timfountain

I see no such trend. 1K and high priced U tickets mainly. Still #8 on the list for the routes I fly (basically no set routes, I'm all over...).

Treeskier

Thanks for the welcome. But I am correct. I suggest on your next UA flight you check with a supervisor as to who is ahead of you on the list and why. It's simply what I did. When you are 13th on the list consistently after being upgraded or No 1/2 on the list consistently you figure out pretty fast something is up.

Yes I did, they were not using instruments / miles. They were simply a higher fare basis - they paid slightly more than I had for a ticket.

awu25

Seriously? So you somehow found the people ahead of you in the gate area, then you asked them how much they paid for their ticket?

You do realize just because they paid more, doesn't mean they're on a higher fare? It also depends on starting and final destination. If all this is true, I'm guessing they were Y/B fare which would put them above you. This is supposedly no longer how it works starting today.

WineCountryUA

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unite...eb-2016-a.html

Baze

Well, I don't know what to say but my last flight out of SFO I was #11 out of 60 on a low fare and I know there were a lot of 1K's ahead of me. There are ALWAYS a lot of 1K's at the top of the upgrade list. And as a Platinum using an instrument last year I was farther up, usually around 5 or 6 on the same low fares. I find it very hard to believe based on where I usually am on the upgrade list and the fares I pay. There are very few CPU's out of SFO.

So, UA Insider, you out there? Can you confirm this? Or confirm it is not true?

IAH-OIL-TRASH

Bingo. If you believe that airport people know how upgrades work, I have a bridge to sell you. I'm pretty sure you misunderstood an incorrect answer.

I really think you misunderstand how upgrades work - and airport agents are definitely not well-versed in the MileagePlus program. There has been no change, other than UA finding ways to monetize the front cabin. Instrument waitlists, M/Y/B-ups, ToDs, fare class difference within Premier levels, displaced F passengers - all these will result in people moving ahead of you for forward cabin seats.

I'm getting less CPUs - it's not because UA has changed the program - it's because UA has figured out better ways of getting people up front other than CPUs.

And if you fly frequently between DEN and SFO, I hope AA is worth the trouble.

Baze

I just sent UA Insider a PM with a link to this thread to please come put this tuner to bed. Or (shudder to think) confirm it. But I swear this came up a couple months ago and was proven to be false. We'll see if they respond.

RobOnLI

Yep, it's called a brand new website that now displays economy and first class fares right next to each other. Every single search I do results in first being $50-150 more than economy depending on where I'm flying. Domestically in the US it's usually $80-$100. To Mexico City it's never more than $150.

When someone can see it "only" costs (on average) $100 more to upgrade then they will pay it. I know I've done it. I think a lot of people do.

Corporate travel policies about looking lowest fare, etc. usually only apply when you use a corporate travel agency. When booking on your own you can generally get away with what you want to book and then deal with the accounting people on the back-end. That's if they even look at your fare code and know what it means.

The new website is the single most important reason why CPUs are going to go down the drain, IMO. RPUs have become meaningless now, too.

-RM

transportbiz

Winner, winner, chicken dinner.

Baze

Ok, to expand on my question. Did you ask if they were on Y/B fares? Prior to today that would have put Gold and Silver and Platinum in front of you on the list. But that was always the case. As of today status less than 1K on a Y/B fare no longer gets that bump in priority on the upgrade list within 5 days of departure if waitlisted. And this scenario is the only one that makes sense where a supervisor would say they paid more so they are ahead of you.

Treeskier

YES. In addition, they have limited the number of Global Premier and Segment upgrades, i.e. you can never get them. Makes total sense, get people to spend more for a ticket and then upgrade them regardless of status of miles flown. I track this religiously. American Matched my status today - I'm now Exec Platinum and DONE with United.

Treeskier

I fly all over, and frankly connecting on an airline that does not trwat you like crap, fine with me. And I can tell you this, CPU's 2013 - 2015, 70% of the time. 2016 Year to date, 10% 1 out of 10 flights. Dropped from consistent 1-4 on the upgrade wait list when not upgraded to 14-16 and my flight miles went up last year. You really don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure out something is wrong, the data is all there. Use the United App, it tells all. Start asking questions on who's ahead of you and why. You will be very shocked at what you find.

JBord

Well, my Silver coworker was below me on the upgrade list today even though she had a higher fare and fare class (we were discussing how it works as she is likely to get to 1k this year).

I would take that as proof over an employee since I find most of them have no idea, they just rely on the system to do it correctly.

tom911

Maybe it's good you're moving to AA, then. I've cleared 18/20 domestic upgrades there in January (90%) including a couple transcons to/from JFK. Let me know if you need any help with the AA program.

No requirement to fly a certain amount of miles in a fixed time period?

Welcome to FlyerTalk

UK Stages

well, talk about burying the lead!

that's remarkable. as a 1K for all of last year, i cleared two (2) upgrades without instruments.

two.

less than 4% of eligible flights.

so something is not quite right, unless you're only flying oddball routes with little elite traffic. if you actually and factually cleared 70% of your upgrades, it's no wonder you think there's something nefarious afoot.

but there isn't, other than what's been shared by others.