I'm planning a trip from PHL to Vegas in the next couple of months and I have some questions.

First, there are a few things you should know about me: I don't do mileage runs or intentionally go out of my way. I like nonstop flights with as little fuss as possible. I am not very flexible with my schedule. The job keeps me locked down most of the time, for instance, I'll be able to take off Thur and Fri, but not Fri and Mon, so I try to maximize my time by taking the flights that work best with my schedule. I also like to fly FC and have to use miles to upgrade because I have no status or upgrade certs.

Last week I found a roundtrip Thur AM to Sun noon, nonstop, nonredeye for $260. This was by far the cheapest nonstop, nonredeye US flight I could find on Thur/Sun, two very popular travel days. Pursuant to another thread on this site, I checked out flyaow.com and saw that both flights had 7 seats listed for code K.

Now that I am ready to book, the price has jumped to $380. Flyaow.com shows 0 seats for code K for my return.

Here are my questions:

can someone breakdown what the codes mean, which are upgradeable, which are the cheapest, what does it all mean!?

if K now shows 0 for my dates, is it gone forever? is there a way for me to know if the price will go back down?

is there a way for me to check if there are any first class seats available for upgrades using a US20? is calling the only way? do they have less or more seats available for upgrading using miles as opposed to certs?

does it just kill you folks to use 20,000 miles? at the same time, don't you love having a reserved FC seat months in advance without worrying about calling 7 or 3 days in advance or hoping there'll be some available on the day of departure?

I'm sure I have more to ask, but I can't think of anything now.

Thank you

The booking codes do not matter when buying and upgrading with miles for a domestic flight. Since you are flying on some peak travel days I doubt the price will ever drop down again, but if you purchase at $380 and the fare does drop and it is on the same flights you have purchased then you must call US and possibly receive a transportation oucher for the difference.
As far as viewing upgrade availability check itn.net and log in to expert mode. Maybe someone else can expand on how to search for -G- upgrade on this site.

[This message has been edited by BWI2MCO97 (edited 10-14-2002).]

As to your question on fare codes, see this thread: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum51/HTML/003572.html

Chexfan lists the fare codes in this thread - and there are other threads in this forum that have that information - a search should help in that regard.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by batboy:
is there a way for me to check if there are any first class seats available for upgrades using a US20? is calling the only way? do they have less or more seats available for upgrading using miles as opposed to certs?</font>

When you looked at AOW, you missed out on noting the number of G class seats available. That's the upgrade bucket where upgrades from discounted fares are pulled from. If there are still G seats, you should be able to use miles to upgrade.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by batboy:
does it just kill you folks to use 20,000 miles? at the same time, don't you love having a reserved FC seat months in advance without worrying about calling 7 or 3 days in advance or hoping there'll be some available on the day of departure? </font>


Yes. I've seen elites drop dead in F who did just this. Scary thing (a lot of sarcasm here, in case it didn't come through) http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif . Seriously, it's a risk/reward thing - the upgrades are free (after flying a certain number of miles, or just free if you're a Chairman's). I'd rather save the miles for an Envoy award or to use for a present for someone. But I've used miles to upgrade CLT-LAS, since the G seats for those flights seem to go quick (which may be a consideration - for a trip out there in Jan. the G seats are already gone for the outbound - but wide open on the return). Otherwise, I've been able to upgrade all other flights with the upgrade certificates instead of miles.

Vegas is a very popular destination. And, with just 2 757's per day each way between PHL and LAS, you're best to get the upgrade in advance. Just make sure there is availability in G class for your desired flights.

Looking at this weekend, for example, the Thur and Sun flights are zero in G class, which is what needs to have availability for those miles to work. There is availability in F and I, which means some Silvers/Golds/CPs will either clear the waitlist or standby at the airport.

To answer your other questions - all the upgradeable codes are here:

http://www.usairways.com/dividendmiles/redeemingmiles/howtoredeem/upgrades.htm

K class can open up at any time due to cancelations or the good folks in Yield Management deciding they need to stimulate more travel and thus get some more cockroaches on board at those lower fares.

It kills me to use miles for ANYTHING. So, I use them wisely. Never for anything domestic. That's rule #1. They're best saved for the valuable travel, like award tix to Europe in Envoy or First, or upgrades. And, with the pending UA redemption and then Star Alliance travel, think of all the possibilities those 20K can go towards.

Or, for 40K, you can get a roundtrip upgrade to Envoy class on a transatlantic flight booked in K class. That's twice the points you'd spend on a domestic upgrade, but you're getting much muCH MUCH more value for the points spent. It's all about the point/$$$ value ratio.

So, if you have plans for international travel, I'd save them. PHL-LAS is only a 4 hour flight +/- 30 minutes each way.

You did not say where the price went up. Check all online booking sites to see if the flight is still available at the cheaper price.

Everyone has their own opinion, but I have often found Orbitz to still have the cheaper flights longer.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by mileshound:
You did not say where the price went up. Check all online booking sites to see if the flight is still available at the cheaper price.

Everyone has their own opinion, but I have often found Orbitz to still have the cheaper flights longer.</font>

Me too! Go Orbitz!

I regularly fly to LAS via PHL and upgrades are often hard to get. It seems that G seats have a way of quickly disappearing just before any upgrade window opens. (Never had that problem on AA). Coach is nasty on a US 757, so I would upgrade if I were you.

Please tell me how I can see if G class service is available on flyaow.com or any other website. Thank you.

www.etour.co.jp/solar (http://www.etour.co.jp/solar)

city codes top two boxes, airline bottom, scroll down to find gray button....

There should be a FAQ like on biddingfortravel.com.