Wow, interesting post, not even sure where to start. Just a few thoughts:
1. I would be curious to know who this guy is. How did you get into a conversation, out of curiosity?
2. Yep, they all visit FT, just don't join us. They usually look at us as their enemies, instead of a group of people with decent ideas, which is pretty sad, since other programs obviously embrace FT.^
3. Economy refit? While I know they said there would be no PTV's on the 747, what other kind of refit could they possibly do? I knew they were going to do C and F at the same time, but this sounds interesting...
4. Make it like the PS model where there are few upgrades? Maybe I'm just totally lucky, but I find upgrades on PS easy.
5. Obviously to move into profitability upgrades are going to have to stop as frequently, which makes sense. Still, I doubt upgrades are going to stop clearing, since I doubt they will gain a lot of business with the new C with their service and overall attitude. Good luck, UA! Also, would this mean the end of SWU's, or will they just be much harder to use? I still see no issue for those of us that plane ahead and get flights with confirmable space, personally.
6. Sucks that it will take so long for the refit. That really is a bummer. I wonder whether UA is just going to fly them on certain routes, or how they are going to sell the cabins if this one has drastically less capacity.
7. Changing the way they interact with the customers? I'll believe it when I see it, unfortunately. UA as a whole needs a completely new attitude, and that starts from the top down. The management has to learn to try and get along with the unions (as difficult as it may be at times) and vice versa. With the current corporate culture, this seems almost impossible. I think it's time for new management, since I don't think the employees can get over GT's bonus.
8. While I appreciate that you think UA is trying, I still think not. They are overlooking such obvious things continually, which really show how much they care about premium customers. How about starting by giving full fareY/C/F passengers E+ on Ted flights?
Just my two cents...