ivoryboi

Hi all,

Does anybody know or have experience as to where a pax on a standard award (effective 'Y' class) is likely to fall into the pecking order for processing op-ups?

My niece is on an oversold flight in Y and I was wondering if she may be in with a fighting chance! Using my miles, she has no status.

Thanks all!

SEA1K4EVR

Op-ups are often done by status and fare paid although GA's have more leeway to do it as they please. Our own fastair says he chooses to op-up first by fare paid regardless of status... and a free ticket would not rank very high. But other GA's who do it may just go by the the way the system orders the list and it's just like upgrades..status then fare paid. A non status person on a free ticket will likely not get an op-up.

PVDProf

I suspect that they are not supposed to be upgraded at all, BUT the standard award shows as Y fare basis, and a GA who doesn't check the details of the ticket might op-up anyway. Mrs. PVDProf and I did receive an op-up SYD-LAX on a standard award, on tickets where she was GM and I didn't have my (then 2P) MP number on the PNR. It was my first op-up.

(I should note that our outbound featured the most serious Customer Service Problem I've had in my travels, and I've always thought of this as merely karmic balancing, though I don't know the agent didn't actively do this as a customer service gesture but then not tell us.)

jhayes_1780

IIRC, in OP-UP pecking order no status on an award would barely trump spouse/domestic partner traveling without thier sponsor.

But stranger things have happened.

kyushuman

My experience last Sunday:
LAX-DEN on 777 Int'l config.
Saver Award ticket (XY)
UA Silver, got Op-Up at J, on award ticket (!)
There must have been a LOT of non-Elite flyers on that plane, huh?

FlyinHawaiian

+1 has no UA status and was op-upped from XC to XF on a p.s. flight last year; go figure.

lax2010

Wow, luck you! award ticket op-up on a 3-class 777!

Was on one-way award ticket last Saturday. Flight looked pretty full thus was asking for possibility to get op-up but was told no for LAX-IAD on LAX-IAD-PHL route (32 standby with 21 seat avail on the big monitor). Didn't have patient to wait thus switched to non-stop LAX-PHL and took off in 10 minutes.

dsquared37

Last year on a saver C award was opup'ed to F JFK-SFO-ICN. Not sure what this says about the pecking order, but it is yet another data point.

chicagoprofit

I need to fly from SFO-CLE for the holidays. Using 25000 miles one way, I grabbed the last Y seat (Standard Award, SFO-ORD-CLE, morning departure, 763 3 Cabin). I couldn’t pick a seat assignment - every single seat was taken (its now showing F3 C6 Y0). That leads me to believe it will be oversold (seems like hub to hub UA flights are always very oversold around the holidays). Does a standard award (showing “Y” booking class) get me to the top of the op-up list in an oversold situation? Or is it not a true “full Y” since I used miles? Would all the people with paid tickets be above me in priority? (I also wouldn’t mind getting bumped and getting a nice travel voucher )

The other option for the same amount of miles is US Airways First Class - SFO-PHL-CLE (morning departure, a321). Normally I would just go for First but I am guessing that US Airways F is nothing to write home about? The US Airways option is 2-3 hours longer than UA.

Any thoughts? Thanks!

SEA1K4EVR

If this flight is currently outside the UDU window (ie more than 120 hours out) I would put an op-up out of your mind. If the flight is completely full including all of the E+ seats that means there are many elites on there and probably several with paid tickets who will be able to UDU into those C seats. An op-up is highly unlikely. A bump could be possible though, you never know.

WineCountryUA

should not

it is not paid Y, it will not earn miles

Yes the paid tickets will be higher priority for op-ups and amoung them status will be the first factor.

chicagoprofit

Thanks - that makes sense. Its 2 weeks away. So presumably all of the C and F would be gone by the time i got to the airport.

Any experience w/ US Airways First? How is it?

SEA1K4EVR

Well..the seat is similar to a UA F seat..definitely better than E+ in terms of comfort. Their soft product stinks though.. drinks in plastic cups, no in flight entertainment.. you will get a meal SFO-PHL though.

MatthewLAX

And the meal is pretty good--often better than UA's.

I would go with US...

chicagoprofit

thanks for the info!