Is that upgrade space confirmable? How to tell before you call the airline

Overview

Upgrade certificates are one of the most exciting airline perks in the travel loyalty world. They can turn an otherwise bland coach flight into a luxury event that’s worth looking forward to.

However, upgrade certificates typically come with some fine print. Redeeming them requires more than just an empty seat in the next cabin. For example, the airline must release inventory in a particular fare class, and the fare class of your current ticket must be upgrade-eligible. In some cases, you may need to be within a specific clearance window.

All to say, there are several things to consider before you get too excited about using your upgrade cert.

In some cases, you can book your upgrade online, while in other cases, you may have to call the airline. For example:

• You can redeem American Airlines Systemwide Upgrades online for eligible AA-operated flights with just a few clicks.
• You can redeem American Airlines Systemwide Upgrades for eligible British Airways-operated flights, but you’ll have to call American Airlines to get it done.

For many airlines, you can use ExpertFlyer (and other methods) to help you know whether upgrade space is confirmable before you call to apply your upgrade. Here’s what you need to know.

Check upgrade space with ExpertFlyer

ExpertFlyer offers a dedicated Awards & Upgrades tool, which is exceptionally helpful for locating Systemwide Upgrades on American Airlines, among other airline upgrades. However, if you know the specific fare bucket that your desired airline uses as upgrade inventory, you can track it with ExpertFlyer’s Flight Availability tool.

As an example, Delta issues Global Upgrade Certificates (GUCs) which can be redeemed on partner airlines with a quick call to Delta reservations. If you’re looking for an upgrade from Premium Economy to business class on Air France, look for “Z” availability.

Enter into the Awards & Upgrades tool your origin and destination airports and your travel date, and then enter “Air France” as the operating airline. Then enter “Z” class and search.

You’ll then see the minimum available seats within that fare bucket under “Available classes.” If there are no available seats, you can click the bell icon to set up an alert that’ll notify you as soon as your parameters are met.

Check the airline website

Many (though not all) airlines have the option to view upgradeable fares online. This can be a simple and free way to check which dates are available for an upgrade, though depending on the program, you may not see availability unless you’ve currently got an upgrade certificate.

Let’s look at the Alaska Airlines website for a flight between Seattle (SEA) and Cincinnati (CVG). On the search page, you’ll see a drop-down filter called “Upgrade type.” Select “Upgrade certificate” and click “Search flights.”

This will show you which flights are eligible for an upgrade on the results page. Note that you won’t have to call the airline in this specific example; Alaska Airlines allows you to use your certificate directly on the website.

An open seat doesn’t necessarily mean an upgrade is possible

Even airline websites aren’t a foolproof method for finding upgrade inventory. If the search results say that a seat is available, you can bet it’s telling the truth, but sometimes a seat will be available even if the website says there isn’t.

Here’s a look at the Air Canada website for flights between Toronto (YYZ) and Washington, DC (DCA). You’ll see that all three of these flights show no available upgrades, and instead offer to put you on the waitlist.

A quick look at ExpertFlyer shows you that in fact upgrade availability (fare bucket “R”) exists on all three of these flights. Apply your certificate to one of them, and your upgrade will likely be instantly confirmed.

In other words, ExpertFlyer can be a truer reflection of availability than even the airline itself.

Bottom line

Remember: An empty premium cabin seat doesn’t necessarily mean you can upgrade your travel with a certificate. You’ll need the specific upgrade inventory in the airline’s specific fare bucket, and your current ticket will also need to be in an upgrade-eligible fare bucket. If you’re missing either of those, your upgrade cert will continue to gather dust.

Whether your certificate can be applied online or you’ve got to call to confirm, you can use ExpertFlyer to check the upgrade inventory of many airlines. And if no seats are available, you can easily set up an ExpertFlyer alert to receive a message when more inventory drops. That way you’ll be the first to know, without having to monitor the airline’s website daily. Besides the labor of frequent manual checks, airline website results may not give you reliable results. ExpertFlyer is a better way to keep an eye on your desired seats.

Have questions or suggestions for this guide? Please reach out to customercare@expertflyer.com