Recently got a complimentary Aviators Elite card. Tried to use it on a 757 from STL to JFK. Seat maps on two sites showed 16 of 22 seats available 24 hours prior and TWA says nothing available. Refused to even waitlist. What kind of marketing is this? Hey you regulars, what am I missing here?

Deel, Heres the deal.TWA has for years given away their tier statis levels like water.They hope to draw new bis this way.What they dont tell people is they restrict the amount of seats that are avaible for ups to very few seats.Once these are taken thats it they would rather the seats go empty or of course if you buy a full Y fare they will find that all of a sudden an extra seat became open.However, get to the gate early and sign up for the wait list,cant do it at the club but if your name is called and your not there you lose, so you cant hang out at the club till flight time. Ive been PLAT w/TW for yrs now, so this hasnt been a prob for me especially since Im based overseas Im almost always on an award up no capacity controls for us. Also try calling in for the up even a few hrs b/4 your alloted time alot of times they wont hold you to the 24 hrs exactly if that rep does hang up and call again. But keep in mind that the first level in elite statis is almost worthless,its like a corp with billons of shares outstanding.

Platinum Aviators are not exempt from upgrade availability restrictions on domestic flights -- just like Elite and Elite 1 Aviators.

Since I have been a Platinum, I have upgraded on all but 3 of about 75 flights -- one of which was due to a cancellation.

My experience is that TWA leaves a certain number of seats as not eligible for upgrades until the day of flight -- however this is usually only 2 or 3 seats. Any remaining F seats are given out for upgrades at the airport.

My advice is to keep calling to check for availability.. if that doesn't work ask to standby for an upgrade at the airport.

Greg

They finally released the seats the morning of the flight. Kind of bizarre. First they said the waitlist was closed because there were so many people on it. Then over 15 seats become available in one shot (so what happened to the waitlist?). Problem with airport standby on a connect is if you run late the folks who either get there ahead, or originate in the hub, beat you to it. All in all, the system seems to be very uneven, particularly as compared to other carriers.

I know of no U.S. airline that offers every FC seat for free FC upgrades five or three or even two days before a flight. What would airlines� sell if they did that? Airlines hold a percentage of FC seats to sell based on a formula they figure will give them the highest flight yield. After all, FC is the most desirable seat on the plane and all airlines want to keep that tool available to attract the last minute full-fare-paying customer.

Regarding tactics on acquiring upgrades, I will agree with Craz and Greg� keep trying to call every couple hours or so for that FC upgrade, even if it is right before you leave for the airport.

If you don�t get the upgrade on the phone, then there�s the bonus of the very-last-minute release of no-show FC customer seats. That is the reason all of us guys and gals hang around the gate to be last on the plane� we all want that free FC upgrade whenever available. First come, first served, but hang around anyway in case an upgrade falls your way.

If you want, you can read an earlier post with some other thoughts here:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum49/HTML/000085.html

TWA, Continental, and Northwest�s unlimited upgrade policies are designed to fill FC seats that might in turn go empty as a reward to their most frequent fliers. If you�re a regular flier of that airline, then you have a deserved advantage against those who aren�t.

I disagree with Craz in that entry level TWA Elite IS valuable on their newer domestic flights since you have an opportunity to upgrade to one of 16-20 seats EVERY time you fly. If I understand Deelmakur�s post correctly, he/she upgraded on his/her first TWA flight. I think that�s cool, especially when you note that all the NY � STL flights I have been on have full FC cabins.

If Deelmakur wants to talk about what�s not fair� since the middle of May I�ve flown exactly 38 segments on AA and I�m still waiting for my FC upgrade. Am I going to complain that AA is unfair? Nope, it�s the luck of the draw and I know some day I�ll take a flight that�s not top-heavy with AA Platinum & Executive Platinum members. Although with the 4 to 10 FC seats on the AA Fokkers and Super-80�s I seem to fly on all the time, I still may have to wait a while. Will I stop flying AA as a result? No, but if I have a choice of carriers I�ll go with the airline that will give me the best chance at a free upgrade every time.

As for success rates� I�m Elite 1 and I have upgraded successfully in the mid-90% range since TWA started the unlimited upgrade program. The majority of my upgrades are not three days in advance, either. For example, on this morning�s flight I upgraded a couple hours before flight time because I finished up a job site ahead of schedule and changed my flight to come home a day earlier. I also find the Ambassador Club very helpful in obtaining last-minute upgrades, too.

[This message has been edited by buck (edited 11-30-1999).]

Buck, I understand they have to hold first class inventory for real passengers. I was just amazed at how many seats they held out(16 of 20). As for AA, like all the majors, if you aren't top tier you won't get diddly, unless you do your flying Saturday nites and Sunday mornings.

Since making Elite in March, I am 100% percent on upgrades (knock on wood) so far. I fly mostly Fri/Sun to/from the Los Angeles area, and have done about 20 segments since then. Have always been able to get upgraded by phone, even travelling during Thanksgiving weekend. I'm sure that flights to LGA, JFK, BOS, ORD and the like are probably much more difficult.

I'd love to see some more 767 service to the West Coast- loved those old L1011s to LAX.

I need to reply. I have the option of flying TWA, NW or AA. Have to fly prop planes on regional lines to get to any of the hubs. HATE TWE, the TWA regional that takes me to STL - tiny, tiny planes, constant delays, cancellations, etc.... Had been concentrating my travel on NW. TWA upped me to Elite about 5K prior to me getting my 25K miles - have been using them ever since - the best marketing ploy they could have used for me.

Have gotten automatic upgrades once or twice in the 24 hours prior to flight, have been about 75% in getting upgrades when I call 24 hours prior to flight. Even though I'm elite on NW, they rarely have FC seats available to my destinations.

My only gripe - if I am flying on an other than Y class ticket (which is most of the time) and get upgraded to FC, the club at STL will not let me in!!! If there are any AViator lurkers - might want to think about changing that policy.

All in all, I've been very happy with Aviators.

So if I understand your post, you can get into the club if you fly on full fare upgraded coach but not on discounted fares? That's still a lot better than many other airlines, the one I've had most experience with is USAirways (no access to Club starting next year unless you pay for it or fly transatlantic business/first).

DG,

You obviously can enter teh USAirways Club (or TWA) by purchasing their club card, getting a multi-airline club card (such as Priority Pass) or getting an Amex Platinum Card (for TWA, CO, etc.). Membership in one of these clubs is one of the best deals for frequent travelers. You can also cash in miles for access.

Jeff