Nov 1, 2013, 4:08 am
Last edit by: aacharya
Moderator Note: Please keep the wiki post limited to just the facts.
New UA Award/Upgrade Chart (vs. Current Chart)
Changes took effect for travel booked starting February 3, 2014. See UA Insider's post linked here for more info about the date change. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/22263212-post2366.html
Awards with *A partners now cost more than similar awards flown only on UA metal.
See below for the round-trip increases on partner metal :
Changes to upgrade policy for intra-Asia and northern South America flights
Questions and Answers
Q: If I book an award in January 2014 and then make changes in February or beyond (in routing, airline, origin, destination, etc), will it be repriced according to new mileage requirements, or will I keep the old pricing on that ticket?
Additional details on changing tickets booked prior to 2/3/14 per UA Insider:
Full details are in post #2588 http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/22283437-post2588.html
Q: Do these rates apply for tickets purchased after Feb 3 or for travel after Feb 3? That is,if one purchases a ticket now, to fly on Mar 15, will that be new or old pricing?
Q: How will award pricing apply to mixed-carrier Saver Awards?
(reverted to J.Edward's rev)
New UA Award/Upgrade Chart (vs. Current Chart)
Changes took effect for travel booked starting February 3, 2014. See UA Insider's post linked here for more info about the date change. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/22263212-post2366.html
Awards with *A partners now cost more than similar awards flown only on UA metal.
- F awards on partners went up 40-80%
- J awards on partners went up 20-40%
- F and J awards on UA metal (or mixed carriers where UA metal is in premium cabin followed by partner segment in lower class) as well some Y awards increased by 5-20% (US to Europe in F up 19%, US to Middle East in F up 20% for example)
See below for the round-trip increases on partner metal :
US ✈ Southern South America: +10,000 J, +5,000 F
US ✈ Europe: +40,000 J, +85,000 F
US ✈ Northern/Central/Southern Africa: +40,000 J, +110,000 F
US ✈ Middle East: +5,000 Y, +40,000 J, +130,000 F
US ✈ Central Asia/India: +5,000 Y, +40,000 J, +120,000 F
US ✈ South Asia: +15,000 Y, +40,000 J, +120,000 F
US ✈ North Asia: +5,000 Y, +40,000 J, +100,000 F
US ✈ Japan: +5,000 Y, +30,000 J, +85,000 F
US ✈ Oceania: +30,000 J, +70,000 F
US ✈ Australia/New Zealand: +25,000 J, +100,000 F
RTW: +20,000 Y, +90,000 J, +100,000 F
US ✈ Europe: +40,000 J, +85,000 F
US ✈ Northern/Central/Southern Africa: +40,000 J, +110,000 F
US ✈ Middle East: +5,000 Y, +40,000 J, +130,000 F
US ✈ Central Asia/India: +5,000 Y, +40,000 J, +120,000 F
US ✈ South Asia: +15,000 Y, +40,000 J, +120,000 F
US ✈ North Asia: +5,000 Y, +40,000 J, +100,000 F
US ✈ Japan: +5,000 Y, +30,000 J, +85,000 F
US ✈ Oceania: +30,000 J, +70,000 F
US ✈ Australia/New Zealand: +25,000 J, +100,000 F
RTW: +20,000 Y, +90,000 J, +100,000 F
Changes to upgrade policy for intra-Asia and northern South America flights
- Complimentary Premier Upgrades and instant upgrades are not applicable
- Regional Premier Upgrades (for any fare class) and Global Premier Upgrades (for flights booked in fare class Z, P, S, T, L, K, G or N) can no longer be requested on or after November 1, 2013
- There is no co-pay exemption for MileagePlus Upgrade Awards requested on or after November 1, 2013
- The above changes do not apply to Copa-operated flights.
Questions and Answers
Q: If I book an award in January 2014 and then make changes in February or beyond (in routing, airline, origin, destination, etc), will it be repriced according to new mileage requirements, or will I keep the old pricing on that ticket?
Our existing change process will apply. Changes to awards that require a change in date do not result in a change to the award price. Any other change will require an add/collect in miles and fees for changes or cancellations will still apply as per our existing policies.
Changes that will not trigger a re-price for itineraries ticketed before February 3, 2014 include:
- Date/time (cabin, region, and award type can't change)
- Carrier on one or more segments (cabin, region, and award type can’t change)
- Origin/Destination within the same regions (carrier and cabin can’t change)
Q: Do these rates apply for tickets purchased after Feb 3 or for travel after Feb 3? That is,if one purchases a ticket now, to fly on Mar 15, will that be new or old pricing?
Updated handling for mixed UA-Partner United/partner award itineraries: As we shared with the initial announcement, the Star Alliance/Partner partner award pricing will apply to Business or First awards for itineraries that include at least one flight segment operated by a MileagePlus partner carrier in Business or First.
However, as a customer benefit we have made an exception for most itineraries which require connecting onto a MileagePlus/Star partner in First or Business for a short distance. Specifically, if a United/Copa award itinerary contains a connecting segment on a MileagePlus/Star partner that is wholly within one MileagePlus award region, then the United award price will apply.
However, as a customer benefit we have made an exception for most itineraries which require connecting onto a MileagePlus/Star partner in First or Business for a short distance. Specifically, if a United/Copa award itinerary contains a connecting segment on a MileagePlus/Star partner that is wholly within one MileagePlus award region, then the United award price will apply.
- For example: IAD-FRA in United BusinessFirst connecting to FRA-FCO in Lufthansa Business, will be priced at the United mileage award amount.
- Note that this exception will not apply to a few specific regions and routings, such as intra-Africa connecting segments and certain fifth-freedom routes (e.g. BKK-KUL operated by Lufthansa)
Changes to MileagePlus Award and Upgrade Policies - Eff. 3-Feb-2014
Nov 1, 2013, 8:19 pm
#826
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: EAU
Programs: UA 1K, CO Plat, NW Plat, Marriott Premiere Plat, SPG Plat, Priority Gold, Hilton Gold
Posts: 4,712
Nov 1, 2013, 8:20 pm
#827
Moderator, Omni, Omni/PR, Omni/Games, FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Between DCA and IAD
Programs: UA 1K MM; Hilton Diamond
Posts: 67,108
My guess is you'll pay the partner rates, though.
Nov 1, 2013, 8:21 pm
#829
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Anywhere but home
Programs: UA 1K/MM, DL GM/MM, AA Gold, HH Dia, PC Plat, ALL Sil, MR Gold
Posts: 4,550
This is a game changer
I don't know which is worse:
1. Earlier this year, DL developed partner tiers, where flying on some SkyTeam "members" (e.g., Korean Air) don't earn any elite qualifying miles or bonus for flying in biz or first. (DL link) This makes earning miles on several SkyTeam partners much more difficult. Also, DL is already tied for worst in availability of low-tier award travel.
2. This massive UA devaluation in miles required for award travel, especially for Star "partners". Rather than change partner earnings, UA increased partner awards.
I used to fly DL exclusively, accumulating 1.8 MM, mostly in an 8-year span, but moved to UA in late 2011 because of their much better FF program. This new UA award chart is a potential game-changer and will force many of us to re-evaluate our preferred carrier.
1. Earlier this year, DL developed partner tiers, where flying on some SkyTeam "members" (e.g., Korean Air) don't earn any elite qualifying miles or bonus for flying in biz or first. (DL link) This makes earning miles on several SkyTeam partners much more difficult. Also, DL is already tied for worst in availability of low-tier award travel.
2. This massive UA devaluation in miles required for award travel, especially for Star "partners". Rather than change partner earnings, UA increased partner awards.
I used to fly DL exclusively, accumulating 1.8 MM, mostly in an 8-year span, but moved to UA in late 2011 because of their much better FF program. This new UA award chart is a potential game-changer and will force many of us to re-evaluate our preferred carrier.
Nov 1, 2013, 8:27 pm
#830
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: LAX
Posts: 10,906
Have you priced DL awards with partners? Last week i was quoted C RT on AF with $800+ in taxes in fees and on SU with $300+.
Go give it a shot.
UA C awards (even partner) are not far outside DL levels and DL charges significant taxes/yq.
UA partner F are up a lot but try to get those on DL
DL devalued awards overnight without warning. UA is giving 4 months to adjust.
Devaluation is unfortunate but expected given all blog peddled credit card signups. It's not a game changer however.
Go give it a shot.
UA partner F are up a lot but try to get those on DL
DL devalued awards overnight without warning. UA is giving 4 months to adjust.
Devaluation is unfortunate but expected given all blog peddled credit card signups. It's not a game changer however.
Last edited by iluv2fly; Nov 1, 2013 at 8:52 pm Reason: merge
Nov 1, 2013, 8:34 pm
#831
Join Date: Jun 2007
Programs: UA Gold
Posts: 386
I agree that DL awards are pretty hard to get and may include surcharges, I was just comparing when both are available. My point was that UA by increasing how many miles are needed for awards combined with the previous changes in reduced bonus for elites (50% for UA Gold versus 100% for DL Gold), it has devalued their program further as compared with DL.
Nov 1, 2013, 8:42 pm
#832
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Anywhere but home
Programs: UA 1K/MM, DL GM/MM, AA Gold, HH Dia, PC Plat, ALL Sil, MR Gold
Posts: 4,550
Nov 1, 2013, 8:42 pm
#833
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: US
Programs: AA/UA/DL
Posts: 2,773
United is beating DL in every aspect.....
Great terrible customer service
No customer relations
Worse J than DL
worse meal than DL
similar FFP now
Nov 1, 2013, 8:48 pm
#835
Join Date: May 2009
Location: South Park, CO
Programs: Tegridy Elite
Posts: 5,678
And how long will UA metal availability for premium cabins be better than DL's, when the new UA charts force more people away from partners?
Nov 1, 2013, 8:50 pm
#836
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: los angeles, calif.
Programs: Alaska Airlines Gold MVP
Posts: 7,170
AA hasn't followed any of the other devaluations for the past decade, nor has it followed UA and DL's reductions in premium services. No reason it suddenly follows now.
AAdvantage miles are the hardest to earn - no transferring Chase Ultimate Rewards or AmEx points freely - so there's a lot less in circulation.
AAdvantage miles are the hardest to earn - no transferring Chase Ultimate Rewards or AmEx points freely - so there's a lot less in circulation.
Nov 1, 2013, 8:54 pm
#837
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: San Francisco/Tel Aviv/YYZ
Programs: CO 1K-MM
Posts: 10,762
AA hasn't followed any of the other devaluations for the past decade, nor has it followed UA and DL's reductions in premium services. No reason it suddenly follows now.
Nov 1, 2013, 8:55 pm
#838
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: ECP
Programs: DL Diamond
Posts: 1,658
AA hasn't followed any of the other devaluations for the past decade, nor has it followed UA and DL's reductions in premium services. No reason it suddenly follows now.
AAdvantage miles are the hardest to earn - no transferring Chase Ultimate Rewards or AmEx points freely - so there's a lot less in circulation.
AAdvantage miles are the hardest to earn - no transferring Chase Ultimate Rewards or AmEx points freely - so there's a lot less in circulation.
Nov 1, 2013, 8:55 pm
#839
Join Date: May 2013
Location: RMS
Programs: DL Plat, UA Gold, Bonvoy Titanium, Hilton Credit Card Diamond
Posts: 8,782
The Delta devaluation was for TRAVEL after June 1. The United devaluation was for BOOKINGS after Feb 1. I'd say United's actions are more customer-friendly, if only just.
Nov 1, 2013, 8:56 pm
#840
Moderator, Omni, Omni/PR, Omni/Games, FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Between DCA and IAD
Programs: UA 1K MM; Hilton Diamond
Posts: 67,108
I'm sure this has completely baffled Jeff. "How the heck are they making money?" On the other hand, I'm sure he has his excuses all lined up: "They're in BK. And we had bad weather. And the government shutdown. And 787 problems. It's not my fault!"