Originally Posted by
pomcoach
We booked with United for a June flight to Tampa. Our flight was originally flying out at 1:15, but now they've changed it to fly out at 1:49. I remember once my hubby and I went to the airport a few hours early and they said we could standby for an earlier flight. We got to our destination a couple of hours early and it was great, and best of all, free.
So this time there's a 10:45 a.m. flight out, and I was hoping to standby for this earlier flight. But my husband called, and they told him there'd be a $50 extra charge per person if we tried the earlier flight.
So is the free "standby for an earlier flight" gone now? Boy, if so, that's too bad. That's one of the reasons I liked to book with United. They seemed to be one of the only airlines that offered that opportunity.
Anyone had any experiences with this lately?
Thanks,
Pomcoach from Iowa
Yes, there still is free standby. The $50 fee that the agent mentioned over the phone is the so-called "confirmed standby" that allows passengers to pay $50 and be confirmed a seat up to four hours ahead of the flight they want, pending availability, and not have to risk being denied a seat during the standby process. You can check flight loads on seatcounter.com the morning of the flight and if it reads Y9 you should be fine just taking the free standby in most cases.