Originally Posted by
BearX220
A sub-elite who buys a ticket close to departure day in a more expensive fare class is typically consigned to the least desirable seats on the plane and Zone 4 boarding, meaning a high likelihood of no bin space left. Before the CO/UA hookup, when I was only a "general member" on UA, I stopped booking UA trips altogether because of this.
In UA world, if your BP has a zone number and it is not Zone 1 (1P, 1K and GS just list their status), you are not elite. Premier and Premier Associate (the lowest elite) are boarded Zone 1. Zone 4 just tells you are in the Aisle.