Hi, Just read this thread, and have some questions regarding upgrades:

I am looking to take my 10 yo daughter to UK to see her grandma ( I moved to USA from UK 11 years ago), for first time since COVID.
I am findng it REALLY hard to find any PZ open spaces. Flying PBI to LHR. Here are my questions:

1. I can fly anytime in July, however 1st July would be ideal. Is there an easier way to find PZ space ( which is the only criteria I have for the flight ) other than having to search every day for every flight in July , from EWR, ORD, IAD and IAH to LHR. That is a LOT of searching every day to look up all 31 days in July for every flight option !
2. If say UA16 EWR-LHR ( the flight I always took pre covid ) shows people on waitlist, if PZ opens up, does it upgrade people on waitlist first? So basically , you would never see open PZ spaces AND people on a waitlist at the same time?
3. What if I book preferred flight , and am on waitlist, but say 5 days before flying , I find a flight either with PZ space, or an attractive flight ( low number on waitlist) , can I change my flight without penalty ? I am thinking of just booking on the flight I want and then changing it if another PZ flight opens up.
4. Is there anything as a 1k to increase chances of upgrade? For example is it still best to book R seats , so you at least have better seats guarenteed , plus more chance of clearing? Just not sure if it is worth paying $1500 instead of $1000 for something that might not clear anyway.

I just feel there is no point going out my way to be 1k anymore, if I cannot book PZ to LHR , then it is not worth the 6 segment domestic flights I take , instead of a direct flight, when flying domestic, just to use UA. It is exhausting !

many thanks !

It is possible UA could allocate seats to PZ and there could be a period of time lapse before upgrades run. It is this interval that sometime bookers spot and grab. Those on waitlist can sometimes see PZ open, call and ask to be given the upgrade, but there are reports of pushback on this nowadays, i.e. "we want the list to run in order". At that point, some on list have reported making a new reservation, upgrading immediately, and then cancelling original reservation. Might be harder with rising airfares.

So, yes - there could be a waitlist and bookable PZ availability simultaneously. Definitely something UA ought to fix, but hasn't for years. Maybe UA has reduced the problem on most flights by not providing any PZ until day of departure :)

Changing a flight 5 days before departure doesn't incur a change fee, but you'll be on hook for fare difference, which could be significant. Buying an O, A, or R fare (PremiumPlus) on an off-day (if there is one) could improve upgrade chances

No easier way - however, your odds are near at zero (I bet zero) for PZ available from hubs to LHR in July - which is a peak travel month to the UK.

I second the feedback to buy PremPlus (OAR fare codes). Even with that I have been expired on the waitlist for transcon. But those purple seats are a relatively soft landing.

Also try for Tuesday/Wednesday instead of weekends

​​​​for zombietooth example of OGG, that’s probably very high on the rule of WFBF. That route must be brutal in summers. The destination at least is usually worth it though!

Our strategy:on the 737-800 we buy the middle seat in row 21 …using miles. On the Hawaii flights it’s as good as the front, and no agonizing over loss of space.

Premier Platinum - i have been booking Y, B tickets since the beginning of the year and had one upgrade out of 16 flights so far. Red eyes, regional flights, hubs, all nothing. The one I did get was secured at booking ORD to TPA.
Usually my placement is in-between 5 and 10 but sometimes 10 to 20 if it is a hub to hub route.
I can say for a fact that getting the upgrade is harder now than it ever has been.

Do you think this is because if you have let say, 4 people in one PNR, and say PZ is 3, the "clearing" process gets stuck until another seat opens to clear the whole party. I think people were skipping ahead by calling and UA shut that down since it wasn't, "fair" to the party first in line.

No - the process skips the 4 (I believe).

If it does like you suggest, anyone booking in the interim could grab the 3 seats and everyone on list get hosed. A lot more PZ would probably be visible if that were the case.

From what I have observed, if it goes PZ1 and the top two are one PNR, it will just stay open and no one will clear. During that time, anyone farther down the list can un-apply/re-apply, or anyone making a new booking can clear. If no one does anything, it will just stay that way until the top PNR gets split or declines.

What does it mean when it says "PZ0(1)" not sure what the "1" means. thx

I can't even find any A or R fairs, making EWR to LHR $1800 in PremPlus. I think I should just right off my 460 Plus Points and just fly Prem with a better airline for less money.

Where do you see this?

If you are on the list, can you unapply / reapply all online and it works? Or do you have to call? (I read the part about agents refusing to 'force it' through but couldn't you also just say unapply and reapply to them then?)

(Yes, I'm 1K but I've never done this, sorry for the basic q! :) Only unapplied/canceled online and that was it..)

I posted here
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/33980648-post482.html
about my experience trying that once. Seemed like unapplying caused the system to wake up and clear some people. (And they were not me, because I'd just unapplied!)

But I don't know how routinely that would happen. Also even if it's consistent, depending upon the waitlist construction (who's on joint vs. solo PNRs), you might still be able to sneak ahead.

Maybe others have seen this, but first time I have. I have an SDF-ORD flight in June (empty in F so far) where it has listed me as CPU eligible, and offers a $99 F upgrade, but will not let me waitlist for PPs. I thought you could always waitlist for PPs if they allow you to buy up. It is bad enough when you throw PPs at every domestic flight just to try to use them up, but when they won't even let you....