Originally Posted by
Billygreg
I am sorry but there are tons of negatives to this for a319/a320 for elites. Lots of fewer E+ seats wont be good as it is hard enough now to get an aisle in E+,especially close-in. And does anyone really think your upgrade % is going to increase? Really? They are going to sell those seats for TODs every chance they get before they give them out as upgrades,as they do today. Andlikely at lower prices than today (since there are more of them). Most of us who fly on OPM can't buy first class except with our own money. So we will be competing with lower priced first class seats with our mostly useless elite upgrades. And the chance for a decent seat when you don't pay for the upgrade will decline as they remove E+ seats. And it is likely easier to get more non-elites to pay for first class vs E+. So upgrades will be just as hard and there will be less E+. Can't see how that benefits anyone.
From this article, it may be that the real driver of this is connecting to international flights, and having to tell customers that while they can buy a ticket from ORD-HKG/LHR/FRA in Polaris, they're going to have to fly the domestic leg in coach.
“We felt like we were at a competitive disadvantage in certain markets,” Andrew Nocella, United’s chief commercial officer, said in an interview with reporters.
“Today we hear all too often that passengers come in from a smaller market trying to access United’s global network, (but) can’t find a premium seat on the short-haul segment,” he said.
He pointed to Bentonville, Arkansas – home to Walmart’s corporate headquarters – as an example of a market where United has been at a disadvantage.
“Our competitors offer premium seats for the entire journey. United does not. As a result, we have a low share of premium Bentonville passengers to the world,” Nocella said.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/trave...et/2785146002/