I have to smile abit when I read this line. Because you're new here, you weren't around when almost everyone was foaming at the mouth when Continetal "Mullinized" itself and introduced EQMs. Pretty much everyone here went ballistic and swore to leave. We all projected a huge migration of customers away from CO using very similar language to yours.

Truth is: it never happened. There were (and are) some unhappy folks who left because they had to fly on sub-V fares and could not book online, but the rest of us sucked it up, directed our business to co.com and kept earning our status. The migration never happened, even though there are still quite a few customers out there who are clueless about EQMs and how it affected their qualification.

What *would* cause a migration? A similarly sized airline with a global route structure that offered better comfort, better service and a more generous FFP, including upgrades and award seats. Most of us here are still waiting to see such a thing materialize. Maybe UA will continue to reinvent itself to become that very thing, but for now, CO is pretty much the best option out there for *many* domestic non-transcon oriented customers who must travel on a variety of fares. It all comes down to one's routes, flights and spending patterns. What works for one customer might not work at all for another.