Originally Posted by
drewguy
All this is true, but do we know how many new 1Ks qualified in 2020 or 2021?
We don't have to. We know that 2019 was a record travel year, and that UA reduced thresholds considerably in 2020 and 2021. Whatever the current number is, it's more than what that number was at January 31, 2020, and I would imagine by a fairly large margin given how easy it was to requalify in 2021 in particular.
Originally Posted by
drewguy
And just because there are more 1Ks than ever doesn’t mean there are more 1Ks than ever flying with the same frequency. What matters isn’t how many 1Ks are out there, but rather how many of them are flying.
Are you flying? I've been flying more of less weekly since March 2020, and can tell you that the airports are packed, flights are packed, and UA upgrades are now close to nonexistent for me (AA is better, AS
much better).
In any event, I don't think the basic point - that this extension reflects a massive ongoing dilution of the 1K program - can credibly be disputed.
I say this as a somewhat interested observer. I won't ever chase UA status again, and requalified this year purely by accident.