Originally Posted by
davie355
That's a good reason not to allow free upgrades to E+, but what the airline misses out on is the customers who would become loyal (read: eventually spend more on UA) if only they were allowed to "sample" a benefit.
I think that is a very good argument for randomly operationally upgrading a passenger to E+, which already happens some on full flights. Indeed, Basic Economy passengers sometimes end up there.
But it's not an argument for rewarding the sort of passenger who asks for stuff he doesn't want to pay for.