I am a long standing sillver FF and Qantas Club member flying Qantas internationally and domestically (on a variety of fares) each year, and since Ansett's demise, I have had ONE upgrade, it was on a domestic MEL-SYD flight just after Christmas. when I'm assuming there were lots of people with no FF status in the economy cabin, and very few platinum/gold members.
The 'science' of op-up?
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From my limited experience, the flight has to be full, and then some logic is applied to determine who gets the upgrade. I suspect the logic has also changed over time, and what applied a few years ago may not apply now.
I am guessing the algorithm has two passes: 1. select who'd get op-up'ed, and then 2. allocate the seats.
The selection obviously largely depends on status, and I think the fare class plays a very minor role. A few times me & wife were on Red E-Deals but still get op-up'ed. (both WPs). I agree there are various factors to calculate your value to QF and I suspect one of them _is_ the company you work for. Wife's got both WP and paid QC under her company's name and she gets op-up'ed like 50% of the time. (then again she also travels 3-4 times a month).
The allocation of seats seems to be dependent on the order of when you check-in - i.e. first come first serve. We've managed to get 1A/1B once when we got to the airport early (like 4 hours early - not intentional though).
Hope this helps.
I am guessing the algorithm has two passes: 1. select who'd get op-up'ed, and then 2. allocate the seats.
The selection obviously largely depends on status, and I think the fare class plays a very minor role. A few times me & wife were on Red E-Deals but still get op-up'ed. (both WPs). I agree there are various factors to calculate your value to QF and I suspect one of them _is_ the company you work for. Wife's got both WP and paid QC under her company's name and she gets op-up'ed like 50% of the time. (then again she also travels 3-4 times a month).
The allocation of seats seems to be dependent on the order of when you check-in - i.e. first come first serve. We've managed to get 1A/1B once when we got to the airport early (like 4 hours early - not intentional though).
Hope this helps.
My partner and I have been Qantas members for some years, but are lucky if we fly with Qantas once a year. Our status is Bronze and we primarily acculumate QFF points through CC spends - we have more than enough QFF for a RTW ticket.
We booked cheap flights to NYC in March this year with a stop over in LA on the way back. On our rtn flight from LAX, we checked in early, politely enquired about the seat we were allocated (we thought we had different seats) and asked if they could be changed. The alternative was just as bad as the cabin was full and there were people at another counter further along buying tix for our flight.
When we went to board our passes beeped twice and to our delight we found that we'd been upgraded to Premium Economy. I've never had a flight upgrade previously, tho' my partner has on a full domestic flight.
Thank you Qantas - it was very much appreciated !!!
We booked cheap flights to NYC in March this year with a stop over in LA on the way back. On our rtn flight from LAX, we checked in early, politely enquired about the seat we were allocated (we thought we had different seats) and asked if they could be changed. The alternative was just as bad as the cabin was full and there were people at another counter further along buying tix for our flight.
When we went to board our passes beeped twice and to our delight we found that we'd been upgraded to Premium Economy. I've never had a flight upgrade previously, tho' my partner has on a full domestic flight.
Thank you Qantas - it was very much appreciated !!!
ozbeachbabe
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Similarly to the saying dress for the job you want not the one you have, dress as though you're travelling in business class so you look the part. I've seen backpackers ask for (but not get) an upgrade at checkin when they looked like they've slept in the same clothes for a week. Another bloke who fit the description of a roadie - black jeans, runners, Metallica T-shirt, beard plus long scraggy wet hair or may have just been oily.
It sounds snobby but the airline would like to maintain the integrity of the business class cabin ie they at least want people that get op-ups to look like they have paid for J class.
I'm sure the last thing you'd want to hear if you'd either paid for a J class ticket or used valuable points to upgrade would be to overhear someone loudly bragging about their free upgrade to business class.
Also if you're travelling with young children I think your chances are pretty slim. Similarly if you have a special meal request they don't usually upgrade you unless there's sufficient time to order the equivalent special meal in the higher class of travel.
If travelling with other people in the same booking not all of may get upgraded as they'd just be looking at the tier status of individuals eg if you had one FFPL and three FFBR on the one booking the FFPL may be upgraded but the next upgrade would normally go to the next person down the list in order of hierarchy even if the group of 4 was the one family.
It sounds snobby but the airline would like to maintain the integrity of the business class cabin ie they at least want people that get op-ups to look like they have paid for J class.
I'm sure the last thing you'd want to hear if you'd either paid for a J class ticket or used valuable points to upgrade would be to overhear someone loudly bragging about their free upgrade to business class.
Also if you're travelling with young children I think your chances are pretty slim. Similarly if you have a special meal request they don't usually upgrade you unless there's sufficient time to order the equivalent special meal in the higher class of travel.
If travelling with other people in the same booking not all of may get upgraded as they'd just be looking at the tier status of individuals eg if you had one FFPL and three FFBR on the one booking the FFPL may be upgraded but the next upgrade would normally go to the next person down the list in order of hierarchy even if the group of 4 was the one family.
thewinchester
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Well I'm shocked, a little post I started got featured in a front page article. Props to all the people thus far who've contributed to answering the original question.
If only this was true. My previous trip report on the PER-MEL sector puts that suggestion to bed. Banjo's anyone
This does depend on who is processing the upgrades, and when the upgrades are required to be determined.
For example, sometimes i am more than happy to travel in casual jeans, t-shirt and ancient shoes with small holes where (allegedly) some scientist once dug for relics! -- yet get upgraded.
Why do I get upgraded? Someone in the back-office looked at the manifest etc and identified a single Qantas Emerald passenger who ranks highly on their upgrade radar!
I'm sure at times, the same dress style wouldn't warrant an upgrade in the same circumstances if the Check-in-person was in charge of allocating it.
Some airlines tag bookings with codes like "NSFU" or "SFU" ([Not] Suitable For Upgrade), so those in back-offices can make better decisions. But I've never experienced it with Qantas. (BA - well that's another story!)
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reflector
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I'm a QP Bronze member and although i fly only a few times a year, I've had a few op-ups, one on BNE-SYD when travelling with a friend (we both got bumped up but only a 1 hr flight) and SYD-LAX (now THAT was a good day)
I generally wear jeans, a fashionable white tshirt and a suit jacket when i fly so maybe that "hip, classy look" has something to do with it?
Also...flirting with the check-in staff at BA works wonders...
I generally wear jeans, a fashionable white tshirt and a suit jacket when i fly so maybe that "hip, classy look" has something to do with it?
Also...flirting with the check-in staff at BA works wonders...
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See post #8 of this thread or search the web for the terms "Proactive Onload" and "Altea".
If only this was true. My previous trip report on the PER-MEL sector puts that suggestion to bed. Banjo's anyone
Have done this sector in J many times, and can't say i've ever seen 'banjos' in there in any abundance. The QP at Perth though... I'm surprised there aren't two rocker chairs at the top of the escalators
I've received 4 op-ups this year. One was after take-off on a PER/MEL redeye 
(2 broken seats further back, and I had a seat blocked next to me on an otherwise full plane), the others have all been at the gate.
Mrs Rezzadogs is also a long term WP, and has had close to 10 op-ups this year. We generally book red-e flights domestically, and use OLCI. We also mostly fly on weekends, but at times that coincide with international connections. Quite often we don't have anything more than carry on luggage, so we flash BP's rather than get scanned at QC. Although we generally only get op-ups when travelling separately. As a couple we've only had one joint op-up in over 10 years.
Most common sector for us to get them is SYD/MEL, but I did manage to get a ADL/BNE a few hours after a SIN/ADL flight.
(2 broken seats further back, and I had a seat blocked next to me on an otherwise full plane), the others have all been at the gate.Mrs Rezzadogs is also a long term WP, and has had close to 10 op-ups this year. We generally book red-e flights domestically, and use OLCI. We also mostly fly on weekends, but at times that coincide with international connections. Quite often we don't have anything more than carry on luggage, so we flash BP's rather than get scanned at QC. Although we generally only get op-ups when travelling separately. As a couple we've only had one joint op-up in over 10 years.
Most common sector for us to get them is SYD/MEL, but I did manage to get a ADL/BNE a few hours after a SIN/ADL flight.
simongr
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No upgrades still here...
Mind you I always try to do a points upgrade to J on DOM sectors on the way home so I guess I either get a points UG or there are no seats and thus no chance of a free UG.
I disagree with the dress code in J comments. If upgraded today I will be in cargo trousers and a polo shirt - no suits on a Friday...
Mind you I always try to do a points upgrade to J on DOM sectors on the way home so I guess I either get a points UG or there are no seats and thus no chance of a free UG.
I disagree with the dress code in J comments. If upgraded today I will be in cargo trousers and a polo shirt - no suits on a Friday...
My 2 cents worth...
I have been lucky enough to have 4 OPUPs this year...all in the last few months. 3 have been on international services (USA) and 1 on a BNEMEL domestic flight that was oversold. In fact, I'd guess that all my OPUPs are because of oversell.
I'm not convinced that what you wear or how many people you travel with determines anything. With the exception of the domestic upgrade (which I got at the gate), all upgrades I received occurred on cheap O fares when travelling with my partner (who is bronze). We both got OP'ed UP twice to PE with Skybeds from Y and once from PE to Business. In all cases, the OP UPs were decided well before I arrived at checkin. In one case (14 Nov), we checked in online and printed boarding passes, only to be given new BPs when checking our baggage. Our seating allocation changed on E/F overnight - so I suspected an OP UP and this was confirmed.
On the other 2 occassions we were in shirts and shorts and again the issue of the upgrade was very matter of fact suggesting that it had been done in the background not by the check-in operator. I think this is consistent with QF overall methodology - why would you leave an upgrade to the whim of a check-in operator when you know that you will need to upgrade people? Surely you would rather reward your loyal customers (high FF's) rather than a one off flyer. I know it has kept me flying with QF!!
I have been lucky enough to have 4 OPUPs this year...all in the last few months. 3 have been on international services (USA) and 1 on a BNEMEL domestic flight that was oversold. In fact, I'd guess that all my OPUPs are because of oversell.
I'm not convinced that what you wear or how many people you travel with determines anything. With the exception of the domestic upgrade (which I got at the gate), all upgrades I received occurred on cheap O fares when travelling with my partner (who is bronze). We both got OP'ed UP twice to PE with Skybeds from Y and once from PE to Business. In all cases, the OP UPs were decided well before I arrived at checkin. In one case (14 Nov), we checked in online and printed boarding passes, only to be given new BPs when checking our baggage. Our seating allocation changed on E/F overnight - so I suspected an OP UP and this was confirmed.
On the other 2 occassions we were in shirts and shorts and again the issue of the upgrade was very matter of fact suggesting that it had been done in the background not by the check-in operator. I think this is consistent with QF overall methodology - why would you leave an upgrade to the whim of a check-in operator when you know that you will need to upgrade people? Surely you would rather reward your loyal customers (high FF's) rather than a one off flyer. I know it has kept me flying with QF!!
cmon0005
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Recently I tried a theory to see whether fare class alone would help towards an OP-UP. and failed...
I am a QP NB, so status wise nothing special. I am almost at Silver level in next 1-2 months.
On my flight MEL-SIN and SIN-BOM I was on red e-deal fare, flight was mostly full except for about 10 seats, however I was allocated Bulkhead front of Y seats, and no-one next to me.
On the return BOM-SIN and SIN-MEL, the SIN-MEL leg was pretty much full in Y. I booked a Super Saver (higher fare class), and was given a really coughpy seat with 2 pax next to me, made for a uncomfortable flight.
So no OP-UPs in the end...
I am traveling to SIN again in late Jan except this time I will be buying a Y+ PE ticket. So here's hoping for a upgrade to Skybed
(by then I should be QP + silver and on my way to Gold!)
I am a QP NB, so status wise nothing special. I am almost at Silver level in next 1-2 months.
On my flight MEL-SIN and SIN-BOM I was on red e-deal fare, flight was mostly full except for about 10 seats, however I was allocated Bulkhead front of Y seats, and no-one next to me.
On the return BOM-SIN and SIN-MEL, the SIN-MEL leg was pretty much full in Y. I booked a Super Saver (higher fare class), and was given a really coughpy seat with 2 pax next to me, made for a uncomfortable flight.
So no OP-UPs in the end...
I am traveling to SIN again in late Jan except this time I will be buying a Y+ PE ticket. So here's hoping for a upgrade to Skybed
(by then I should be QP + silver and on my way to Gold!)Kelstarama
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Guess I'm one of the lucky ones...
I'm a Bronze FF and member of Qantas Club. Last year a friend and I had booked in Y class to fly SYD-JNB. Someone from Qantas called me 3 days before my flight to ask if I would "have any objections to being upgraded". It took a millisecond for me to say that would be fine but that I was travelling with a friend. She was also upgraded. The Qantas rep even apologised for not being able to upgrade us on our MEL-SYD flight! I have no expectations of it ever happening again but will be very happy if it does
I'm a Bronze FF and member of Qantas Club. Last year a friend and I had booked in Y class to fly SYD-JNB. Someone from Qantas called me 3 days before my flight to ask if I would "have any objections to being upgraded". It took a millisecond for me to say that would be fine but that I was travelling with a friend. She was also upgraded. The Qantas rep even apologised for not being able to upgrade us on our MEL-SYD flight! I have no expectations of it ever happening again but will be very happy if it does
Simon, what's a points upgrade and how did you get them? Would we be eligible to get them for our upgraded flight?
Re the dress standard, some years ago I may have agreed that dressing the part helped, but on our flight back to SYD from LAX in Oct this yr, lots of people got upgrades and none of them were "dressed the part", different age groups etc etc.
How do I know they got upgraded? Because they all came away happy from the gate counter and at the time I said to my partner "they all got upgrades - they are all smiling!" I didn't hear our names called out which is why I didn't discover the upgrade until they gave us new boarding passes at the gate.
ejb
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bossreggie
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OK.
I'm QFF Gold. The last several times I've flown I have booked J for myself and Red E Deals for my partner. EVERY time my partner has been upgraded either in the lounge or at the gate. This has been. MEL - SYD or MEL - AKL and MEL - LAX. I must say if the upgrade had not happened I would have paid! PM me if you want some extra tips NOT for public broadcast.
I'm QFF Gold. The last several times I've flown I have booked J for myself and Red E Deals for my partner. EVERY time my partner has been upgraded either in the lounge or at the gate. This has been. MEL - SYD or MEL - AKL and MEL - LAX. I must say if the upgrade had not happened I would have paid! PM me if you want some extra tips NOT for public broadcast.
harvyk
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I've had 2 op-ups in the last couple of months, both from SYD-SFO... Both on red-e-deals (on return I was offered a point upgrade a couple of days prior).
I'm a PS + QP, so I am some value to QF, but not a great deal in the scheme of things. Also yet to actually travel on anything above sale \ red-e-deal or super saver.
Also I don't dress up to fly (you may see me on short haul trips in a suit, but oftan I have a change of clothes with me so I can wear jeans + T-shirt on the way home)
I'm a PS + QP, so I am some value to QF, but not a great deal in the scheme of things. Also yet to actually travel on anything above sale \ red-e-deal or super saver.
Also I don't dress up to fly (you may see me on short haul trips in a suit, but oftan I have a change of clothes with me so I can wear jeans + T-shirt on the way home)
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