Hi all -

I have flown US Airways nearly exclusively since 1997 and have been either Silver or Gold with them every year since. I decided after the endless series of downgrades in both coach & first class service to move carriers. I chose CO as they service both BTV and MHT (as near to my home as one can get).

My problem: I will be status matching to CO as a Silver for 2009. I did not make Silver on US this year as I flew CO (20K miles) instead. I can buy my US preferred back for $829. Having flown CO, I didn't appreciate much difference - coach is equally uncomfortable and tight, service was a bit better than US perhaps but not significantly, and CO only flies Barbie jets to both BTV and MHT whereas US has the E190's to MHT. I'm beginning to think staying with US might have been better if I can get past the choking and gasping I'm doing typing that.

What can I expect as a Silver? - it seems that you rarely get an upgrade, so will be mostly in Coach. I pay for first sometimes, but not always.

I'm almost to the point of flying B6 most of the time & paying for F on a major carrier for long hauls/Europe trips, but I do enjoy the other perks (priority lines, etc) one gets on all the carriers.

Anyone else struggling with this question? We all like our perks, but it's getting hard to know what & where they will be best.

Silver doesn't seem to mean much these days with any carrier

Elite check in & security at SOME stations and free bag check

In general however CO is about 500 times better than US in

just about all of what they do

To me US comes right after Greyhound & Trailways

It's not fancy, but CO Silver has some perks. Luggage fees are waived, you can use the magical blue carpet at check-in and boarding, selection of elite economy seats (except exit rows) at purchase. None of these are amazing, but I'm happy to have some little improvement in my travels. The bonus miles are dropping to 25%, which is pretty crummy, but I like the rest of the offerings well enough.

Upgrades are VERY dependent on routes, times, and aircraft. I fly in and out of WAS (mostly BWI) and had an upgrade rate of almost 40% this year as a Silver. I don't think that's so shabby! But I know that's based largely on my habits and choices.

Personally, I have only had mediocre (or worse) experience on US... and I'd choose almost any other airline over them! CO hasn't disappointed me, even as a Silver.

Don't forget that even on fairly short flights, CO isn't going to hose you for non-alcoholic drinks (water, pop, etc.). The most embarrasing thing, IMHO, about my flights with US are the charges for water and pop. I know they are trying to make a buck, but that is just cheap. Charge $4 more (or something like that) for a RT ticket and just give people the free drinks.

One option that you might consider before buying back US Silver status: When CO and UA partner up, you may get benefits on UA which you would not get as a US Silver flying on UA.

Thanks for the feedback so far. I was just mulling my last trip on CO which was in 6A on a 737 and I was so cramped that I was typing on my laptop with arms like a T-Rex (think elbows up to my ears) but that was almost as bad as F in the A321 on US Airways, post "refurbishment". I think it's pretty miserable on all of the carriers now - it's about how many we can pack in.

I hadn't thought about CO entering *A - that might be a big plus to moving to CO now.

I have experienced CO BizFirst EWR-HNL and it was exceptional. Got an "R" fare for $1700 RT from BOS which I thought was decent and the service on the long haul was superior to anything US dreamed up.