Upgrade Question

Evening All,

Just a quick question, i have had before on other airlines but not sure on Virgin, Is it possible to obtain Operation Upgrades on flights.

I am a Single Traveler on VS27 18/1/16 and in the Bubble.

I know there is one seat left on UC and may or may not go before my travel date, do Virgin tend up do operation upgrades with single travelers as it's easier to upgrade to PE??

I would really like to sample UC but is it better for me to try the upgrade at the airport for a reduced cost or try for an operational upgrade?

I always travel smart business on flights so would love your advice?

Thanks
Craig

Evening All,

Just a quick question, i have had before on other airlines but not sure on Virgin, Is it possible to obtain Operation Upgrades on flights.

I am a Single Traveler on VS27 18/1/16 and in the Bubble.

I know there is one seat left on UC and may or may not go before my travel date, do Virgin tend up do operation upgrades with single travelers as it's easier to upgrade to PE??

I would really like to sample UC but is it better for me to try the upgrade at the airport for a reduced cost or try for an operational upgrade?

I always travel smart business on flights so would love your advice?

Thanks
Craig

It can happen Craig but I really wouldn't pin any hopes on it

From years reading this site for the experience of others, rather than my own experience, I think nk the mantra is "if you want to travel UC you need to pay for it in some way". There are many factors at play "on the day" such as the number of seats oversold in PE and Economy, your status in the flyer programme, the specific class of your ticket and the number of others willing to offer up cash or miles to get an upgrade.

One thing is for certain though, VS do not automatically fill unsold seats in UC with upgrades. We flew back from NYC on New Year's Eve on a flight that was full in Economy and Premium, but with half the UC cabin seats free.

Great Replies.

I am happy to pay to sample UC but how much will depend on my mood for the day of checkin

I am in PE and am in the flying club long with miles and cash to spend. I will never ask for a free upgrade but will ask the costs and get my options sorted before i make a choice.

I will give it whirl on Checkin

anyone have an idea on if there is a discount to upgrade from PE to UC on checkin?

Thanks
CC

An op-up is very much that - one needed for operational reasons e.g. PE is over booked and they need to move people up.

It is easier to upgrade single travellers that a couple or larger group but even then VS have a defined algorithm oh who gets it so a gold on a full fare would be ahead if a silver and so on. How you dress doesn't factor into it.

However VS does not do op-ups just because space is available. If you really want to be in UC then you need to pay the cash or use miles

VS have a fixed charge which is not open to negotiation. It will be at least £ 500 at the minimum and more likely even more.



If you check on manage your booking they do sometimes offer upgrades before the date of travel.

what fare code is your ticket? in PE you'll need a W or S ticket to do a points upgrade to UC (plus pay taxes), anything else will cost more (to effectively change the base ticket to an upgradeable one)

if you have a PE ticket from a travel agent it'll need to be W, otherwise they'll treat it as zero value when calculating how much extra you have to pay!

as others have said, unless they've oversold EC/PE the chances of simply being asked if you're 'willing' to take an op-up to UC are about zero

if you've got a ticket on a fare that's upgradeable, then you can ask to do a points upgrade at check-in (or anytime if you bought direct from VS and there's a G free)

if there's a free seat at check-in i think it they'll always do it, if you don't have an upgradeable ticket they won't do it for points unless you pay to change the ticket as well, fwiw i'm VS AU, i never experienced any extra leeway/flexibility as a result

pure cash upgrades are also possible, more flexible than with points, but they can be exorbitant, again it depends on your base ticket price/code

with EK you can do on-board points upgrades, with VS it's cash only and not great value from what others have said, plus you lose out on CH access and baggage benefits

if you intend trying a for a check-in upgrade, do a load check the night before, if it shows any free seats be at the airport for when the ticket desk opens, you won't be the only person trying

A friend was recently on a MAN-ATL flight (a route Virgin took over from Delta) & travelling in PE.

He had the pleasure of sitting next to an American passenger who had Diamond Medallion status in DL's frequent flyer scheme. Before departure, said passenger had summoned the FSM & told her that he was Diamond Medallion & could see empty seats in Upper Class - so he should be moved to one of these for free. The FSM politely advised the passenger that this does not happen as routine on Virgin Atlantic (as it does on some domestic US flights to people with FF status). Passenger muttered his thoughts on Virgin & was politely told that Delta fly to Altanta from the UK, if he prefers their upgrade policy. He must have rubbed the FSM up the wrong way as he did not get his meal choice either!

This is a big problem the big US carriers have - particularly on internal flights. The First fare can be anything up to 10x an Economy one - but when it's oversold down the back, FF members with status (of which there are loads in the USA) are all but guaranteed a bump forward to First if there is space available. Why pay a First fare - if you're paying - when you know there is a good chance of a free upgrade if Economy is oversold? The US carriers have effectively devalued their First Class product as many of their FF's with status know they will get it for free when on an Economy ticket.

So to the OP - if you want the upgrade to Upper Class, get to the airport early & offer cold hard cash or miles (or a combination of the two) and you may be lucky. Magic beeps at the boarding gate do happen, but they are rare.

A friend was recently on a MAN-ATL flight (a route Virgin took over from Delta) & travelling in PE.

He had the pleasure of sitting next to an American passenger who had Diamond Medallion status in DL's frequent flyer scheme. Before departure, said passenger had summoned the FSM & told her that he was Diamond Medallion & could see empty seats in Upper Class - so he should be moved to one of these for free. The FSM politely advised the passenger that this does not happen as routine on Virgin Atlantic (as it does on some domestic US flights to people with FF status). Passenger muttered his thoughts on Virgin & was politely told that Delta fly to Altanta from the UK, if he prefers their upgrade policy. He must have rubbed the FSM up the wrong way as he did not get his meal choice either!

also, if the price is a bit steep - I recall a thread recently where an upgrade was offered once boarded on the plane.
So may be worth making friendly with the FSM.

On another note... I have been on a flight where a gold status flyer got bumped from UC to PE.

With only 1 seat left I wouldnt really count on an op up. Economy doesnt look to busy on that date either.

Don't forget that staff might also be on the flight with upgrades to J... so chances are slim to nil I would say :(

Thank you very much indeed for the advice and comments.

Craig

I hate the way US airlines upgrade all and sundry into Domestic First, I took a United flight out of San Francisco the other day and First was full with almost 20 people still showing on the upgrade list. I was as happy as larry in an exit row Economy Plus seat on a 777 that cost me about $60 and I have no status with United at all - who needs first class especially when my next stop was going to be Hawaii First class was packed out and yet there were plenty of empty rows at the back of Economy as the FA's mentioned it during their safety briefing for those who wanted to stretch out in a seat or 3 for a sleep.

I agree that frequent flyers should be rewarded in some way, but just moving everyone automatically forward only devalues the original products worth in my humble opinion. If I want to sit up front I expect to pay in one way or another.

[honey lamb]

On a couple of occasions, (the first being when I was Silver and the second when I was Gold) I was upgraded from PE to UC using miles.

The first time was when I and my son were travelling from LAX to LHR on VS24 on K tickets booked through a travel agent as there was no such thing as on-line booking (nor V-Flyer to advise us). We were near the front of the queue for check-in and before it opened, an agent was looking for volunteers without onward connections to take another flight as they were seriously overbooked. Without the wisdom imparted by V-Flyer as to the rules and regulations imposed for upgrades, at check-in we asked if we could up-grade to UC. the only question we were asked was whether it was cash or miles and when we said the latter, there was no problem, no extra charge and before you could say "Richard Branson" we were in UC!

The second time was in IAD. I had checked in to PE but as Gold was entitled to use the CH there. On a whim I decided to ask if I could be upgraded. The only question I was asked was which seat would I like! I really don't know what the loads were like in the back of the bus that night but upgrading was no problem.

Don't forget that staff might also be on the flight with upgrades to J... so chances are slim to nil I would say :(

I can't answer for VS or for the length of service privileges they allow, but aren't staff on standby travel? On a recent flight with another airline, even with upgrades to J, the loads for the flight we were on, suddenly jumped overnight from minus 3 to plus 18 throwing our plans into jeopardy. We eventually got on the flight but there was an element of uncertainty for a time

Great Replies.

I am happy to pay to sample UC but how much will depend on my mood for the day of checkin

I am in PE and am in the flying club long with miles and cash to spend. I will never ask for a free upgrade but will ask the costs and get my options sorted before i make a choice.

I will give it whirl on Checkin

anyone have an idea on if there is a discount to upgrade from PE to UC on checkin?

Thanks
CC

I came back from Orlando a few years ago in PE
There was a seat available in Upper.
At the desk they wanted £900 for it.
As I said, I came back in PE
Dick D

I can't answer for VS or for the length of service privileges they allow, but aren't staff on standby travel?

It's more complicated than that - some staff travel is guaranteed in advance, some is standby. I believe seniority/length of service dictates which cabin those on standby are entitled to assuming space is available, and as staff have access to pax load information they can see which flights are likely to be quiet in UC and choose them accordingly. But there's a strict pecking order for staff travel so even those entitled to UC could find themselves in a jump seat if there's a sudden spurt of last minute ticket sales or airport upgrades.

If there's still availability in UC at check-in, paying passengers (whether upgrading with cash or miles) will get priority over staff.

I can't answer for VS or for the length of service privileges they allow, but aren't staff on standby travel?

My understanding is that VS employees get a number of return tickets each year (I won't say how many) once they qualify for staff travel (i.e. probationary period completed). All of these tickets are on a standby basis, but as Gumshoe says, they have access to an internal load checker so they can make educated guesses as to which flights are a good bet. After a certain length of service, staff are entitled to have two of their staff travel tickets as confirmed bookings, so they can make concrete plans for at least one trip each year.

As to where they sit on the plane - it all depends on seniority / length of service & where the empty seats are. Even a junior crew / staff member could end up in Upper Class if they are the only person on staff travel on the flight in question & there is an empty seat there. Again, as Gumshoe says, they can easily end up in Economy / on a jump-seat if ticket sales surge / paying passengers upgrade on the day. If the flight is full and a lot of staff are trying to travel, some will be left behind.

So whilst staff travel is a great perk & a very cheap way of travelling (they only pay the government / airport taxes), it is not without it's risks. To stand a good chance of travelling, they need to go off-peak. If they think they'll be able to use staff travel for a family holiday to Orlando in August, forget it, as the flights will be rammed full of paying customers. If they did get lucky, they would be on jump-seats for sure.

I have been a beneficiary to staff travel in the 80s my father worked for TWA then they transferred the routes and staff to AA .so I have been lucky to sit I all parts of aircraft .i memory serves me correct if I paid $400 it entitled to economy to first class and depending on which cabin I sat in I would get a refund for the cabins I could not get in.The downside was once my mum was in first my dad me and brother were in economy one of the ground staff who new my dad came on and told him we might have to get of due to the aircraft weight in the end we did stay on.on another note on an internal USA flight I did not pay for all the cabins only economy then there was an anoncment on the tannoy call my name dad had had a word as there were spare first class seats so I was upgraded for nothing