Forgive me if this has been posted, but I searched and couldn't find an answer to my question.

I'm booked on a late non-stop from LAS-IAH next week and would like to stand by on a flight that gets to IAH in the evening rather than the middle of the night. The earlier options all go through PHX.

Can I standby on the LAS-PHX-IAH flights earlier in the day? If I pay the $25 will they confirm me all the way to IAH? Do elites have to pay this fee no matter? Does it matter that I'm UA elite? I'm not as worried about the $25 as I am about getting home before 4:00am.

Please advise, as this is my first US experience.

Thank you!

The agents won't necessarily waive the $25 fee. I've done this before (last year, perhaps before some rules changes) and had to go through the whole process at each airport; they wouldn't confirm me the whole way through.