Absolutely not pointless, GPUs and to a lesser extent RPUs are making me seriously reconsider my re-qualification strategy for UA (i.e. why not fly the extra 50K miles to get 6 global upgrades every year, it'll more than pay for the capital outspend you have). If you don't believe me, I'd encourage you to look at the spreadsheet I put together tracking the GPU successes on FT this year (click GPU Offers tab) - you'll see there were over 275 legs that were upgraded this year thanks to GPUs. In creating the spreadsheet I found there were three general strategies used to secure those GPUs:

• Booking far enough in advance (i.e. months) to cherry pick the dates/routings that have R space available so that the upgrade can be confirmed at booking
• Change or better yet (free) SDC to another flight/routing once R availability pops up after they've booked
• Hang on for the (waitlist) ride and hope the upgrade clears by the time you get to the gate

GPUs aren't for the faint of heart. If you want an easy upgrade system go with BA cash+points Avios upgrade or AC's eUpgrade system but don't come back complaining when you find the options to upgrade are limited and require you to jump through many hoops.

Safe Travels,

James