FA given upgrade over CPU?
 

I'm not even sure if I should post this...or if it's been discussed before.

Purchased a pricey M-class, domestic fare out of IAH to destination XXX. Forgot to put in for a RPU, because I was more focused on work.
Departure comes around and I'm 2nd on the list for a CPU. Boarded plane and eventually GA comes through and asks for #1 on the list who, somehow, isn't in his seat or around. GA gives the upgrade to an FA, doesn't even consider 2nd or 3rd on the list.

Now I wasn't all butt-hurt or anything, but given my yearly spend, status, and the $$$$ I spent on the fare, kinda thought it'd be a nice gesture...but I didn't dwell on it.
Turns out there was a GS behind me and more than a few other premier members upset over it.



So...is this something that should be mentioned to UA? (Posted??!)
It was CO staff on board and GA, so...


What say the wise ones here? First time I've ever seen this in 15 years.

yes send an email to 1KVoice but the documented record may a different outcome. My guess the GA wanted to get the flight out ad not take the effort to drill down to the next person. And helping a fellow employee was the easy fast solution.The general term for this is "shenanigans."

GAs are only human, often underpaid, and make mistakes... if I were you I'd complain but this story doesn't surprise me in the slightest... the GS probably should have gotten it though

On an M class ticket, surprised you weren't upgraded at time of booking.

Agreed here. I think it'd be a bigger issue if the GA just skipped over the list entirely. But if they went down to upgrade #1 on the list into the last seat, it's unlikely they had the information with them for #2 and so on, because they weren't expecting to need it with only one seat left. So once they couldn't find that person, it likely wasn't worth the additional time needed to go back up, get the list, see where the next person was seated, walk back down, tell that person, have them move their stuff, etc. Especially if it was getting too close to departure time. All things considered, particularly it being a short domestic flight, I don't think it's a huge issue worth making a real fuss about.

No PN at booking? but probably existed at check-in and that may have been a missed opportunity.

Thank you for the replies. I find it extremely difficult to complain about not getting a CPU. Mostly just wanted to know if this was common at all as I've never seen it...guess I know now.

Cheers!

Don't worry, the other 99% of members here have you covered there. :D

friends&family always trumps overentitled elites on UA

Nice! Expectation is that your CPU rate should be 99.44/100 unless you are an UGS out of SFO.

+1 - I bet this is exactly what happened. Is it right - No, its not - but I understand them wanting to get the plane out on time. When a company sets up an incentive structure that puts them at odds with customer service things like this will happen...

A 1K on an M fare should have trumped a CPU in any event.

But, the fact is that once you board, you have lost your place on the UG list unless you have made specific arrangements w. the GA and the GA has specifically agreed to come find you if you make it.

What you saw here isn't likely shennanigans, but rather exactly why it is a bad idea -- other than for the pax who misses the UG -- to disrupt the boarding process for UG's. Messing around finding people on a list as the clock ticks down is exactly what delays flights.

This is one where, had OP waited at the gate because F had not boarded full, he would have been standing there when the seat came open (and presumably #1 had boarded or not and lost his slot).

Really? I don't think so - the GA boarded the plane to look for #1 on the list and didn't find him/her. It sounds like (and this is my assumption) the GA stayed on board and upgraded the FA. That means the OP would have been left standing at the podium with F full and potentially no luggage space when he/she finally boarded.

Fix the system, not the customer!

You have no idea what you're talking about.

what flight was it?

Oh, that's how it works!!! You remain outside while the GA goes on the plane looking for #1 on the list, and picks a FA to move up because #1 & #2 are nowhere to be found, then shutting the door so that the plane can leave on time..

Or is it that being a 1K allows a guy to have someone take his carry-on stuff and put it in the overhead for him while he remains in the "Wait Here-Just In Case Special Line" located 13.5' north of the group #1 boarding chute.

Never knew that there was some sort of a prearranged deal to be made. That is soooooo cool!!!

Btw, how many people are allowed to go up to the podium and get the secret subliminal "Hang Loose" agreement???:confused:

+1 :)

The new Carlson Airline!

I really appreciate it when I see GA's on board not just with one name/BP, but with the whole upgrade list, and possibly with a radio to communicate back to the gate podium. This technique assures that even if #1 isn't there/doesn't want the upgrade that the rest of the list is adhered to.

It is my understanding, the standard procedure (not always followed) is for GA to come on-board and provide new seat assignments. No requirement (maybe a good idea) to make specific arrangements with GA. Have never hear of "once you board, you have lost your place on the UG list." Do you have different information?

I was on a flight last year going from EWR to SFO. There was one empty seat and I was #1 on the list. I was waiting for them to upgrade me but they didn't because we were 1 hr late. They just closed the doors and that was it. I was pretty ticked off but I just got over it.

I would, on a six-hour TCON, have raised it over and over again with 1Kvoice.

Non rev taking precedence is nothing new on UA, and quite prevelant.

Your understanding matches my experience, having received an upgrade while seated in E+ several times. Further, one time I was seated in an exit row with a companion and when the GA came to upgrade me, I declined, and she consulted her list for the next in line (clearly surprised I declined, and I have no idea if a new boarding pass was issued!).

I have never made specific arrangements with a GA prior to boarding.

while in over a decade have truly never seen this, i did experience this last year in DEN. There were 4 open seats at dep time in First.

when Mrs CALMSP and I were cleared in coach, I asked the gate agent to put us in the empty bulkhead, which she did.

After we were on board, gate agent handed the flight attendant a piece of paper, which she then came to me and the Mrs, and my parents and said you can have the 4 open seats in first. However, we were not first on the list, and the 2 people ahead of us were right behind me. So I gave the 2 seats to my parents and said that the gentleman and his wife behind me (revenue) were actually ahead of us. However, the flight attendant did not move them as she wasn't sure who they were. So the two seats in first ended up leaving empty.

I felt embarrassed to say the least that the normal clearing of standbys and upgrades was not done at the appropriate time at the gate which would elminate any last minute runarounds.

And this is really the crux of the issue. I'm in full support of UA trying to sell a certain number of F seats for as long as they can, that's their right. And I also understand that there are sometimes last-minute no shows that open up a F seat, as I've been one of those no-shows before.

But it seems there should be some type of policy around when the F upsells stop, and CPU's at the gate are cleared. Perhaps at 45 minutes prior to the posted takeoff time? That would at least coincide with the bag check cutoff at most or all airports. Of course, maybe there is, and its just a matter of the GA's following policy or having the time to do it. And certainly GA's aren't even at the gate 45 mins before in most cases.

I think most of us on here would love to see something like that, or publish it if that's already the case.


Most cases? Unless it's a RJ I can count on one hand the number of times a GA hasn't been there by T-55 min.

You're probably right, I fly a lot of RJ's unfortunately.

Gosh, I don't know where to start - but everything here is untrue.

OP: why didn't you say something to the GA if you saw this happening? You missed the upgrade because the GA was lazy and didn't want to bother, but you should have hit your call button or spoken up if she was nearby and told her you were next on the list and she needs to clear the list.

I'm pretty sure that an employee flying on a positive space seat (must ride) gets the upgrade before a CPU... Might not be any funny business...

That's not what happened here.

wouldn't that be a fun situation... person A is informed they get the upgrade and takes their seat in F. person B complains and the GA informs person A that they must go back to Y so person B can have that seat...if it were to happen... extremely awkward situation :)

I saw something similar happen on a flight once. GA came on to upgrade someone into the last first class seat because there was a no show. She went to the right row, but asked the person in the wrong seat. The person she asked seemed confused as to why they were being upgraded, but didn't question it and got up and got their stuff before the GA realized her mistake and asked the person next to them. Made for a bit of an awkward situation, but at least the pax who got bamboozled ended up with an entire row of E+ to themselves as their seatmate vacated to first. And at least it was corrected before they actually got to the seat and settled in.

I'd prefer they not clear the last seat (or several) until boarding is complete, if those seats are booked but not checked in, until they fix some issues with their PSS. Since 3/3 I've had a couple boardings where I was told I was not checked in when I scanned my BP at the gate and I wouldn't want to introduce another way to lose confirmed upgrades over IT glitches.

if they did their jobs the right way then they wouldn't have to deal with this "fun situation" at all.

i had it happen to me at ABQ one time -- GA calls me up to give me the upgrade, prints out the boarding pass and realizes that it doesn't have my name on it but someone else's. not as awkward as it going on within the tube, but same concept, and i lived through it and really didn't upset me that much. GA profusely apologized and asked the FAs to give me free drinks in coach (this was pre-3/3). with the huge snowstorm blowing into IAD, i would have taken a seat in the cargo hold to avoid being stuck in ABQ.

Not my problem...and I've been on the receiving end of the short side of the stick on a couple occasions when I had to move back for the "rightful owner" of the seat. I'd rather be aggressive about securing my seat immediately when the mobile app shows me upgraded and risk going back vs sitting there quietly and missing out on an upgraded I should have cleared into.

The one time, many years ago PMCO, when I did remain quiet and failed to speak out aggressively, I ended up screwing myself and 3 other people on the list when a GA came on board and moved a father and his mentally challenged son up and ignored the remaining passengers on the list - and F went out with one empty seat to boot.

I won't be doing that again - every time I smell shenanigans or laziness, I will be punching the call button or offering a loud "excuse me" in order to clear up any "misunderstanding".

pilots are confirmed in First Class. As for other employees on company business, they are booked in coach and behind revenue passengers waiting for complimentary upgrades.

I had a slightly odd variant of this last night.

2-class 763 swapped for 3-class 763. First not for sale as I asked at the lounge when I got my new seat.

At the gate employee +3 family members (they were listed on both the standby and the upgrade to Business lists), asks Gate Agent about First. Agent says they are not selling it, and the system shows no availability to sell - zero'ed out.

Passenger explains she knows how to do that - goes around the desk, taps the computer and 5 minutes later she has four F boarding passes.

She, her husband and her two teenage kids enjoyed their seats in F whilst the other passengers were squeezed in to the tiny seats on the 3-class 763.

Did you see whether you were 'upgraded' after you landed? I've had two occasions this year where there were empty seats in F, space showing on the app and an unprocessed upgrade list when we pushed back, but by the time we landed the app showed F as full. 1k voice were of course useless as by their records F went out full.

I disagree with the assertion that upgrading a few passengers who have already boarded causes flight delays. PMNW always managed to do this without any problems, although sometimes the person being upgraded was asked not to move bags in the overhead bin until at least the flight was up in the air with the seat belt sign off.