Wow, they're sure selling a lot of upgrades
Oct 19, 2012, 4:39 pm
#2086
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 4,645
SFO-MCO Q - Offered a little under $299 (forget exact number) - R=3
MCO-SFO S - Offered $399
Offer presented after ticket purchase in a pop up screen. First time I've ever seen one of those.
Declined both. Applied RPU to the first leg and cleared immediately. Price to UG on the second leg jumped to $416 after declining the offer. Applied 20K miles to waitlist for UG.
MCO-SFO S - Offered $399
Offer presented after ticket purchase in a pop up screen. First time I've ever seen one of those.
Declined both. Applied RPU to the first leg and cleared immediately. Price to UG on the second leg jumped to $416 after declining the offer. Applied 20K miles to waitlist for UG.
Oct 20, 2012, 8:34 am
#2087
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: NJ
Programs: UA Gold, Hilton Gold, Marriott Plat,
Posts: 284
I saw that pop-up for the first time yesterday. I booked quite a few reservations and the upgrade offer ranged from $299 EWR-IAH and $750 EWR-PDX. Luckilly r=9 on EWR-PDX so my RPU cleared immediately.
Oct 22, 2012, 8:44 am
#2088
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: ORD
Programs: UA GS
Posts: 143
Sick of getting offered purchased upgrades.
I'm a 1K and have an RPU expiring next week so figured I'd apply it on my flight today EWR-PHX. When I checked in got an offer to buy an upgrade for 200 bucks, even though I had already applied (and been wait listed) for my RPU. When I checked in, the flight was 11/12 of F full, I was number 1 on the waitlist. Now it's full in F, I'm sure that someone else took the buy-up option. I'm still number one on the upgrade list, FWIW. If I can't get an upgrade as a 1K using an RPU, what's the point?
Oct 22, 2012, 8:51 am
#2089
Suspended
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: DCA
Programs: UA US CO AA DL FL
Posts: 50,262
Anecdotally, the $200 is likely the difference between the fare you paid and the cheapest seat in FC (could me an M-UP) and is generally cheaper based on status. Therefore, your offer was likely lower than a Plat (who would need at least a B-UP).
UA's, as a for profit business, is to sell seats. And, if it can't sell them, then to make them available for "elites."
Here, UA apparently was able to sell the seat.
There are no surprises. Capacity cuts, more paid F, large corporate contracts as well as the very real benefit of the M-UP for 1K's means that there are fewer unpaid UG's to be had.
UA's, as a for profit business, is to sell seats. And, if it can't sell them, then to make them available for "elites."
Here, UA apparently was able to sell the seat.
There are no surprises. Capacity cuts, more paid F, large corporate contracts as well as the very real benefit of the M-UP for 1K's means that there are fewer unpaid UG's to be had.
Oct 22, 2012, 9:05 am
#2090
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: SFO and OAK
Programs: FAF, Hyatt <>, SPG PLT
Posts: 2,240
Anecdotally, the $200 is likely the difference between the fare you paid and the cheapest seat in FC (could me an M-UP) and is generally cheaper based on status. Therefore, your offer was likely lower than a Plat (who would need at least a B-UP).
UA's, as a for profit business, is to sell seats. And, if it can't sell them, then to make them available for "elites."
Here, UA apparently was able to sell the seat.
There are no surprises. Capacity cuts, more paid F, large corporate contracts as well as the very real benefit of the M-UP for 1K's means that there are fewer unpaid UG's to be had.
UA's, as a for profit business, is to sell seats. And, if it can't sell them, then to make them available for "elites."
Here, UA apparently was able to sell the seat.
There are no surprises. Capacity cuts, more paid F, large corporate contracts as well as the very real benefit of the M-UP for 1K's means that there are fewer unpaid UG's to be had.
How is the M-up a very real benefit to anyone when United more often than not sells A-fares for cheaper than M-fares on domestic routes? And when you book an M-up you may have to educate an agent on PN versus R?
Oct 22, 2012, 9:09 am
#2091
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: LGA/JFK/EWR
Programs: UA 1K1.75MM, Hyatt Globalist, abandoned Marriott LTT (RIP SPG), Hertz PC
Posts: 21,169
Also, we know that "pricing glitches" (to use a UAI term) can magically cause mysterious things to happen, no matter what the -UP pricing currently in the market.
Oct 22, 2012, 10:05 am
#2092
Moderator, Omni, Omni/PR, Omni/Games, FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Between DCA and IAD
Programs: UA 1K MM; Hilton Diamond
Posts: 67,133
Despite a heavy load (zeroed out across the board last last night to F1Y1 today) and aggressively-priced V-UPs, I did manage to clear CPU on both of my upcoming IAD-TPA-IAD legs at the 1K windows (and on both, the F cabin was fairly empty at the time). I guess there is a reason UA used to fly these with single-cabin TED a/c.
Oct 22, 2012, 10:44 am
#2093
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: SF Bay Area
Programs: UA 1K, Hyatt Globalist, Virtuoso Travel Agent, Commercial Pilot
Posts: 2,117
I don't get this one...
Just passed the 96 hr. mark for my upcoming DEN-SFO flight. Watched R inventory go from 7 to 4, but that's it. I get that just because there's R inventory that it doesn't mean that upgrades should have run. But once upgrades do run, shouldn't that process drain R inventory??
Just passed the 96 hr. mark for my upcoming DEN-SFO flight. Watched R inventory go from 7 to 4, but that's it. I get that just because there's R inventory that it doesn't mean that upgrades should have run. But once upgrades do run, shouldn't that process drain R inventory??
If your upgrade is instrument- supported then that is another story.
Oct 22, 2012, 12:43 pm
#2094
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: DEN
Programs: UA 1K (MM), DL, AA, AS, HHonors, SPG, Kimpton, Hyatt, IC PC, Marriott Titanium (LT PLT), Hertz PC
Posts: 7,231
If you're talking about CPUs, then no: R inventory only relates to instrument-supported upgrades. CPUs come from a hidden inventory allocation which is less than or equal to that in R. It is entirely possible that even when the upgrade system is working properly, R will be >0 even with eligible travelers still waiting for the upgrade.
If your upgrade is instrument- supported then that is another story.
If your upgrade is instrument- supported then that is another story.
Interesting to me that when R=7 only 3 of those were allocated for CPU at 96 hours.
Oct 22, 2012, 7:03 pm
#2095
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: SAN
Programs: AS MVP 100K, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Lifetime Titanium Elite, UA 1MM,
Posts: 1,709
My IAH-ORD 757 Tuesday evening just went from 6/24 in F class to 18/24 in about an hour of time around the flight check-in time. So 12 seats sold at check-in. There are a few of us that were already on the UG list from connections prior to this.
I agree with the theory that I have seen on FT, that if you end up on the UG list and dont clear ahead of time, the odds of clearing go way way down. Especially true of you are not 1K.
I agree with the theory that I have seen on FT, that if you end up on the UG list and dont clear ahead of time, the odds of clearing go way way down. Especially true of you are not 1K.
Oct 22, 2012, 7:21 pm
#2096
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Northern California
Programs: I want to be free! Free!
Posts: 3,455
Agree with the comments above regarding upgd chances. Also interesting to see it looks like the lower ranks of premiers have just given up. As a PremGold on a middling fare I was in the ~40s today DCA-IAH and IAH-SJC on upgrade lists that maybe went to 55. We'll see what happens when I go back to plt next week.
Oct 22, 2012, 7:27 pm
#2097
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 57,587
I'm a 1K and have an RPU expiring next week so figured I'd apply it on my flight today EWR-PHX. When I checked in got an offer to buy an upgrade for 200 bucks, even though I had already applied (and been wait listed) for my RPU. When I checked in, the flight was 11/12 of F full, I was number 1 on the waitlist. Now it's full in F, I'm sure that someone else took the buy-up option. I'm still number one on the upgrade list, FWIW. If I can't get an upgrade as a 1K using an RPU, what's the point?
Anecdotally, the $200 is likely the difference between the fare you paid and the cheapest seat in FC (could me an M-UP) and is generally cheaper based on status. Therefore, your offer was likely lower than a Plat (who would need at least a B-UP).
UA's, as a for profit business, is to sell seats. And, if it can't sell them, then to make them available for "elites."
Here, UA apparently was able to sell the seat.
There are no surprises. Capacity cuts, more paid F, large corporate contracts as well as the very real benefit of the M-UP for 1K's means that there are fewer unpaid UG's to be had.
UA's, as a for profit business, is to sell seats. And, if it can't sell them, then to make them available for "elites."
Here, UA apparently was able to sell the seat.
There are no surprises. Capacity cuts, more paid F, large corporate contracts as well as the very real benefit of the M-UP for 1K's means that there are fewer unpaid UG's to be had.
Oct 22, 2012, 10:01 pm
#2098
Suspended
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: WAS
Programs: UA 1k, SPG Plat, Hyatt Diamond, Hilton Diamond, PC Plat
Posts: 484
Data point - buying a ticket for a Silver and trying to confirm these calculations...
BUR-SFO-IAD, paid $223.
Offered $569 for SFO-IAD buy-up (BUR-SFO on CRJ200).
Theoretical sticker price for F cabin: $223 + $569 = $792
So, where should I see this $792?
Lowest current Y/B fare BUR-IAD: $936
Lowest current Y/B fare SFO-IAD: $875
Lowest A fare BUR-IAD: $1259
Lowest A fare SFO-IAD: $1637
Am I missing something? As a Silver, the passenger doesn't get M-ups, so I should just be searching for Y, B, A, F, right?
BUR-SFO-IAD, paid $223.
Offered $569 for SFO-IAD buy-up (BUR-SFO on CRJ200).
Theoretical sticker price for F cabin: $223 + $569 = $792
So, where should I see this $792?
Lowest current Y/B fare BUR-IAD: $936
Lowest current Y/B fare SFO-IAD: $875
Lowest A fare BUR-IAD: $1259
Lowest A fare SFO-IAD: $1637
Am I missing something? As a Silver, the passenger doesn't get M-ups, so I should just be searching for Y, B, A, F, right?
Oct 22, 2012, 11:52 pm
#2099
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: SEATTLE, WA USA
Programs: UAL, AA, AS, CX
Posts: 1,973
SEA-DEN-SEA buy Up?
Anyone have experience on this route and what the upgrade costs haven been?
Oct 23, 2012, 4:41 am
#2100
Moderator, Omni, Omni/PR, Omni/Games, FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Between DCA and IAD
Programs: UA 1K MM; Hilton Diamond
Posts: 67,133