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Everything you wanted to know about the confirmed same-day change process

Everything you wanted to know about the confirmed same-day change process

 
Old Mar 29, 2006, 9:43 am
  #61  
 
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Can you check-in online with $25 confirmed standby?

I'm on Sunday's 3 p.m. "direct" BOS-PDX (stop in SFO) and would like to take the 8 a.m. BOS-SFO instead. I might be willing to pay the $25 for a confirmed change (at 4 a.m., yikes) if after confirming the change from home I can get to online checkin and pick a decent seat; it's worth $25 to not be stuck in E- or middle for a transcon, which seems more likely if I do "regular" standby.

Also, will phone agents (probably Indian agents due to the time-of-day involved) do a confirmed change for just the BOS-SFO part, or do they have to get all the way to PDX? All of the SFO-PDX flights are showing F0 Y0 for the day, so I doubt they'd be willing to confirm a change. The BOS-SFO I want is showing F3 Y9 ... H9 so should be OK.
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Old Mar 31, 2006, 6:16 pm
  #62  
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Originally Posted by Lpas
Am I reading correctly that you cannot do this if the routing is different? In other words, I can't be booked on SEA-ORD-IAD and do a confirmed standby for the SEA-IAD flight that leaves 2 hours earlier?
I just had an interesting conversation on the phone with a CSR, and I'm not sure if it's accurate.

I'm scheduled to fly EWR-DEN-SMF on Saturday morning, however the agent said that I could pay the $25 fee and confirm a standby JFK-SFO-SMF or JFK-LAX-SMF (to catch PS). Is that true? If so, I may make it a later flight and get on the JFK-SFO 777-200 that's running tomorrow.
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Old Mar 31, 2006, 7:35 pm
  #63  
 
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Perhaps that agent wasn't familiar with the "same routing" rules. Chances are, when you call back, you will get a stickler for the rules.
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Old May 2, 2006, 5:32 pm
  #64  
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What is the best strategy to use to get on an earlier ps flight only if I am able to get an aisle seat as a minimum, and hopefully an upgrade? I want to fly on any of the 4 earlier ps flights of the day. While I'd love to be able to upgrade, at a minimum, I want an aisle seat - and would keep my current reservation if I cannot accomplish that. (I'm happy to pay the $25 to confirm an earlier flight.)
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Old May 16, 2006, 8:25 am
  #65  
 
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OLCI the night before

Originally Posted by SanDiego1K
What is the best strategy to use to get on an earlier ps flight only if I am able to get an aisle seat as a minimum, and hopefully an upgrade? I want to fly on any of the 4 earlier ps flights of the day. While I'd love to be able to upgrade, at a minimum, I want an aisle seat - and would keep my current reservation if I cannot accomplish that. (I'm happy to pay the $25 to confirm an earlier flight.)

Has anyone had any luck getting standby options checking in the day before using OLCI?

For example, i am traveling this week on friday afternoon LGA-ORD on a 4 pm flight. Is there any way OLCI will give me standby options for thurs night if i go online at 5pm thurs (within the 24 hr window) and try to get a 7 or 8 pm flight on thurs i can get confrimed for the 25?

Not sure if i need to go back thurs night or fri morn, but it would make for a nice option.
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Old May 16, 2006, 9:41 am
  #66  
 
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Originally Posted by brsp18
Has anyone had any luck getting standby options checking in the day before using OLCI?

For example, i am traveling this week on friday afternoon LGA-ORD on a 4 pm flight. Is there any way OLCI will give me standby options for thurs night if i go online at 5pm thurs (within the 24 hr window) and try to get a 7 or 8 pm flight on thurs i can get confrimed for the 25?

Not sure if i need to go back thurs night or fri morn, but it would make for a nice option.
I have checked in online the day before (within the 24 hour window for OLCI) and the only standby options are on the day of flight.

Also, the $25 confirmed standby is only good for flights within 4 before your originally scheduled flight.
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Old May 16, 2006, 12:54 pm
  #67  
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I am reporting in on my most recent use of the $25 confirmed standby.

I was originally scheduled for a flight from SFO/PHX at 6:15 a.m. The thought of having to get to the airport that early was not appealing, so I called United around midnight to see what my options were.

The first CSR said that she could only confirm 4 hours before the flight I wanted to take--not the flight I was on. I told her that I would have to miss my originally scheduled flight with nothing protecting me. What would happen if there was no room on later flights? She said that it was the risk I took for opting for standby. Clearly this didn't make sense because what's the point of calling it a guaranteed standby? I thanked her, hung up, and called back.

The next CSR had no problem confirming me and my travelling companion on the more civil 9:20 a.m. flight.

So twice I have been successful in getting a CSR to stretch the 4 hour window when the flights are early in the morning.
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Old May 26, 2006, 5:46 pm
  #68  
 
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Today as I go to see the options the day before my flight to ord (I have a 3 p.m. and want a 9 a.m.) I see under 'options" i have the option of getting put on the waiting list for the next day's earlier flight.

I'm guessing that even if i'm first on that waiting list, anyone who pays the $25 4 hours before the 9.am. flight will have priority over me.

Do I understand that right?

Then a second question. I'm traveling on the Memorial Day weekend and United is telling me tonight the flights are overbooked and they aren't going to have any $25 options tomorrow morning (though my check of class availability shows h1 or h2 showing for some morning flights). If i check in on line and do the optional standby, I have trouble believing they are going to put me in front of the people they overbooked, even if I'm first on the standby list. Are they?

Last edited by MrAOK; May 26, 2006 at 6:05 pm
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Old May 27, 2006, 7:52 am
  #69  
 
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Originally Posted by MrAOK
I'm guessing that even if i'm first on that waiting list, anyone who pays the $25 4 hours before the 9.am. flight will have priority over me.

Do I understand that right?
Mostly. They won't technically have a higher priority than you, because they won't be standing by. When they call up, there will either be a seat available or there won't, and they'll either pay $25 to take it or not. They won't be "waiting" or "standing by" for anything.

So yes, they may get a seat that could have eventually gone to you, but they'll get it because they used a different process, not because they were higher priority.


Originally Posted by MrAOK
If i check in on line and do the optional standby, I have trouble believing they are going to put me in front of the people they overbooked, even if I'm first on the standby list. Are they?
No, they won't. They take care of a bunch of higher priority people before you (higher priority due to their situation, not due to status or fare class.) Then, when all those of a higher SITUATIONAL priority (called BP levels or something) are taken care of, then you'll be ranked, along with others trying to stand by just as you are, on the basis of status, fare class, and time added to the list.
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Old Jun 7, 2006, 11:43 pm
  #70  
 
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This thread has already addressed the no route change rule, but I am a little confused. According to fare rules I've seen, SFO-OAK are considered the same point.

So, shouldn't I be able to go stand by on a flight out of SFO even if my original flight leaves out of OAK?

That's what I'd like to do. The return flight is OAK-DEN, and I want to go SFO-DEN instead.

Has anybody ever done that?
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Old Jun 8, 2006, 4:04 am
  #71  
 
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Originally Posted by FinallyFlying
This thread has already addressed the no route change rule, but I am a little confused. According to fare rules I've seen, SFO-OAK are considered the same point.

So, shouldn't I be able to go stand by on a flight out of SFO even if my original flight leaves out of OAK?

That's what I'd like to do. The return flight is OAK-DEN, and I want to go SFO-DEN instead.

Has anybody ever done that?
two or more airports can be considered co-terminals for fare purposes (such as BWI/DCA/IAD are considered co-terminals for most UA fares in and out of WAS) but not necessarily co-terminals for standby purposes (in the previous example, most fares only allow standby from IAD/DCA if flying in/out of the other DC airport).

Please read the standby fare rules for your ticket for the answer.
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Old Jun 8, 2006, 6:25 am
  #72  
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Originally Posted by FinallyFlying
This thread has already addressed the no route change rule, but I am a little confused. According to fare rules I've seen, SFO-OAK are considered the same point.

So, shouldn't I be able to go stand by on a flight out of SFO even if my original flight leaves out of OAK?

That's what I'd like to do. The return flight is OAK-DEN, and I want to go SFO-DEN instead.

Has anybody ever done that?
Unless your fare rules specifically allow it, or you get a sympathetic agent, I doubt it. The normal "standby co-terminals" are IAD/DCA, ORD/MDW (soon to cease to be relevant), and JFK/LGA (which share so few destinations as to be nearly irrelevant).
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Old Jun 8, 2006, 7:14 am
  #73  
 
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Originally Posted by studentff
I'm on Sunday's 3 p.m. "direct" BOS-PDX (stop in SFO) and would like to take the 8 a.m. BOS-SFO instead. I might be willing to pay the $25 for a confirmed change (at 4 a.m., yikes) if after confirming the change from home I can get to online checkin and pick a decent seat; it's worth $25 to not be stuck in E- or middle for a transcon, which seems more likely if I do "regular" standby.

Also, will phone agents (probably Indian agents due to the time-of-day involved) do a confirmed change for just the BOS-SFO part, or do they have to get all the way to PDX? All of the SFO-PDX flights are showing F0 Y0 for the day, so I doubt they'd be willing to confirm a change. The BOS-SFO I want is showing F3 Y9 ... H9 so should be OK.
Yes you can! And this is a very useful trick! I needed to visit a friend in SFO for the day but the cost for putting in a full day stopover was too high. So I booked a later flight with a standard connection. Then the day of, I took a standby for an early AM flight but left my red-eye out of SFO alone. I checked availability the day before and saw the first flight out was wide open (although early), so I didnt even bother doing a confirmed. I did OLCI the night before for my original flights and walked up to the gate of the flight I wanted and they gave me a seat 45 mins out, since the plane was half full.

I was worried this might invalidate my evening flight for some reason but it didn't... HOWEVER one catch!!:

If you do OLCI and you standby successfully for another flight it will CANCEL your check in on the later flight. You need to RE-CHECK in. I didnt and when sitting at the gate for my oversold red-eye they called my name... when I came up they said "Oh! You ARE here! We were about to give your seat away...". They said they did not show me as checked in although I was holding an OLCI BP...
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Old Jun 8, 2006, 7:16 am
  #74  
 
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Originally Posted by exerda
Unless your fare rules specifically allow it, or you get a sympathetic agent, I doubt it. The normal "standby co-terminals" are IAD/DCA, ORD/MDW (soon to cease to be relevant), and JFK/LGA (which share so few destinations as to be nearly irrelevant).
I much prefer DCA to IAD, but I believe fares are generally higher out of DCA and there isn't that much service on UA metal. So of how much practical significance could there be to the IAD/DCA "standby co-terminals"? If one is scheduled WAS-BOS, can they standby for a UA/US codeshare from DCA? I suppose a DCA-ORD for IAD-ORD substitution would be the most likely option. Other destinations for which one might standby from DCA rather than go as scheduled from IAD? And I suppose none of these standby provisions or anything else make it possible to switch an IAD destination to a DCA one, right?
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Old Jun 8, 2006, 7:27 am
  #75  
 
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Originally Posted by dmodemd
Yes you can! And this is a very useful trick! I needed to visit a friend in SFO for the day but the cost for putting in a full day stopover was too high. So I booked a later flight with a standard connection. Then the day of, I took a standby for an early AM flight but left my red-eye out of SFO alone. I checked availability the day before and saw the first flight out was wide open (although early), so I didnt even bother doing a confirmed. I did OLCI the night before for my original flights and walked up to the gate of the flight I wanted and they gave me a seat 45 mins out, since the plane was half full.

I was worried this might invalidate my evening flight for some reason but it didn't... HOWEVER one catch!!:

If you do OLCI and you standby successfully for another flight it will CANCEL your check in on the later flight. You need to RE-CHECK in. I didnt and when sitting at the gate for my oversold red-eye they called my name... when I came up they said "Oh! You ARE here! We were about to give your seat away...". They said they did not show me as checked in although I was holding an OLCI BP...
I don't understand why you did the OLCI 24 hours or so in advance, since your strategy was not to take your originally scheduled flight, but instead to go standby earlier. What could you have accomplished with the OLCI other than set yourself up for screw-up that almost transpired with the red-eye out of SFO you were going to take? I don't mean to be reproachful here, I am just trying to understand what, if anything, might have been served by doing the OLCI as originally booked, then going standby on the first leg of your itinerary. Was it to collect 500 miles for OLCI, something I imagine you could have had by doing OLCI for the red-eye.
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