mySQupgrade - Submit a Closed Bid and (May) Be Upgraded
When I traveled to Auckland last year for work, I mentioned that it was possible to bid for an upgrade on the Air New Zealand flight that I was on. Today, it appears that Singapore Airlines has finally jumped on the bandwagon to offer a similar service to selected passengers.
mySQupgrade | Photo Credit: Singapore Airlines
If your booking is eligible, you may receive an email that will invite you to submit a closed bid (within a preset range - so $1 is not possible) for a potential upgrade - do note that bidding must be made in dollars as bidding with KrisFlyer miles is currently unavailable (not to mention unwise too). Once you have submitted your bid, you will be able to change or cancel it up to 50 hours prior to departure. Should your bid be successful, you will receive an email confirmation 48 hours prior to your flight to notify you of this.
mySQupgrade | Photo Credit: Singapore Airlines
Like hotel rooms, seats on airlines are highly perishable and therefore, having a dynamic closed-bidding system like mySQupgrade allows passengers to enjoy premium class cabins (which would have otherwise gone unsold) at a discounted rate.
Cathay Pacific has launched a massive flash rebate for Asia Miles members, offering up to 30% miles back on return award flights. Note that this offer is exclusively for flights originating in Hong Kong or Mainland China.