Bad upgrades
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2007
Programs: Aer Lingus Gold, HHonors Diamond, Hyatt Gold Passport, BMI Diamond Club Silver, UA Premier
Posts: 67
Bad upgrades
Ever got an upgrade that left you worse off than you'd have been without?
On my regular Monday morning, 6.45am to London, checked in to seat 24A and taking a leisurely approach to boarding as a result, I was told at the gate that I'd been upgraded, to 1C. All good. Or so you'd think.
Having hung on after the first couple of calls in the lounge I ended up among the last to board. Which is fine if you're in row 24, but not so good if you're trying to get your right-on-the-size-limit case in a bin above row 1. So, first negative of the upgrade was knowing that I'd have to swim against the tide back to row 6 to get my bag. Annoying, but not enough to detract from the pleasure of an unexpected upgrade.
So, after getting seated the FA's head suddenly appears next to mine. She starts whispering in my ear. I had been starting to doze off when she did this so I'm a bit weirded out. She whispers that they haven't got enough catering on board to serve me the business class breakfast but that she'd see what they had at the end. After serving the business cabin, she comes back and says all she has is some orange juice and a roll. Now, as a BMI Silver I get a free hot breakfast when I'm in Y anyway, albeit nowhere as good as the C one. I point this out. She says all the Y breakfasts are gone too. This has never happened when I've been in Y. As the FA tries to hand me my leftovers, I try to pull the tray table out of the arm rest. Turns out, it's gaffer-taped closed.
"Aha," says the FA. "You should haven't been put in that seat. It broke on the way over last night"
So, I end up eating my left over, now-cold roll, on my lap. I get butter on my suit trousers. I feel like a small child brought to a fancy restaurant because his parents couldn't find a baby sitter and who was told to sit in the corner and eat the free bread.
We land in LHR and I run the gauntlet of grumpy business men and work my way back to row 6, collect my case, and wend my way back up to my seat with my case above my head. Well, at least I am now first in line to get off the plane. Some benefit from my upgrade at least. Or so I thought.
We stand and wait for ten minutes and still the door isn't opened.
The pilot announces that the air bridge is broken and we'll be deplaning from the rear. So, the last shall be first and I'm the last damn person off the plane.
So, anyone ever had a more useless upgrade?
On my regular Monday morning, 6.45am to London, checked in to seat 24A and taking a leisurely approach to boarding as a result, I was told at the gate that I'd been upgraded, to 1C. All good. Or so you'd think.
Having hung on after the first couple of calls in the lounge I ended up among the last to board. Which is fine if you're in row 24, but not so good if you're trying to get your right-on-the-size-limit case in a bin above row 1. So, first negative of the upgrade was knowing that I'd have to swim against the tide back to row 6 to get my bag. Annoying, but not enough to detract from the pleasure of an unexpected upgrade.
So, after getting seated the FA's head suddenly appears next to mine. She starts whispering in my ear. I had been starting to doze off when she did this so I'm a bit weirded out. She whispers that they haven't got enough catering on board to serve me the business class breakfast but that she'd see what they had at the end. After serving the business cabin, she comes back and says all she has is some orange juice and a roll. Now, as a BMI Silver I get a free hot breakfast when I'm in Y anyway, albeit nowhere as good as the C one. I point this out. She says all the Y breakfasts are gone too. This has never happened when I've been in Y. As the FA tries to hand me my leftovers, I try to pull the tray table out of the arm rest. Turns out, it's gaffer-taped closed.
"Aha," says the FA. "You should haven't been put in that seat. It broke on the way over last night"
So, I end up eating my left over, now-cold roll, on my lap. I get butter on my suit trousers. I feel like a small child brought to a fancy restaurant because his parents couldn't find a baby sitter and who was told to sit in the corner and eat the free bread.
We land in LHR and I run the gauntlet of grumpy business men and work my way back to row 6, collect my case, and wend my way back up to my seat with my case above my head. Well, at least I am now first in line to get off the plane. Some benefit from my upgrade at least. Or so I thought.
We stand and wait for ten minutes and still the door isn't opened.
The pilot announces that the air bridge is broken and we'll be deplaning from the rear. So, the last shall be first and I'm the last damn person off the plane.
So, anyone ever had a more useless upgrade?
#2
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 85
Ever got an upgrade that left you worse off than you'd have been without?
On my regular Monday morning, 6.45am to London, checked in to seat 24A and taking a leisurely approach to boarding as a result, I was told at the gate that I'd been upgraded, to 1C. All good. Or so you'd think.
Having hung on after the first couple of calls in the lounge I ended up among the last to board. Which is fine if you're in row 24, but not so good if you're trying to get your right-on-the-size-limit case in a bin above row 1. So, first negative of the upgrade was knowing that I'd have to swim against the tide back to row 6 to get my bag. Annoying, but not enough to detract from the pleasure of an unexpected upgrade.
So, after getting seated the FA's head suddenly appears next to mine. She starts whispering in my ear. I had been starting to doze off when she did this so I'm a bit weirded out. She whispers that they haven't got enough catering on board to serve me the business class breakfast but that she'd see what they had at the end. After serving the business cabin, she comes back and says all she has is some orange juice and a roll. Now, as a BMI Silver I get a free hot breakfast when I'm in Y anyway, albeit nowhere as good as the C one. I point this out. She says all the Y breakfasts are gone too. This has never happened when I've been in Y. As the FA tries to hand me my leftovers, I try to pull the tray table out of the arm rest. Turns out, it's gaffer-taped closed.
"Aha," says the FA. "You should haven't been put in that seat. It broke on the way over last night"
So, I end up eating my left over, now-cold roll, on my lap. I get butter on my suit trousers. I feel like a small child brought to a fancy restaurant because his parents couldn't find a baby sitter and who was told to sit in the corner and eat the free bread.
We land in LHR and I run the gauntlet of grumpy business men and work my way back to row 6, collect my case, and wend my way back up to my seat with my case above my head. Well, at least I am now first in line to get off the plane. Some benefit from my upgrade at least. Or so I thought.
We stand and wait for ten minutes and still the door isn't opened.
The pilot announces that the air bridge is broken and we'll be deplaning from the rear. So, the last shall be first and I'm the last damn person off the plane.
So, anyone ever had a more useless upgrade?
On my regular Monday morning, 6.45am to London, checked in to seat 24A and taking a leisurely approach to boarding as a result, I was told at the gate that I'd been upgraded, to 1C. All good. Or so you'd think.
Having hung on after the first couple of calls in the lounge I ended up among the last to board. Which is fine if you're in row 24, but not so good if you're trying to get your right-on-the-size-limit case in a bin above row 1. So, first negative of the upgrade was knowing that I'd have to swim against the tide back to row 6 to get my bag. Annoying, but not enough to detract from the pleasure of an unexpected upgrade.
So, after getting seated the FA's head suddenly appears next to mine. She starts whispering in my ear. I had been starting to doze off when she did this so I'm a bit weirded out. She whispers that they haven't got enough catering on board to serve me the business class breakfast but that she'd see what they had at the end. After serving the business cabin, she comes back and says all she has is some orange juice and a roll. Now, as a BMI Silver I get a free hot breakfast when I'm in Y anyway, albeit nowhere as good as the C one. I point this out. She says all the Y breakfasts are gone too. This has never happened when I've been in Y. As the FA tries to hand me my leftovers, I try to pull the tray table out of the arm rest. Turns out, it's gaffer-taped closed.
"Aha," says the FA. "You should haven't been put in that seat. It broke on the way over last night"
So, I end up eating my left over, now-cold roll, on my lap. I get butter on my suit trousers. I feel like a small child brought to a fancy restaurant because his parents couldn't find a baby sitter and who was told to sit in the corner and eat the free bread.
We land in LHR and I run the gauntlet of grumpy business men and work my way back to row 6, collect my case, and wend my way back up to my seat with my case above my head. Well, at least I am now first in line to get off the plane. Some benefit from my upgrade at least. Or so I thought.
We stand and wait for ten minutes and still the door isn't opened.
The pilot announces that the air bridge is broken and we'll be deplaning from the rear. So, the last shall be first and I'm the last damn person off the plane.
So, anyone ever had a more useless upgrade?
Once I was upgraded on LH. As I did not know I was going to be upgraded, I had purchased a nice sandwich to eat on board - much better than Y food. I had that in my hand as I came on board, and I noticed a weird look by the purser. Then she comes up to me and says "can I have a word ?". I say "yes ?". she made the sign I had to get up. so she called me to the galley and says "you have been upgraded, but you should behave in a business-like manner... in Business Class, passengers dont eat their own sandwich". I pointed out that I was not eating it, that I had merely purchased it planning to be in Y class, that indeed I was now going to take advantage of C food and not eat the sandwich, or I would eat it in the toilet if really hungry. she said "ok, but make sure other passengers dont notice this, I dont want them to know that you have been upgraded". Well, they made me feel like a criminal for having been upgraded...
So, dont buy a sandwich if you think you may get an upgrade !
Oh, and next time you are really in paid C, on LH, do get a sandwich and see what she says...
Very weird experience.
#3
FlyerTalk Evangelist




Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: PDX
Programs: On a collision course with Kettledom
Posts: 25,550
I was upgraded once (on the late, unlamented Sabena) from an aisle seat in coach to a middle seat in business class (the legroom was the same in both classes). It was a short flight (BRU-CDG). My perk was a slightly better sandwich.

