Originally Posted by
LarkSFO
I know there is a thanksgiving thread on UA out there, but this pertains to their announcement today.
Background: I am a newly minted 1K. I am wearing rose tinted glasses. I am not an elitist, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night....
The upsides:
You point out that you are new, so let's take these one at a time:
1) Immediate granting of SWU's is good! Currently, SWU's all expire at the same time, so there is a big end of year rush to use them. Leading to a complete lack of availability. Leading to people complaining about buying a more expensive upgradable fare but never getting the SWU. By evening out the expiration dates over the entire calendar year, availability will increase.
Maybe in 2012, but it isn't good in 2011, because we will still have 6 SWU's to work through. And you should note that for the entire year of 2010, NOT just the end of the year, it's been virtually impossible to confirm an international SWU upgrade from Y to C (the only one that matters) in advance. Despite doing virtually as much international travel in 2010 as in 2009, I am going to end up with 4 unused SWU's.
If availability is zero for, say, an entire month or even 3 months -- as it is for many international non-stop routes out of SFO -- there will be no increase in availability.
2) 120 EQS to qualify 1K: Bravo! Great move UA! You had diluted 1K, and are now trying to make it more of an elite / exclusive club. Thank you.
I think many would say that the elimination of DEQM promotions in 2010 would more than achieve this goal, without going even further to punish 1k's who qualify on segments.
3) 75K is better than 50K and worse than 100K - This is also a good thing for 1K's - people who actually travel BIS 100K plus miles per year. You are clearly identified as the top rung for any upgrade benefits.
First of all, 1k is nowhere near the top rung. As you watch all your upgrades going to people who are GS or who pay $50 extra, you'll soon realize that. A cheap red carpet does not make one top rung! Finally, on the two domestic routes where upgrades really matter: SFO/LAX-JFK, there are no upgrades on demand.
Secondly, 75k is WAY worse than 10k, which is what we used to have to fly to get regional upgrades. That is the proper comparison.
4) Corollary to # 3 - This is also good for 75K BIS fliers (which is probably what I will shoot for if today's announcement is permanent). You only have GS and 1K ahead of you, and are clearly identified as 'above' a 50K flier.
Maybe in 2012 when it goes into effect. Having 1k and GS ahead of you (along with all the folks who paid to upgrade) is no small bucket of people, as you will soon realize.
5) CR 1's: Again, for the passenger that adds to UA's bottom line, this change is OK. For those who achieve 1K by spending $3412 and sleeping in airports: Sorry!
6) Thank you UA for NOT offering DEQM in 2010! I do believe (without anything but anecdotal evidence) that there will be fewer 1K's next year, and that we will truly feel like UA appreciates us due to our loyalty to them.
7) Adios - Goodbye to all of you former UA loyalists who now claim to investigate allegiance to Delta or AA (or Southwest). I wish you luck, and I am glad you will no longer be competing for my benefits. If you love it over there, please let us know because we are not closing the door on any options.
....
This is redoing previous points, so I'll not comment here.
Thanks for the contribution, I guess we'll have to see who votes with their feet. As one of those international flyers that UA claims to value so much, if I'm paying for business, I'm now choosing based on non-elite status factors. But then I was planning on doing that before, the removal of upgrade possibilities on ps flights (which is a big consequence of this action) only cements in my mind the correctness of my earlier decision.