djmp

I found 32 flights total for the next 330 days that had any NC availability SFO-FRA.

1k650

Curious - how do you do that without going through one day at a time ? And was this NC space on UA 900/901 or 926/927?

cesco.g

Agree in a way, whereas I am still debating if its the SFO-FRA or the SFO-HKG run ??

Did you find a pattern, whereas NC was available?
e.g. day of the week, days out ?

sjlin0121

Want to know how you did it +1

Thunderroad

Perhaps used expertflyer.com, which lets you check a week at a time, plus it's easy to "refine" (as they put it) your search so as to easily check other dates pretty quickly. Plus, not to sound like too much of a shill for the site, these searches indicate how many upgrades are available for any given flight.

Good question. I'd be curious about this too.

Robert N

I don't regard myself as an amazingly lucky or instinctively brilliant person. I do have some skills, but ...

In any event, I fly Australia - US - and often on to London a lot. I am 1k and about to break 1MM, admittedly this has been helped by a couple of hundred thousand miles I seem to have got from the recent rule changes, by most of my miles are this run and I do it a lot.

In the last 3 years I have failed to be upgraded (to business) once on London - San Francisco and failed once four years ago the other way.

Across the Pacific, I have failed once in the last four years.

Where I can I follow basic rules (avoid weekends, if possible fly to London out of Lax etc) however nothing I do not that is unreasonable to get the benefit of flying business class.

As to this benefit, I think it is pretty damn high. I have flown Singapore business a few times, and I would give a win on the quality of the product, but not by a long way. I think the UAL product is pretty damn good. Economy is rubbish, as I remember it, but as I said, I hardly ever fly it.

Right now I am stranded in London sick, and having had to move my flight home three times while I recover. On the original flight, and each of the changes I have made, upgrades have been confirmed for each sector of the flight home.

I think it is all pretty good and I am a fan of United.

There you are I have said it.

cesco.g

That is a pretty good record, Rob! ^
As to fares: What booking class do you typically book in?

CMK10

I flew PHX-SFO-IAD-GSO last weekend as a 1P on a K fare. I knew I'd never get SFO-IAD (it was a Sunday redeye A320) but I was very surprised to miss PHX-SFO. I wasn't even close (#8 out of over two dozen when boarding). I've never missed this route before so this was not the welcome back to 1P I was hoping for

kb1992

Here is my record:

Since 2006, I have taken about 60 flights to and from Asia: HKG/PVG/KIX/ICN/PEK.

About 55 upgrades have been requested. Only one failed to clear: ORD-HKG.

I booked XF ticket to HKG, paid a fee and canceled my revenue ticket.

I always have flexibility, and book far ahead, most of upgrades were cleared at booking. NC is indeed very hard to find these days.

Life is too short to suffer 15+ hours in horrible UA 747 Y.

cesco.g

Nice record, indeed. How far out is your booking typically?

goingbananas

Mine since 2001 to 2010 (all C to F):

around 120 flights to and from Asia: HKG/BKK/SIN/NRT, another 20% more (or so) to FRA/LHR/EZE/SYD

All cleared.

I have been hearing that C to F on some segments with SWU's are struggling to clear these days. Even GS on a J fare is missing out on the upgrades as well

kb1992

Typically, 10 months in advance to secure NC, or 2 weeks in advance to check the C cabin load before booking.

95% of time, upgrade is cleared at booking.

I am always willing to change dates, routings, even destination cities to find positive NC.

Tues/Wed/Thu are the best time to travel.

HKG is the most difficult, followed by PVG and NRT.

The key for my 54/55 upgrade success rate for trans-Pacific flights is flexibility.

By the way, when flying BOS-Europe I don't even bother to upgrade. Just buy the cheapest fare, and sit in exit Y seat.

cesco.g

Nice to have that time-flexibility.

Agree with HKG. Looking at your East Coast location, you probably have no experience on the SFO-FRA run?

bmvaughn

SEA-IAH tomorrow morning on a CO 753... 24 seats in F. I am 5th on the list as a 1K with 1 seat left. Only 7 upgrades out of the 23 that are booked into F.

cesco.g

So, all the others are revenue Fs?