AA or UA?
 

Presently a 1K with UA, live in DEN, seriously considering jumping ship to AA. Looking for opinions, experiences and/or comparisons on UA vs. AA FF programs. Thank you in advance. Happy Holidays.

Gaucho100K just did an analysis of this very issue, after reaching top tier on both carriers. I can't recall if he posted on the UA or AA board, but a quick search under his name on those boards should produce a thread.

Welcome to FlyerTalk.

AA hands down due to MRTC, lifetime platinum at 2mm, upgrades on any fare, etc. HOWEVER since you live in Denver, and unless you are flying to DFW or ORD you will be connecting on every trip. Probably not worth it. Stick with UA.

The most important thing for me when I choose an airline is convenience. There's a reason why I like United. It's called a hub at Dulles that will take me to pretty much anywhere I want to go without having to connect.

You've got the same thing in Denver, so I would go with them. If I lived in Dallas, things would be different.

What if you lived in Chicago?

Tom911, tried to locate it unsuccessfully on both boards. Would you happen to remember the topic/link? Thanks.

It's on the UA board:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum50/HTML/015809.html

The "search" feature on each page comes in handy for finding things like this.

My own experience is that AA plays hardball every chance they get, and charges many fees UA doesn't charge (most recent example: $100 change fee on award tickets). I also find their marketing is much less honest and upfront than UA's.

This is a no-brainer. Why would you choose an airline on the eve of bankruptcy? Go with AA and sleep a little sounder at night, at least for a while.

AA all the way. On UA if I don't receive an upgrade I am stuck with no leg room. On AA there is MRTC (more room throughout coach) so if I am stuck in coach I don't mind it at all.

Thanks to everyone who put their two cents in. Yes, being out of DEN makes UA somewhat more of a sensible choice, but there have been just too many cutbacks on 1K 'features.' Gone are the free third bag check-in, 1K rooms, complimentary back-to-back accomodation and free standby priviliges (does any other carrier do the standby charge?). It seems the only thing out there are the 100-hour upgrade and the 1K line, and as part of that 80%, I'm not sure that's enough for me.

I also keep thinking about switching to AA but everytime I am dealing with AA it is just so unbelievable complicated and to be honest I think the AA/BA ff program rules are already much too complicated.

So I am still with UA. They are not great but reliable.

This is a silly thing to say. USAirways is in bankruptcy, and guess what? They're still flying. The same thing will happen with UAL.

Bankruptcy doesn't affect passengers, so scratch that off your list.

[QUOTE Gone are the free third bag check-in, 1K rooms, complimentary back-to-back accomodation and free standby priviliges (does any other carrier do the standby charge?). It seems the only thing out there are the 100-hour upgrade and the 1K line, and as part of that 80%, I'm not sure that's enough for me.[/B][/QUOTE]

AA has also lost the 3rd bag priviledge... even if you are flying first class and/or internationally... cost me 80 USD recently.

mdtony, there are examples of airlines who did not make it out of bankruptcy. UA will likely NOT continue flying in the same manner after bankruptcy. As consumers we have to make the best educated decisions we can with the information we have at the time. The original question dealt with trying to decide between AA and UA. With the current information, in my opinion, this is a relatively easy decision, although it does depend to some extent on ones propensity for risk.