was pretty nice. I think I took the only remaining FC seat. All the other standbys went back to coach.

1984. Flying from LA(or was it SF) to Tokyo. Got upgraded to business class.

The only reason I still remember that experience was because it was the first time I found out what "Mile High Club" meant. Upper deck of 747-200 was really the wrong place to do it. Somewhere over the Pacific, a couple decided to join the club, only to be rudely interrupted by the purser.

October 2001, Finnair HEL-JFK. I have no idea why I was upgraded, I had no status, and the Y wasn't full. I had flown intra-Europe biz before, but this was my first time on LH business class. I was impressed by the seats, but of course back then even Y had pretty good food... The experience was marred a bit by the fact that post-9/11 paranoia reigned, and knives and forks were plastic... Plus I was subjected to a random extra security check before boarding. Wasn't asked to remove any clothing, though. :p

ICN-PEK. Y->C 747 upper deck. Guessing they decided to upgrade the family of elites on a flight filled with tourists. A nice and comfortable 1 hour flight.

I was about 13 years old and flying on standby as a member of UA's 12-21 Club. Young people between the ages of 12 and 21 could fly standby on a reduced fare. The gate agent kept me aside until everyone had boarded and then gave me a boarding pass for what she said was the last remaining seat. She had a big smile on her face. I thought she was just being friendly.

I ended up turning left when I boarded and was seated in F. Holy cow. I remember trying to not be too obvious about watching the other F passengers, trying to determine appropriate behavior. But I'm sure I stuck out like a sore thumb.