My wish list for 2012 eUpgrade program
 

This is my wish for the 2012 upgrade program.

Latitude fare - No points required but upgrade windows (168, 96, 48h) apply.

M fare - 5, 10 and 15 points for North America, International (</=5K), and International (>5K) respectively apply.

T+ fare - 10, 15 and 20 points for destinations per M fare.

Threshold points - 15, 30 and 45 for P,E and SE respectively; more at landmark threshs.

Start-up points - 80, 40 and 25 for SE, E and P respectively.

Aumomatic upgrade consistent with the 168, 96, 48h windows and availability. Upgrade request at booking time.

My structure is fair, simple and makes arithmetic sense.

I completely disagree. I can live with the current number of credits required. But more importantly, availability at time of reservation is of huge importance.

Don't give them ideas.

I want an option that allows one to deselect Fuel Surcharges for Award bookings.

rolling expiration of eUpgrades
 

eUpgrades expire 365 days after posting to the account

That's the big one! :D

roll over miles for E's and SE's

One of the things I really like about AC is that there are *almost* no free upgrades- by this I mean unlike american carriers that tend to upgrade regardless of fare X number of hours before departure, AC makes you request upgrades using eupgrades.

In my opinion, this keeps exec. somewhat exclusive, and gives pax with less status some hope of an upgrade! I know I'd seriously consider moving to westjet if this happened- I have to fly Tango +, and am Elite. Most of my flights are premium heavy, so upgrading is rare at best- this would make it impossible. Yes it does reward the top fliers more, but the rest would be alienated.

My wish would be to be able to pay taxes and surcharges with miles, similar to what M&M lets you do. That would be a nice change after introducing surcharges to most carriers.

After flying a segment in United J domestic last week, I am reminded how little Exec class would mean to me if Air Canada started offering unlimited upgrades.

I really hope that the ideas that I've left in your quote below don't get much consideration from AC.

I'm not a fan of AC implementing any form of UDU, which is essentially what you are asking for on Latitude fares.

I'm not sure why you are requesting an increase in the number of eUpgrade credits required for T+ fares. M fares currently require 2/4, 8 and 12 and you are suggesting rates of 5, 10 and 15. Remaining T+ fares require 6/10, 14 and 17 and you are suggesting rates of 10, 15 and 20.

There isn't much point in raising the number of credits given at the start of the year if you are going to inflate the redemption costs too.

I would rather that AC makes a few other changes to the eUpgrade system:

• Eliminate the need to choose between eUpgrades and the bonus RDM - bonus RDM should be a standard benefit, not a selection.
• Increase the number of eUpgrade credits awarded at the start of the year to match what was offered in previous years. For example in 2010 as an E I was able to select 2 SSWU, 2 SWU and 4 NAU (in addition to the top tier bonus miles). Each SSWU is equivalent to a maximum of 17 credits based on max T+ fare redemption (34), each SWU is equivalent to a maximum of 12 credits based on max M fare redemption (24), each NAU is equivalent to a maximum of 4 credits based on max M fare redemption (16). In order to get the same equivalent upgrade potential in 2012 E's should start with approximately 74 eUpgrade credits. SE and E starting points should be calculated similarly.
• I'd prefer if the threshold eUpgrade credits were awared approximately equivalent to the old SSWU/SWU/NAU.
• Allow the purchase of a limited number of "top up" eCredits over the course of the year.

And I do like the previously suggested idea of being able to waitlist for an upgrade at the time of reservation and have it clear (subject to availability) at the upgrade window.

Other changes I'd like to see are:

• discounted change fees
• free standby on all T+ fares for status pax outside of the eastern triangle

Last year I posted several suggestions in the suggestion box thread. When I get some time I'll revisit that list given the changes that have taken place over the past year.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/14851039-post94.html

+1 ^

I'm also against any formula that includes UDU. I'd prefer that Exec Class did not turn into an "upgrade class" with reduced service, plastic cutlery, bad food, etc. as is the case down south. On 2-hour flights AC still serves a full meal with a beverage service while you'll only get a choice of snacks from a basket on US airlines.

And elites should get flight bonuses automatically without the need to sacrifice another selection item. 100%/50%/25% for SE/E/P seems fair.

I completely agree with this. I am 100% upgraded on CO/UA this year (I think probably 12 flights so far) and have never paid more than the cheapest fare. The food on CO/UA I would not serve my dog (and he's an omnivore lab).

No change fees and free standby on T+ and above fares

And for Christmas, rollover segments!

ability to use Eups for AC metal Y awards

Leave the e-up structure alone, but add the additional 10 credits that were awarded last year to the base benefits.

I agree with the sentiments to include the RDM bonus as a basic benefit, but it won't happen. Too much of a cost involved.

The biggest thing I would like to see is elimination of reward booking fees for SE and E, as well as zero fee changes to reward tickets for the same groups (or zero fee for SE, $30 for E, $60 for P and $90 for the rest of the lice). There should be some benefit in redemption for the flyers that actually earn their miles through flying. UACO have got this right, follow their example.

And my biggest wish, which isn't really even connected to AE is for AC to enforce priority boarding and carry-on limits. I am so sick and tired of people bringing 3 and 4 pieces of carry-on with them, and AC doing nothing. And many of us Es and SEs are amongst the worst offenders, and we should be subject to the same enforced limits as everyone else.