Best Chances for NRT/HND to East Coast Business Class Upgrade?
Oct 27, 2014, 9:54 am
#16
Join Date: Aug 2002
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Oct 27, 2014, 12:11 pm
#17
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Washington, DC
Programs: UA 1K 1MM, AA, DL
Posts: 7,419
Chances are poor that a Saturday flight will show much upgrade availability, especially this far out. United (correctly) believes that it will be able to sell all of those seats, because Saturday is a rather popular day to fly to the US from Japan, after a week's worth of business is complete.
You probably know, but the seatmap doesn't have much to do with upgrade availability - United is happy to sell you one of the many open seats, but they're not going to do so for coach fare plus miles/upgrade just yet.
You probably know, but the seatmap doesn't have much to do with upgrade availability - United is happy to sell you one of the many open seats, but they're not going to do so for coach fare plus miles/upgrade just yet.
Oct 27, 2014, 12:27 pm
#18
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: DEN
Programs: UA Gold-MM, AA Gold-MM, F9-Silver, Hyatt Something, Marriott Gold, IHG Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,393
Chances are poor that a Saturday flight will show much upgrade availability, especially this far out. United (correctly) believes that it will be able to sell all of those seats, because Saturday is a rather popular day to fly to the US from Japan, after a week's worth of business is complete.
and will likely have a meeting on Friday in Tokyo...
Oct 27, 2014, 1:15 pm
#21
Join Date: Aug 2002
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Posts: 2,928
Oct 27, 2014, 1:28 pm
#22
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
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So you're in the waitlist and pray bucket. That's a tough spot; it's absolutely impossible to predict likelihood of clearing this far out.
SFO is generally the easiest upgrade, and the new HND flight is easier than the NRT flight. Tough call whether it's worth that rather awkward routing just for a chance at an upgrade though. Note that ex-NRT, the SDC onto a flight with open R can be a viable option, since there are so many flights departing within a relatively short window.
SFO is generally the easiest upgrade, and the new HND flight is easier than the NRT flight. Tough call whether it's worth that rather awkward routing just for a chance at an upgrade though. Note that ex-NRT, the SDC onto a flight with open R can be a viable option, since there are so many flights departing within a relatively short window.
Oct 27, 2014, 1:35 pm
#23
Join Date: Aug 2002
Programs: UA 1K & 1MM/AA Gold & 1MM/HH Gold/Marriott Titanium
Posts: 2,928
So you're in the waitlist and pray bucket. That's a tough spot; it's absolutely impossible to predict likelihood of clearing this far out.
SFO is generally the easiest upgrade, and the new HND flight is easier than the NRT flight. Tough call whether it's worth that rather awkward routing just for a chance at an upgrade though. Note that ex-NRT, the SDC onto a flight with open R can be a viable option, since there are so many flights departing within a relatively short window.
SFO is generally the easiest upgrade, and the new HND flight is easier than the NRT flight. Tough call whether it's worth that rather awkward routing just for a chance at an upgrade though. Note that ex-NRT, the SDC onto a flight with open R can be a viable option, since there are so many flights departing within a relatively short window.
Oct 27, 2014, 5:14 pm
#24
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: NYC / TYO / Up in the Air
Programs: UA GS 1.7MM, AA 2.1MM, EK, BA, SQ, CX, Marriot LT, Accor P
Posts: 6,318
Need to fly Tokyo-Washington, DC on a Saturday in late March. No HND/NRT flights show "R" availability as of now. Most of the flights have no seats selected in J or just 1 or 2. I see "P" availability up to 9 on some flights and "PN" availability as well. Any recommendations for easiest upgrade for a 1K? Thanks!
Oct 27, 2014, 5:41 pm
#25
Moderator, Omni, Omni/PR, Omni/Games, FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Between DCA and IAD
Programs: UA 1K MM; Hilton Diamond
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Apologies if you've already tried this, but you might search NRT-SFO, etc., individually. I have found that .bomb is bad about not showing the R inventory correctly for connecting flights; sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. If there's no SFO-IAD R inventory, for example, the SFO-NRT segment might not show its non-zero R.
Oct 27, 2014, 6:26 pm
#26
Join Date: Aug 2002
Programs: UA 1K & 1MM/AA Gold & 1MM/HH Gold/Marriott Titanium
Posts: 2,928
Apologies if you've already tried this, but you might search NRT-SFO, etc., individually. I have found that .bomb is bad about not showing the R inventory correctly for connecting flights; sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. If there's no SFO-IAD R inventory, for example, the SFO-NRT segment might not show its non-zero R.
Oct 27, 2014, 7:36 pm
#27
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: DEN
Programs: UA Gold-MM, AA Gold-MM, F9-Silver, Hyatt Something, Marriott Gold, IHG Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,393