JDS747

I also do the same thing several times a year and have had pretty good results even during irrops. Basically like the seating deal if you encounter irrops just give them a call and they usually have no problem accommodating your needs. I've even had them protect both of us on another flight in case the one they re-booked us on had issues.

iflyuaaa

Being on the same pnr does not mean you'll be seated together in event of a schedule change. Heck, it doesn't mean you'll be seated together with no schedule change. Just read the boards for 5 mins. That happened to me. We were all on the same pnr and one ended up in row 35 while we were in 21. Par for the course

Mike Jacoubowsky

Of course, until April, whomever you got an award ticket for also inherited your status. Which brings up an interesting point- during irrops, did both automated systems and human CSRs treat such passengers as 1Ks (in your case, Plats in mine)? Obviously that won't be happening down the road. Not without deliberately requesting such treatment anyway.

Kacee

This is one of the reasons why the upcoming stripping of status from elite miles is such a crappy, mean-spirited devaluation. I don't think it's quite sunk in for people what a pain this is going to be in every instance where multiple travelers are not on the same PNR.

Mike Jacoubowsky

But it was the norm prior to CO coming in. One of the few changes we liked. And now it's gone.

Kacee

It's also upgrade priority on instruments.

Let's say, for example, I'm returning from NYC with GF post April 15, but we're on separate PNRs because we flew in separately or bought our tickets at different times. I might get upgraded off the waitlist; she won't even be in the game as a GM.

cmculp

Amen. Posters here seem to think "1k kid coming home for spring break." reality is wife traveling with me.

astroflyer

Exactly. Trying to extract ancillary revenues from elites (especially after PQD and the RDM devaluations) is such a bad business strategy.

One of the reasons I direct so much of my business flying to UA is that it's been so nice for leisure when I take companions with me on my miles.

WineCountryUA

Its both and many other circumstances. I have less issue with the cases of those traveling with the elite but when traveling separate I think this has been a unwritten benefit that has tilted the benefits equation disappointingly.

We all like to say, heh I throw my weight around and get you the free bags and free E+ seats even though I not flying with you. You get great awe from family and friends but it is an added cost/loss revenue for elites. I prefer instead of having my benefits diluted to so many non-elites that what benefits left are of more direct benefit to me when I am traveling( or those traveling with me vs some elite's 4th cousin flying seperately).

interval

Hi guys, thanks for all the replies.

My motivation is as follows:
1) I earn miles for the flight on my ticket
2) Wife flies free with my award miles
3) I'm able to use my status to move us both for free into Economy Plus
4) Ideally kept together in case of rebooks, etc

Kacee

At least for now, you can get this by calling even if you are on separate PNRs.


I think the counter-argument is hey, they're my miles. If I use them on tickets for myself I will get all the 1K benefits when I travel. Why should those benefits be lost just because I use them for a family member or friend instead of for myself? It's zero-sum to UA. By contrast, under the new scheme, UA profits when I use the miles for someone else. And of course, as discussed above, it creates serious hassles when we travel with partners.

WineCountryUA

Nope -- because when I travel I get the benefits anyways because of my status (and not because of the status of the miles) and I continue to in the future.

exerda

Makes handling seating changes and irrops somewhat simpler. (Agents don't have to look up two separate itins, and know the two pax are traveling together.) It may also make it simpler to get E+ for the companion going forward, given they're supposed to be on the same itin. If UA starts playing hardball and saying, "Sorry, we can't seat your wife next to you in E+ because she's on a separate itin," that's going to be lost revenue for UA as I won't book the trip, with my paid ticket or her award one.


Until April.


Same motivation I have. I need the miles & revenue from my paid ticket, but unless it's super-cheap, I like to pay for my wife's with miles so we can spend the $$ on vacation instead of on the flight.

Unfortunately, there's no way to combine into one PNR.

Long Zhiren

I would add two points to this discussion.
(1) It's fairly easy on domestic routes on United metal.
(2) For international routes, I would like to hear advice myself. In my experience, it gets really difficult especially when *A partners start getting involved. For international routes, in my experience, the award inventory goes nuts, in a bad way. It seems that international awards seem available only for routings that are crazy expensive to buy with cash, and it gets far worse for one-way itineraries. Is there a better strategy? It seemed to be a lot easier years ago. In 2008, I bought an open-jaw UA ticket SFO-TPE & PEK-SFO, while getting an award for an identical itinerary, and getting a second award that went CLE-IAD-SFO-TPE & PEK-ORD-CLE. It was nice to get the three of us together for SFO-TPE. This year, I bought SFO-TPE-KUL through BR, and got an award on those same flights through UA. It wasn't easy due to award availability.

raehl311

It's definitely a pain internationally - can be quite the challenge to find saver availability on an itinerary that doesn't price out as a fortune when paying cash.

Sometimes I just give up and book two separate tickets that should hopefully arrive about the same time.

Bit me in the ... on a one-day Lufthansa strike in September.