Star Gold / Silver (*G / *S) seating policy (2018 onwards)
 

I am planning flights from Los Angeles to Vancouver. The more suitable flights are a United Express flight from Los Angeles, and an Air Canada flight from Vancouver. So I have the option of booking either using the United or AC website.

Which would you recommend I book from? Does Air Canada recognize Star Alliance Gold status (Krisflyer, actually) if you use their website to book and does this give any privileges such as seat selection?

Thank you for your advice

Preferred seats are not free for *G on AC operated flights. That said, you would be added to the upgrade list where you can go from Y to J cabin.

I'm curious, how does this work when you are *G on a different program and have no eUpgrade credits with AC?

6/13 AC segments in the last 2 years, I've gotten an opup, including 3 longhauls, and twice the Y cabin wasnt full (short flights). All on lowest K fares, and one on a full Y fare.

There is no United basic economy to Canada.

Then you clearly have a horseshoe up your posterior.

I have done 40 segments this year on AC and have received a total of 0 OpUps. Both in full and half full planes.

On average, I will get 2-3 a year if that, averaging anywhere from 60-80 flights.

Highly doubtful you'll get any sort of op-up. Most people on the upgrade list will have AC status and will be way ahead of you. *G is pretty well meaningless.

Here is my list going back 3 years, out of about 18 flights in AC Y. Never had any AC status.
2018 YUL-PVG. L fare ->PY
2018 SFO-YYZ Y fare ->J
2017 BOS-YYZ K fare -> J (back not full)
2016 YYZ-CDG K fare ->PY
2016 BOS-YYZ Tango -> J
2015 JFK-YYZ Y fare -> J (back not full)
2015 YUL-LHR Tango -> J

While I am delighted for rankourabu and his remarkable success in being op-upped without being a member of AC's altitude program and a UA *G member, I think we should be extremely careful of suggesting to the OP and indeed any other *G members out that that this is in any way normal, expected, or actually AC policy.

ACs official policy is to fly with empty seats rather than op-upping even SEMM members (maybe this changes as an unpublished SE3MM or higher level). AC even happily flies with empty J seats when Y pax are left behind due to weather.
While I've seen reports here of people here getting the occasional opup, it seems a lot rarer than 50% of the time (and is mainly for people on non-Tango fares) and none of the FF's with AC directly I know have ever had one without using eUps.

While UA doesn't fly Basic Economy to Canada, AC does fly Economy Basic across Canada so I'd be careful what a domestic AC segment booked via UA goes into if you need any of the Tango/Flex 'advantages'.

It's easy to see which AC flights will oversell in Y.
When they sell <$400 fares from the US to Asia/Europe, the back fills up quickly.

on my YUL PVG flight, the back was oversold by 31. I m sure lots of Altitude members got OPUP to J/PY ahead of me.

All good points, and I believe it was made very clear upthread that *G members shouldn't rely upon comp upgrades at any time. The policy - if accurate - of AC leaving people behind rather than seat them up front during IROPs is staggering to me and indicative of how a company should NOT behave. Simply select the highest-possible status members for the win, and if necessary add a "no meal entitlement" remark on the manifest. At that point, few care about a reheated "Hawksworth" dinner; they just want to get where they paid Air Canada to take them. In OP's case, it's a 320 (or maybe even a CR9 for God's sake), so an upgrade isn't like winning the lottery.

As mentioned, a domestic Basic or Tango (or whatever it's called today) AC fare booked through the UA website yields 25% PQMs for UA's MP members.

As UA *G I find AC frequently assigns me the worst seats on the aircraft, typically in the last few rows. OTOH my wife and I, both UA*G, have been upgraded on approximately 30-40% of the AC flights where this was possible in the last 2-3 years. I say where possible because many of our flights on AC are short haul connectors on a Q400 with no J seats, or, alternatively, we are already in paid J on longer AC segments. In fact we observed that we get UG on AC more than we do on UA.

As for being lucky, perhaps we are. We were once UG by SQ from LHR-SIN on a reward ticket , which is apparently unheard of. We then received a $100 compensation voucher because they didn't have a diabetic meal in the business class cabin and wouldn't serve the pre ordered economy meal in that cabin. We never complained and my wife was happy to choose from the fish meals offered and watch her own diet but they kept apologizing for not having a diabetic meal loaded in a cabin that we hadn't paid for. My wife chose a piece of jewellery from their in flight selection on the journey home, paying with the voucher.

Domestically!!! All transborder and international fares on AC earn 100% qualifying miles, and at least 50% redeemable miles + elite bonus (so 100% for 1Ks)

So perhaps its not horseshoes, its a trend ;)

Not True, I have not missed a flight I was on the stand by list for in 3 years. In NYC two weeks ago I was 60 on the SBY list when i asked to take a flight 3 hrs earlier. Asked at the MLL and was told had not cleared but looked good. 10 minutes later i shot past the list and was number 2 with a check beside my name, when I got to they gate the issued me a seat in one of the preferred rows.