ADVICE NEEDED: LH not honoring UA MP mileage award
May 2, 2013, 9:51 pm
#16
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 1999
Location: New York, NY, USA
Posts: 12,475
Typical problem with interline booking.@:-) Seats may come back UC even though it shows available. The phone rep should have advised OP to call back in 24 hours to make sure it comes back confirmed. This may happen with interline revenue bookings too.
May 2, 2013, 10:03 pm
#17
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: WAS
Programs: UA Silver, Marriott Titanium, Nexus, GE
Posts: 2,122
Here's a general question on changing awards like these:
It looks like there are 2 options:
1) Change your existing ticket swapping one segment for another.
--the upside, no extra miles debited; probably the "right" way to do it.
--the downside, the change may not be confirmed and then you've lost the original flight too.
2) Make a new booking on the same dates. When it tickets and is confirmed, cancel your first booking.
--the upside, no risk of loving Plan A if Plan B is not confirmed.
--the downside, temporarily have double miles deducted.
The question is...will option 2 cause both flights to be canceled as a double booking?
It looks like there are 2 options:
1) Change your existing ticket swapping one segment for another.
--the upside, no extra miles debited; probably the "right" way to do it.
--the downside, the change may not be confirmed and then you've lost the original flight too.
2) Make a new booking on the same dates. When it tickets and is confirmed, cancel your first booking.
--the upside, no risk of loving Plan A if Plan B is not confirmed.
--the downside, temporarily have double miles deducted.
The question is...will option 2 cause both flights to be canceled as a double booking?
May 3, 2013, 12:58 am
#18
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: ZRH / SEA, DL PM
Posts: 1,158
LAX-IAD-FRA is a really bad idea, regardless of how good your transatlantic flight is. First, you spend almost half of your trip in domestic F. Second, East Coast to Europe is too short to have a good night sleep.
I would not connect on east coast even in F.
I would not connect on east coast even in F.
May 3, 2013, 3:02 am
#19
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: between DM464 and DM463 on the NAPSA26 RNAV TRANS in EDDM
Programs: this and that
Posts: 1,731
Re:slanted C class seats on LH. It seems like I am one of the few people out here that doesn't mind those. I am 6'4" and I'd rather have the slightly slanted space, than having my feet confined in a tiny box for my legs like on the new LH C class, LX C or UA. Just my personal $.02
May 3, 2013, 3:07 am
#20
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Between AMS and BRU
Posts: 8,852
Not only are this still the old C seats.... But the 98 C seats in one big cabin will make you feel like you're sitting on a bus. Negates all the advantages the A388 might have.
May 3, 2013, 7:20 am
#22
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Austin, TX
Programs: AA LT Plat, UA 1k/1mm+, National EE, IC Plat, Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 2,605
I love flying LH. But their C cabin blows. Your best bet is to take the LAX/SFO-FRA flight in C on UA and keep your eyes peeled for some F inventory to open up on LH in the 7 days before the trip. There is always a good chance that LH F will open up and THAT is a real experience and totally worth the incremental mileage expenditure.
May 3, 2013, 7:27 am
#23
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 4,645
I love flying LH. But their C cabin blows. Your best bet is to take the LAX/SFO-FRA flight in C on UA and keep your eyes peeled for some F inventory to open up on LH in the 7 days before the trip. There is always a good chance that LH F will open up and THAT is a real experience and totally worth the incremental mileage expenditure.
May 3, 2013, 7:37 am
#24
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Between AMS and BRU
Posts: 8,852
What most people dislike is that LH (with the old seats, that are still on most flights) doesn't offer a seat that goes fully flat. And that they only offer double seats so that you still have to climb over your neighbor when not having an aisle seat.
May 3, 2013, 7:41 am
#25
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 4,645
And, I didn't even notice the angle.
May 3, 2013, 8:00 am
#26
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Austin, TX
Programs: AA LT Plat, UA 1k/1mm+, National EE, IC Plat, Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 2,605
May 3, 2013, 9:46 am
#27
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,420
LH flies the 748 out of LAX which is OP's home base. In fact, I thought LAX was their only US route with the 748. Have they added a 748 from another airport?
May 3, 2013, 1:27 pm
#29
Suspended
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: DCA
Programs: UA US CO AA DL FL
Posts: 50,262
Although silly & outmoded, LH has 72 hours to confirm a tentatively booked seat. LH is known for taking the 72 hours, although UA & LH are not only in the same alliance, sometimes codeshare and sometimes revenue share.
OP says that he has a confirming email for the seat he wanted on LH, but the question is whether he has an e-ticket receipt (as opposed to itinerary) showing confirmed. If not, he never had the seat. UA is doing the right thing by doing what it is doing, namely opening up award space. What UA can't do is force another carrier to do anything, including open award space. Yes, UA can buy a seat for OP on LH, but that's not in the cards, particularly if this is all due to LH not confirming.
OP says that he has a confirming email for the seat he wanted on LH, but the question is whether he has an e-ticket receipt (as opposed to itinerary) showing confirmed. If not, he never had the seat. UA is doing the right thing by doing what it is doing, namely opening up award space. What UA can't do is force another carrier to do anything, including open award space. Yes, UA can buy a seat for OP on LH, but that's not in the cards, particularly if this is all due to LH not confirming.
May 3, 2013, 1:52 pm
#30
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: SF Bay Area
Programs: UA 1K MM, Marriott Life Plat, various others of little note
Posts: 2,763
I had a MP 50K saver award booked from LAX to FRA (via EWR) on UA and LH and have been keeping my eye on availability for C class on LH new 747-8 with the newer C class seating. This past Monday, to my pleasant surprise, I found availability for a 50K Saver Award on UAs website for the 747-8 out of IAD. I quickly called UA MP awards desk and they confirmed the availability on that flight and then switched my reservation from LAX-EWR-FRA to the LH 747-8 flight via IAD. I received an e-mail confirmation shortly after my call and was ecstatic until this Wednesday when I still could not get LH to find the reservation, even with the LH booking code provided by UA.
LH was really no help, telling me it is UA's problem. After spending an hour on the phone with UA MP Awards (Houston -based personnel), they basically told me this is a REALLY UNUSUAL situation but they couldn't get US based LH folks to open up a seat that they originally showed available. MP Awards staff then escalated the problem to LH in Frankfurt today and we are awaiting a final decision whether LH will honor the seat that they showed available on Monday. My booking code remained the same. This is for travel in late August (just before Labor Day).
My question to put out to those with UA/LH flying experience is this: UA told me if LH does NOT honor the reservation then UA will basically put me on any UA metal plane to FRA in C Class. While I typically would NOT elect to use 50K on any UA C class product, this whole experience with LH has put a bad taste in my mouth and I am questioning what I should do at this point. My best option if I were to choose flying solely on UA metal would be LAX-SFO and connect to a UA 744 to FRA. If LH comes back and says I can't have the C class on their 747-8 but they will put me on a C class on their older planes out of EWR, JFK, ORD or IAD what flights should I pick? I am leaning towards the newer C class seat (lie flat) on the older UA 747 vs the superior service on old LH metal. THoughts? Any suggestions on dealing w/UA or LH? UA MP staff are going to be calling me probably tomorrow (Fri) afternoon with the answer from Frankfurt.
The whole point was to experience a good international product to Europe in C class, but this mess has now left me jaded...
Thanks!
LH was really no help, telling me it is UA's problem. After spending an hour on the phone with UA MP Awards (Houston -based personnel), they basically told me this is a REALLY UNUSUAL situation but they couldn't get US based LH folks to open up a seat that they originally showed available. MP Awards staff then escalated the problem to LH in Frankfurt today and we are awaiting a final decision whether LH will honor the seat that they showed available on Monday. My booking code remained the same. This is for travel in late August (just before Labor Day).
My question to put out to those with UA/LH flying experience is this: UA told me if LH does NOT honor the reservation then UA will basically put me on any UA metal plane to FRA in C Class. While I typically would NOT elect to use 50K on any UA C class product, this whole experience with LH has put a bad taste in my mouth and I am questioning what I should do at this point. My best option if I were to choose flying solely on UA metal would be LAX-SFO and connect to a UA 744 to FRA. If LH comes back and says I can't have the C class on their 747-8 but they will put me on a C class on their older planes out of EWR, JFK, ORD or IAD what flights should I pick? I am leaning towards the newer C class seat (lie flat) on the older UA 747 vs the superior service on old LH metal. THoughts? Any suggestions on dealing w/UA or LH? UA MP staff are going to be calling me probably tomorrow (Fri) afternoon with the answer from Frankfurt.
The whole point was to experience a good international product to Europe in C class, but this mess has now left me jaded...
Thanks!