UA Insider

Hi Everyone,

First, I appreciate all of the specific examples that have been posted here recently. We’ve been watching this thread closely and your examples have been critical to our research. While we don’t yet have resolution for all of the issues that have been reported, I wanted to share what we know so far.

1. EUA is running, but, upgrade inventory is not being made available in advance. Prior to 24 hours out, EUA processes upgrades based on the specific fare class being available. Whether or not the fare class is available is controlled by our inventory control system which sits outside of EUA. At the moment, we have two inventory systems - one for Continental and one for United. What’s happening is that we’re right in the middle of migrating these to a single system. This process is producing side effects which will be addressed once the combined system is in place.
   
   That said, what remains unanswered is how long this will be happening. Until we know more, you may find upgrades on some flights clearing closer to 24-hours out. The inability to change seats when the cabin is completely full is a sub-optimal side effect of this process. But, we’d still rather have EUA clear as many upgrades as possible before the battlefield process kicks in at the gate.
   
   
2. On specific flights, EUA is not running at all. At this point in time, these are very few and far between, but, we are still seeing some instances where EUA is not running on a flight at 24-hours out. We’re struggling to pinpoint the specific issue here, but, each is being researched with urgency. While not common, if you do run across a flight where you believe this is happening, please feel free to email the example to me directly at [email protected].

Additionally, we’re also looking into the reported scenario where the price offered to upgrade appears to be less than the difference in fare between the ticketed class and the lowest fare that qualifies for first class. We’re researching these as quickly as possible and will share updates with you as we learn more.

Shannon