A free upgrade to First Class

I was once boarding a flight from California to China. I was really tired, and, although I was looking forward to being in China, I was not looking forward to the horrible seat that I had. Center seat. Rear. Coach. 

I checked in at the counter, and sat down with my laptop, wishing that I could fall asleep in the terminal before I had to make the 13 plus hour flight. Finally, they began calling for boarding. I was the first group after first class, wearing my new navy blue suit and matching pumps and bag. I looked really great, if I do say so myself! I tucked my laptop in front of me, dropped my handbag on top of it, and buckled in, knowing that I was going to be a massive cramp when I woke up. 

The couple who arrived seated themselves. One on the aisle and one on the window. I offered them to sit together, since they were chatting over me, and they, of course, declined. The flight attendant came and checked on all of us. 

"Here on business?" She asked me.

"Yes. I have a job interview in China" I replied. 

The couple began speaking over me loudly, arguing with one another. The flight attendant heard them, and turned around. 

"Everything okay?" She asked the couple. 

"Is there a chance that she can get moved? When we looked at Seat Guru, the seat in between us was supposed to be empty. We want the seat space so we can stretch out."

"Well, people buy seats, and as they do, the plane fills up"

The couple hotly debated this with the flight attendant, and she explained it over and over again that tickets were for sale on a plane even at the ticket counter, and, if they wanted the seat in between them to be available to them, they needed to purchase it. It was not a good day to be explaining things, they kept getting louder and louder. 

"I will go have a look at the seating chart and see if there is a seat anywhere else. Ma'am, would you be okay moving to a different seat?" The flight attendant looked at me and smiled. 

I smiled back. "Sure. As long as we get to China, I am happy to sit on a lap" She laughed and left. 

"No offense, Miss, We just like the extra space." The man said when the flight attendant left.

"None taken" I replied, knowing that we were going to get to know one another very well over the next 13 hours.

The flight attendant came back. "Grab your stuff, I managed to get a different seat for you, Ma'am" She said.

I got out into the aisle, and she softly told me when we were out of earshot "We have a first class seat for you. Just relax. Those people would have been torture."
I wanted to hug her, but I gushed "Thank You" over and over again. 

"No problem. Just relax. No worries. Good luck with your job interview."

When we got to my seat, I got the coveted 1A. The Cadillac of seats, it allows you to get off first. "I am so very sorry about the mix-up, miss" the flight attendant said as she ushered me to the seat. I said "No problem" and sat down,  eternally grateful to the wonderful flight attendant who came to my rescue. 

Upgrading to first class is a rare treat when it is something granted to you by the airlines. First class has better seating on longer flights, better food, and, I hate to say it, better attitudes from some of the flight attendants who work those flights. On long transatlantic flights, the extra room, the amount of recline in the seat (Some fold out into flat twin beds) really make it worth the extra money for someone who is able to do that. 

Luckily, in my instance, there still was a first class seat available. If not, I would have been reseated in coach somewhere, but, I was really happy to get on the plane. The only reason that I was able to be moved up is that a flight connecting with ours was stuck hours away, so there were available seats. If the flight attendant had not been told by the people I was seated with of their predicament, I would have been stuck there. 

A friend of mine who travels for her job (She is a sales rep for a drug company) tells me that when she has enough air miles to upgrade, she saves those little jewels for the long haul trips, such as La Guardia to Los Angeles, and similar. She has told me that she never asks the cabin crew for movement to the front because they simply cannot do it. If you ask, and the passenger next to you sees you get moved up, they are going to want to get moved up too. Soon, the whole plane will want to be moved to the front, which we all DO want, but it is an impossibility. 

Stepping into the space known as the Galley (the little kitchen area) to ask about seating before the plane takes off is a major no-no, too, according to a friend of mine, "Jim" who is a long term (30 years plus) flight attendant with a major carrier who flies internationally. "Here I am, getting all of my things ready, running through check lists, and when a passenger comes to me wanting a beverage, a snack, a meal, or, best of all, a seat in first class, I make a note of that passenger, decline the request, and if there DOES become a seat available in first class, they will not get it."  He continues and explains "There are so many safety things going on during pre-board and then boarding, we have to be really focused on getting those things done, and not be rude to the passengers, but, make sure we get the things done that are really important. Plus, when you want to be chatty with us while there are passengers behind you, that slows the whole flow of boarding down. It creates a cluster around me, and I have things to get done!" 

If you ever ARE upgraded, please don't be an ASS-enger instead of a Passenger. First Class is not some luxury spa retreat where the flight attendants are providing massages, meals, personal entertainment, laundry service, or any other silly thing. It is a nicer seat, a nicer meal, and free beverages both alcoholic and non-alcohol. That is all. It is not a place where you can boss the flight attendant around like your personal servant, it is not a place where you get to jump the line in front of other first class passengers, and, I assure you for everyone flying in coach, the lavatory in the front of the plane is the same as the one in the back of the plane, but you will get dirty looks if you use the front lavatory from the people in First Class if you go up there from coach. 

If you ever are upgraded, please thank the nice person who upgraded you. ASK if you can write a letter to the company to thank them for the upgrade. If they say yes, write down their name, the airlines, the date and the flight number right then. DO send a letter if they say it is okay to do so. Please remember this. Letters are a valuable tool that allow feedback to come from someone else and give airline personnel a much needed pat on the back. 

That is all. You may return your seats to their upright position now.