OK, this sorta makes sense. I have to admit though, I thought the meal was subpar considering the length of the flight, and I could have done without the bus-trip-style "lets play games to pass the time". It also seemed like the plane we were on was super-old. My husband and I used to complain to each other about this on the transcon routes, but I think UA has been replacing the transcon routes with some newer jets. Or at least doing some surface improvements even if the planes themselves are still the same.

I probably shouldn't complain so much . As a former long-time resident of St. Louis, I lived through the demise of TWA and the AA takeover, and switching to United was an absolute breath of fresh air.