I have not flown on a one way ticket in over ten years, so I am not up to date on it. I am driving up with family for a cruise soon to SEA, but afterwords I am flying SEA-SFO on a one way ticket. I am lucky that the 24 hour point for my flight I am in Vancouver BC in an attempt to upgrade to first.

My question is after all that babble is: Can one call in upgrade or OLCI on a one way ticket, or is my guaranteed "SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS" ticket enough I must physically be at the counter prevent any chance to upgrade?

I wouldn't worry too much. The last timed I got SSSSed was circa 2004 and I've done plenty of one-way itins (including on VX) since then with no problem. Airlines have moved away from necessarily flagging one-ways and mainly flag selectees by cross-referencing government watch lists. Of course, there are tons of false positive matches, many of which have involved celebrities, politicians, etc. TSA is taking over the process with its Secure Flight program, and airlines will soon collect more personal data when you book a reservation starting in the coming months.

Anyway, I digress. There's plenty of discussion about this on the Safety & Security Forum. Yes, VX will process upgrades by phone if you can't check in online, but I'm not sure if they'll do so if the reason you can't check in is SSSS. You can always call and ask. Best of luck!

There is no such thing as the SSSS anymore for things like one-way tickets and whatnot. The TSA has finally removed that from their arsenal of ridiculous things that do nothing to secure anyone or anything.

Thank Goodness. I knew it was lame then, but no idea if it was still going on. I would like Vizzini in The Princess Bride. "INCONCEIVABLE!" if it all worked out as I wish.