This is the main V-Flyer Forum for general discussion of everything related to flying with Virgin-branded travel companies.
#948400 by gbjason
29 Jan 2019, 14:15
I just made Au -- and am very excited about that! Question for you fellow Au members: How often do you get upgraded (if ever) when flying VS? And is it generally the case that when you do get upgraded, it's just one class of travel (i.e. from Economy to PE, PE to UC only), or do you ever get an Economy to UC upgrade? Or do you never get upgraded at all? I'm asking specifically about revenue travel and not award flights if that makes a difference.
#948402 by sungod
29 Jan 2019, 21:18
if you mean an operational upgrade, not one for points/money, never, i've been AU for many many years, the most 'out of class' i've ever had is a couple of non-UC flights where i got a hello and a glass of bubbly, once in PE, once in EC

since VS changed their FF scheme and dropped yet another route i want to fly, i've moved more to the dark side, last year as a new BA bronze i got an op-up to business due to overbooking in EC

but if you want to use points for an upgrade at the airport, i'd say VS is way better than BA, i did many upgrades with VS this way, but never had BA availability
#948403 by Sealink
29 Jan 2019, 21:55
Never. They're too good at revenue management lol.

Did get a free UC ticket after a voluntary downgrade
#948404 by ILikeSoton
30 Jan 2019, 01:35
I'm in my 2nd year of consistent Gold and I was upgraded once. Original flight was canceled so they put us up in the palatial Radisson JFK overnight. Next morning there was only 60ish people on the plane so I asked about upgrading at the customer service desk, different than the check in desk, and the lady, who ever is in charge on the ground, gave me a complimentary upgrade. Very nice person. She stressed this is not normal and was a way to repay for the inconvenience of the previous night. I was on a PE ticket that cost my company about $4k (last minute booking) so I practically paid for a UC fare.

That said, on one flight I've been recognized as Gold by one FA but the FSM told me she had no record I had any status. Weird. I personally believe Delta FFs get treated better because they have more opportunities to upgrade (you'll probably run into a few of them in the revivals lounge). Lounge access when you're not in UC is the best thing about Gold.

Congrats and welcome!
#948405 by evanspa1
30 Jan 2019, 08:36
No, not for a very long time.

Around 2008-2009 I was flying to SFO every 2 to 3 weeks in PE. Had a 60% to 70% upgrade success to UC!

Zip however in the past 8 years. But I've had 3 upgrades on Delta from PE to F, albeit on short-haul

I have better success with my BA Gold Card
#948406 by tontybear
30 Jan 2019, 12:03
VS (like BA and many non US airlines) don't upgrade elites just because there is space available but because they have to such as an over booking in a lower cabin. BA WTP is apparently the sweet spot for over booking op-ups but you still need to be at the top of the pre determined list (it's all usually done by algorithm now so not down to fluttering your eyelashes at check in staff)

I don't want VS and BA to be like on US domestic flights where there is often a waiting list of elites to upgrade for free just because space is available. I've seen too many flyer talk threads about 'lost' or 'stolen' upgrades. The likesa of AA and DL have different rules on international flights though.

And when they have to op-up then the higher your status the more likely they will upgrade you but things like fare code and your history will come into it as well - had an op-up recently and they'll try and upgrade someone who hasn't. One of the reasons they select certain people to op-up is to try and get them to pay for a higher cabin in the future.

They are more likely to upgrade solo flyers (couples and families will want to sit together and they won't want to shift other people to accommodate this)

If you get an op-up then look at it as a reward rather than any sort of expectation.


Note for sungod - BA don't do on the day avios upgrades
#948415 by sungod
30 Jan 2019, 19:47
tontybear wrote:...
Note for sungod - BA don't do on the day avios upgrades

oh yes i get that

what i meant was that it's a definitive plus that VS do it - as long as you have an upgradable PE/EC ticket to start with
#948418 by ILikeSoton
31 Jan 2019, 01:07
tontybear wrote:I don't want VS and BA to be like on US domestic flights where there is often a waiting list of elites to upgrade for free just because space is available.

And when they have to op-up then the higher your status the more likely they will upgrade you but things like fare code and your history will come into it as well - had an op-up recently and they'll try and upgrade someone who hasn't. One of the reasons they select certain people to op-up is to try and get them to pay for a higher cabin in the future.


I wouldn't want VS to go after the American Airlines model of "how much have you spent with us lately " but if, to your comment, VS upgrade based on fare type is it really any different? They're rewarding the fact that you paid more for your ticket than the person next to you. The business traveler who stays faithful to Virgin but stays within company policy and flies on a X ticket may accumulate enough for Gold (though hard) but they have no more a chance of getting upgraded than the first time flier who bought a W ticket.

I don't mind the Delta model of an upgrade list because at least they're rewarding your frequent choice to fly with them. Which, as a business traveler, is not always easy. If Virgin copied anything from the other airlines, upgrade certificates would be a reasonable choice. If they gave Gold one or two certificates a year, place reasonable restrictions on their use then at least your most frequent flyers are being acknowledged a bit more. Especially since Delta FFs are using these same certificates on VS flights which are cannibalizing what little free upgrade room may even exist.

Not advocating something for nothing and I've looked at jumping to another carrier but I'm still here and expect to still be here come next year. I do appreciate Virgin's product I just wish they treated their FFs as well as they treat their partner's FFs (Delta).
#948419 by LREDI
31 Jan 2019, 04:30
Three times in the last year.

Twice from Premium to Upper
Once from Economy to Premium (including my companion ticket!!)

All on the DXB route due to overbooking. All flights in last year I’ve been recognised as AU, usually in Y and W it’s a glass of champagne and any little extras - I always ask for noise cancelling headphones from upper and a pillow.

You’ll also nearly always be moved in Y to an exit row (you can chose this anyway) or ELR for free in my experience.
#948421 by CommanderB
31 Jan 2019, 10:34
Op-Ups... about 6 or 7 times in my last membership year out of about 24 or so VS flights. I upgraded using miles probably another 6 times on the day at the airport as well during that time. Some of those mileage upgrades were on full/oversold flights, so would have almost certainly been Op-Ups for someone anyway, the way I see it is that me giving miles on the day just guaranteed me the seat rather than chancing the lottery.

Popular routes for Op-Ups - DXB, HKG and PVG. Usually on S or W Premium fares. Never on H or K. Op-Ups only ever come after Check in has closed.

As it's already been mentioned, I always viewed these as 'rewards' or just pure luck based on circumstances. Do not expect them, sometimes they come - often they do not.
#948423 by NV43
31 Jan 2019, 13:54
LAS - LGW as c ouple (both Ag) from PE to UC (last people to check-in)

LGW - LAS as a couple (both Au) from PE to UC

LHR - DXB as a couple (both Au) from PE to UC

DXB - LHR as a couple (both Au) from PE to UC

As stated above, Y and PE were to capacity and I guess overbooked with no no-shows.
#948435 by spacedog
01 Feb 2019, 01:18
I've been Au for five years and have only been upgraded once, in my first year. My OH was Ag at the time and we were both upgraded from PE to UC on the LHR > LAX route in mid summer because PE was oversold. I should add that we had used the credit card economy to PE vouchers, so for economy miles and PE taxes we got upper class flights... not bad :)

Our status is frequently recognised (about 80% of the time) when we fly in PE or UC (haven't flown VS economy in about 3 years).
#948436 by adjonline
01 Feb 2019, 03:53
My wife and I are both Gold. We were both upgraded to UC together with our three year old from K class PE last summer on a flight to LAX - I’ve had the odd upgrade from time to time when travelling alone, but I was utterly astonished to be upgraded as a family.
#948442 by goldflyer
01 Feb 2019, 12:25
I was upgraded from PE to upper in 2010. Flight to Barbados (return leg was booked Upper. I was Au ff at the time.
Booking to Dubai in March 2016 Upper out, premium return - was upgrade from premium to Upper at gate
Achieved lifetime Au Jan18. Have flown 5 times with VS; twice Upper return and three premium one way and Upper other way. Lucky enough to have been upgraded on all three. Two were return leg from Dubai and one was return from JFK.

Only two upgrades during 10 years of gold. Three upgrades since being lifetime gold from last year.
#948460 by SNOMO
02 Feb 2019, 16:13
As a once Silver member I was never upgraded, now as a humble Red member, as a single flyer, I was once upgraded to Upper! So all a matter of luck I guess. Been upgraded twice from BA economy to Business tho - again luck of the draw I guess :D
#948462 by enjoyingit
03 Feb 2019, 01:25
since VS changed their FF scheme and dropped yet another route i want to fly, i've moved more to the dark side, last year as a new BA bronze i got an op-up to business due to overbooking in EC

i also moved to the dark side after they cancelled the Tokyo Route. In 8 years i personally never got upgraded, but my children fared a lot better when flying to and from the UK for school. i guess their thought process was they were cheaper to upgrade because they wouldn't eat and drink as much?? Although my son did get offered champagne when he was 14 so sort of defeats the exercise. Of course he turned it down.......... :-D
#948555 by printguru
08 Feb 2019, 15:06
AU for 11 years, I'd say in that time about 8 from premium to upper, mostly on the LHR to SFO route and a couple to JFK. This hasn't happened in about 2 years however.
#948610 by honey lamb
10 Feb 2019, 21:45
As a lowly nothing I was upgraded from PE to UC on my first flight to the US to EWR in 2001. I had previously flown with VS on two previous occasions to JNB but in the absence of V-Flyer I was unaware of the benefits of being an FC member. :-O What had happened was that my son's seat was inoperative and so we had an onboard op-up. Aer John was 12 at the time and if he was going up, as far as the crew were concerned so was I. I also suspect the flight was oversold as a guy I had been talking to shortly after boarding told me at baggage reclaim that our seats were taken up by others.

After that I got sense and signed up for FC. Aer John couldn't originally as there was originally a lower age limit. It didn't make sense that I paid an adult fare for him but he couldn't claim miles. However the rules changed and we eventually attend Gold. During that time we flew in UC with mixed fortunes. We were rarely recognised in the initial years and even today he recalls how on a flight from DXB when he was within spitting distance of 18 , the cabin crew in UC went round and welcomed everyone on board but by-passed him and also passed over him when it came to meal selections.

To get back to the topic, I only flew PE once as Gold but didn't get upgraded. I had some superb flights as gold, often flying with cabin crew from earlier flights who remembered me. However circumstances changed and I rapidly dropped to a lowly Red - alas within a whisker when I would have achieved lifetime Gold. However, I have to say that on any flights I have taken with VS since then, the fact that I am a FC member has been acknowledged far more than when I was Gold.
#960743 by neonflyer
29 Jan 2023, 00:15
Thought I would revivify this thread to record a recent data point. I made it to Gold in spring 2022 after some transatlantic VS flights in a mix of economy and premium and several business returns to various destinations with Air France/KLM.

On my last LHR-JFK flight at the start of January, booked in Premium with points, I received an operational upgrade to Upper Class at the gate. As my original boarding pass was scanned I saw the screen flash up with 'not cleared to fly list - see supervisor'. I initially thought something was the matter, but I was swiftly handed a newly printed boarding pass in UC. I received tier points at the original premium rate.

I doubt it made any difference, but I hadn't checked in online and was probably one of the first to check-in at the counter, having arrived early to use the Clubhouse. I assume premium was full, or there was a technical problem with one of the seats, and as a solo flyer I was the easy choice to upgrade. Not sure if the status made any difference, but I was impressed to still receive an upgrade after buying the original seat with points.

It was a 787 so my first time in the old style UC cabin, in a window seat on the right hand side. Certainly felt rather exposed compared to most business products these days. Could have been nice and sociable for a day flight, but this was an evening departure with most people trying to sleep. Cabin crew were of course fantastic, even if the UC food was a little bland. Not that I'm one to look a gift horse in the mouth, but a bit of me was looking forward to trying premium in the 787 for its wider seats, having always flown the snug premium on A350s before.
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