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Does anyone have any real knowledge on the hierarchy of how upgrades are processed?
Some indicated that it went:
- Elite RU
- Elite E-APD
- Elite E-APD (when gifted to third parties)
- Gold RU
- Silver RU
- OneUp
Others thought:
- Elite RU
- ELITE E-APD
- Gold RU
- Silver RU
- Elite E-APD (when gifted to third parties)
- OneUp
Essentially I am interested in the hierarchy of an Elite Airpoints Dollar Upgrade when it has been gifted to me (a silver). Would I be better off using my own Silver RU or being gifted an E-APD from my partner, an Elite, when I am not flying with him?
When you are not flying with the elite I always thought it was assessed at your own tier level. It’s still a bargain if it goes through. But I’d probably use your own RU.
If you’re flying a popular route eg North America then chances sound slim.
My partner had Silver once and applied this long haul but I was flying with him and he was successful. Short haul he seems to get the A320s and he hasn’t flown long haul without me so I have no personal experience to share.
Where Elite APD upgrades fit into the picture is an unknown. Despite knowing a few people I’ve been unable to establish myself which of the two tables above is correct – it is safe to say however that apart from the Elite APD upgrade the table is correct.
At the end of the day any upgrade (unless it’s an Elite upgrade confirmed in advance with R or A class availability) is a bit of a lottery, especially to North America.
You can call it good luck but I’ve been incredibly lucky and have a 100% success record over the past 5-6 or so years with upgrades which have consisted of Silver, Gold and Elite RU’s + Elite APD upgrades and a couple of OneUp’s when I was Silver. I must be sitting somewhere around 20 upgrades in a row that have all cleared which I’m sure is some sort of record!
As an Elite I’ve tended to be a little flexible and change dates based around R/A availability if I’m booking quite some time out so I can have some certainty.
I had no luck on my last 2 flights to/from the U.S. as an Elite using AirPoints Dollars to try upgrading from Premium Economy to Business. I guess they’d just like everyone to book every trip in Business Class, and it seems plenty of people are doing so.
I must be sitting somewhere around 20 upgrades in a row that have all cleared which I’m sure is some sort of record! As an Elite I’ve tended to be a little flexible and change dates based around R/A availability if I’m booking quite some time out so I can have some certainty.
Chasing R/A availability has to have something to do with clearing that many upgrades!
I had no luck on my last 2 flights to/from the U.S. as an Elite using AirPoints Dollars to try upgrading from Premium Economy to Business. I guess they’d just like everyone to book every trip in Business Class, and it seems plenty of people are doing so.
I’ve come to the conclusion if there’s a sale fare on ex Australia on NZ then I’ll be flying backwards to fly forwards. At AUD $4100 J return I think it’s worth it for that long haul comfort. Pain in the back side though.
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