Originally Posted by
DarkHelmetII
1) If my ticketed flight originates from DCA and I schlep out to IAD, will the agent(s) even have the option to consider putting me on standby out of IAD? I am receiving conflicting input from the call center.
They’d have the option of doing it, yes, but they’d be doing you a big favor. The policy is that there’s to be no change of routing, and definitely no change of airport. Most recent reports are that, absent IRROPS, agents won’t allow this.
Originally Posted by
DarkHelmetII
2) Ideally I would have IAD-EWR-LHR ticketed to avoid any pushback with respect to changing the originating airport. The 8:39 AM IAD-EWR is currently available via Saver but not the 12:36. If I ticket the 8:39 IAD-EWR but don't clear standby on IAD-LHR and miss the 8:39, will UA confirm me on the 12:36 (pending availability at that time) or will I have to then also fly standby on the 12:36 IAD-EWR?
If you miss the 8:39 AM flight, you’re also going to lose your confirmed seat on the EWR-LHR flight. Under the flat tire rule, UA would try to re-accommodate you as best as they can, but if flights happen to be full that day, you could have just torpedoed your entire flight. If there is a confirmed seat available, the agents will normally just give it to you, but technically they could insist that you fly standby if no Saver Award space is available. And if there happens to have been a spate of cancellations the night before, there’s no guarantee you’d find a seat on IAD-EWR anyway.
Your far better option is to try to waitlist for the award that you want in advance (much more likely if you’ve booked IAD-EWR-LHR than DCA). Technically, the award waitlist policy doesn’t cover waitlisting for economy, but reports are generally positive. After getting a confirmed seat on IAD-EWR-LHR, call the Premier line and ask to waitlist for a Saver Award on the nonstop flight. If they refuse, don’t ask for a supervisor, just HUCA.