Well, as a 1K (formerly CO Plat) - it is hard to really compare, because comparing flying as a 1k on UA to flying as a commoner on anyone else is obviously going to be a little skewed... I certainly don't like all the changes that have come with the merger, and the fact that PM UA elites think that all the changes are "Continental's Fault" shows that some obviously don't understand the nature of business and the end result of a merger, which is to make more money, often at the expense of customers, unfortunately... get over it, the tulip is dead, I've gotten over the fact that I have to fly a plane with big ugly box letter font on the side... lol, j/k
So, here are my reasons why I still like and will continue to fly UA
Continentals new planes - I like the new(er) planes, while some of the PMCO planes, and many of the PMUA planes are older, in general there are a lot of newer planes in the fleet, and UA will be the first NA carrier to fly the 787 if it ever gets delivered, haha. When I fly AA the planes always smell like cat pee... (yes I realize they have a gazillion planes on order, so maybe that will change, good for them, but it hasn't yet). When I fly USAir the fact that the seats feel like they are made of cardboard, and that there are functional ashtrays in the armrest, and the 70'sesque AmericaWest tapestry on the bulkhead does not make for a welcoming environment. I do not fly SW because I don't think Boeing designed the 737 to be a cabriolet... haha. Delta I have no glaring complaints other than watching some of the PM NWA planes crank up and spew a giant cloud of black smoke....
The Domestic Upgrade Process - Ive never been elite on AA or Delta, so I can only speak to what I hear from my friends that are, forgive me if I am misinformed... on AA you have to use your upgrades and manually request to be upgraded if I understand, I like not even having to think about it, unless I know it is an elite heavy route, then I just burn a regional upgrade to boost my chances...
Customer Service - Again, usually if the agent knows you are 1K, you get decent service, so my perspective may be skewed in this regard - Delta, even when I was "Sky team Elite Plus" was never very nice at the gate, of course there were exceptions, but generally in the ATL they were too busy gossiping with their friends to notice me standing in line, 3 feet from their face, the flight attendants quite often had attitude, although not usually directed at me, I had several flight attendants make the atmosphere VERY uncomfortable when a passenger did so little as look at them wrong.. and yes this has happened on UA, but not NEARLY as often as it did on Delta. SW I must say does have decent customer service, Ive only flown them twice because I despise the Cattle Call and that queasy feeling you get not knowing who will sit next to you, staring at every passenger secretly hoping they will or will not be the one... USAIR have also been nice, usually on par with UA, but again, I usually go to the Presidents club if I need anything, and those agents are phenomenal in most cases.
Star Alliance - The ability to use my miles for first class tickets on Lufthansa, Thai, Singapore (when they aren't stingy), Asiana, etc... and get almost anywhere in the world I want for free, and be able to try so many different airlines premium cabins using my UA miles is a huge benefit... Ive done so on many occasions.
I could go on, but I'll close here... in closing, yes there have been bumps in the road, and yes I am a little upset about the company choosing Chicago over H-Town (I AM a native Texan, haha), and I miss the Continental Name, and choosing routings to make sure I am on an aircraft I like is a bit more of a chore than it used to be. And yes I am partial to IAH based flight crews, I find them in general to be the nicest in the air, I still hate connecting through EWR because of all the delays, and my personality doesn't always mesh so well with Yankees (hehe, j/k), and now I have to try to avoid CHicago because that is PMUAs version of Newark.. but overall, in my opinion, it is still the best choice for me, otherwise I wouldn't choose UA
