We (Future.Travel) recently issued a business class return ticket on British Airways ticket from London to Belfast for $277.00, which is a very good rate as the economy seats those days were over $400 for the same flights.
The upgrade was ‘automatic’ as it was ‘left over’ inventory to fill up the plane. <Hint> Always check to see if business class is cheaper than economy class when you are doing your shopping/booking. We see about 4–5% of the time that business class seats are cheaper than economy class seats for the same flight. A good agent (or OTA) will put you in the best seat possible at the lowest cost.
The funny thing about this BA ticket… the customer did not even know until we delivered the ticket that he had been ‘upgraded’. I am sure he enjoyed the champagne each way… and the lounge access… and the priority service. Plus he got baggage.
Sometimes it is cheaper to fly business class than to fly economy. For our corporate customers, who answer to bean counters, we supply them with evidence of cost differentials when we ‘upgrade them’ to a cheaper business class fare from the more expensive economy fare on the same flight.
The best way to get an upgrade… be a good shopper with a good agent/OTA partner for your purchases.
