MilesBuzz! - Scummy United - Increased Mileage Requirement

Just got a mailing from united where they increase, effective Oct 16, 2006, the numver of miles for "select" Saver Awards and "many" Standard Awards. For example a domestic Economy Standard Award will increase from 40K to 50K to "match" most other carriers' current standard award levels.

"Select" and "many" will undoubtedly mean just about all. I don't accumulate many miles although since enrolling in the 80s I probably have earned about 150K, and spent 50K. In the 80s it was 20K miles for domestic trips and now they are telling me it will be 50K. Thanks United for cutting the value of my miles by 25%.

I do believe this has been known for a while; they basically sent the flunkies in to find cases where their mileage requirement was below what looked like an industry standard. Call it the "no bargains here no 'mo" initiative. Australia/NZ at 80K also was quite irksome to many.

In most cases they stopped short of trying to raise the minimums, though that has been happening in a stealth way across the board with allocations of "saver" -level seats cut so much.

In the 80s it was 20K miles for domestic trips and now they are telling me it will be 50K.
No, still 25K for a saver award. the 50K is for a standard (non-capacity-controlled) award.

You also missed how United is implementing 15 000 mile awards for short hauls, like SFO-PHX and so forth.

note also, ticket prices have come down, resulting in a lower value for awards even it they stay at the same mileage....

note also, ticket prices have come down, resulting in a lower value for awards even it they stay at the same mileage....

Not over the past couple of years they haven't at least not on UA).

Also ticket prices are in general irrelevent with respect to the overall value proposition of miles earned by flying, because as the price of tickets fluctuate the value of the miles used for award travel (assuming constant redemption levels) varies in lockstep with the cost of aquiring those miles through ticket purchases. Other modes of mileage earning (e.g. credit cards) are effected however.

You also missed how United is implementing 15 000 mile awards for short hauls, like SFO-PHX and so forth.

Very true. However, even that is a bit bittersweet. The 15K awards were "temporary" awards, being tested on a trial basis and were for flights less than 750 miles each way. Now they are permanent, but are only for flights less than 700 miles each way.

50 miles not a big deal? ORD-NYC is now out. There are others as well, but that is the big one.

If the OP is interested, there is a very long thread on this subject in the UA forum:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=548075

As pointed out in the thread mentioned above, this is already being discussed in a 2 month old thread the UA forum.

I'm going to close this here.

Regards,

Flipside