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What is the Business Class Upgrade Policy of American Airlines?

American Airlines is popular for its premium range of services and allows its travelers to upgrade their Economy class seats to Business class so that passengers can enjoy premium services during the trip. If you have already booked with them for a long-haul flight and want to upgrade the reserved seats, the airline offers two main ways which you will find in the following information.

What is the American Airlines seat upgrade policy?

Before proceeding to upgrade a seat, you may want to be aware of the Eligibility Criteria for upgrading to Business Class on American Airlines so that you can take advantage of them. However, you can also request a mileage-based upgrade for yourself or your travel companions. For more details on the terms and conditions of the upgrade policy, read the full blog post.

  • The American Airlines Mileage Upgrade is valid for one-way travel on American Airlines-operated flights and is subject to seat availability. Award tickets, codeshare flights, and basic economy fares don't apply to these.
  • All upgrades are based on seat availability at the time of requesting the upgrade and are not applicable on all flights.
  • A maximum of three segments may be upgraded in one direction, but all segments must be on the same ticket.
  • To the airlines' upgrade policy, passengers must pay the difference in fare, if any.
  • If the upgrade has not been confirmed, the airline will automatically add you to the airport's upgrade standby list, but travelers must ensure that they have the appropriate number of miles at least 48 hours before flight departure.
  • Passengers may have to pay the airline's fee to upgrade from Basic Economy to Business Class, depending on the route.
  • If the ticket price is in U.S. dollars, additional fees and service charges will be converted to U.S. dollars at the time of payment.

How do I upgrade to Business Class on American Airlines flights?

Per American Airline's seat upgrade policy, the airline has introduced two main ways to request upgrades online or offline. Most passengers prefer to upgrade their booked seats through the official website or app, but if there is no availability, you can call the airline's customer service and ask them to upgrade the seats.

  • To get an upgrade, visit the official American Airlines website and log in to your account.
  • Make sure system-wide upgrades are available in your account.
  • Click on the Manage Reservation tab and enter your reservation confirmation code and last name to retrieve your reservation.
  • Then select your flight and choose the Update icon.
  • Scroll through the seat map to check Business Class availability.
  • Choose your desired seat and proceed with payment or use miles to obtain the upgrade.
  • Once the process is complete, it will be reflected on your boarding pass.

What is the procedure to upgrade my seat on American Airlines?

You can also do the Seat Upgrade on American Airlines on the call, to start the customer process you need to dial 800-433-7300 which is available 24 hours a day to assist travelers. Now you need to listen to the automated instructions and press the appropriate number key. Once the call is connected, you can ask the agent to upgrade your or your companion's seat from Economy to Business Class. The agent will check the eligibility of the booked itinerary and share the list of available seats from which to choose the preferred option. Finally, provide the exact mileage account number or pay by card.

What is the cost of an American Airlines seat upgrade?

If the traveler wishes to upgrade their American Airlines seats to Business Class from Mexico to Hawaii, they will have to pay 15,000 miles or $75 to confirm. However, the cost of the upgrade may vary, as it is subject to the fare type and travel destination. Passengers traveling from North America to destinations such as Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay will have to pay about 25,000 miles or $550 to get the upgrade. For destinations such as Hong Kong, Japan, China, Indonesia, Australia, and New Zealand, the cost of the upgrade will be 25,000 miles or $550 with the card. You will find the exact cost for a specific flight only at the time of upgrade.

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