Ruby Rose upgraded as a friend of staff.

[djfuzz]

By someone seeing her in the lounge she would've had a confirmed ticket, staff travel does not allow people to enter the lounge (no matter what class of travel is confirmed)

Unless she was the guest of a WP (though she did seem to be there alone).

Aren't WPs indicating a willingness to pay for the upgrade when they ask for a points upgrade? I think the situation that was hinted was that the WP upgrade is turned down but staff do get upgraded. I would question staff getting an upgrade over a customer who is willing to pay for it with their hard earned points that are the basis of all the profits that the frequent flyer program are making for qantas.

Necessarily two different things. WPs are first in lines for opups and any points upgrade seats available. The latter are limited by lottery presumably to protect yield, so that WPs don't buy cheaper fares and think they can always use points to upgrade (not saying I agree, but that seems to be the way it is). Of course with ASAs and Points plus pay fares there are now alternate ways of ensuring an upgraded seat.

On the other hand, as non-rev you may be entitled to an upgradable fare on a space available basis, which is a different pool of seats to the subset of seats available for points upgrades. If the latter pool has been exhausted, and there are no opups, then non-revs entitled to those seats may be accommodated (but that's not determined until the flight's about to leave, and frequently there are none available for them).

Having had some exposure to both, I think it's probably fair to say the grass always appears greener on the other side.

 

[serfty]

Moved some off topic comment to its very own thread:

• http://www.australianfrequentflyer....age/aa-upgrades-and-bankruptcy-not-25737.html