WineCountryUA

Well the OP can let us know what an elite gets offered, but are offers the same for everyone (or is the target the same)?

star_world

Didn't think of it really - I rarely notice it on the routes I fly. Nothing more to it than that.

Well the OP is 1K, so most likely would get a better offer than other pax due to M fares. So you're right, probably not - but we have no way of knowing for sure.

WineCountryUA

well except for the documented cases where non-elites got lower offers (perhaps because the elites fare was above the target for the non-elite -- one case the non-elite was for a V-UP and the elite was above that already and was offered M buyup). Plus on day of travel the target has been below the published fare points (even though UA Insider claimed that should only happen if the waitlist is empty).

Often1

This whole thread points to the folly of speculating about why this or why that based on seat maps. There are not 20, but rather 4 seats available for purchase in F.

One paid C/F family of 4 headed in from Europe with a misconnect will take those 4 seats and it would be folly for UA to give away those seats for that reason alone.

OP doesn't specify the fare basis on which he's traveling, but if it's below B, he will be accommodated below all GS and any Silver + traveling on a Y/B fare, and any cert. If on an M, he'll come before all 1K's below.

And, UA may choose, as a for-profit company with a duty to maximize shareholder value, to actually sell its F product despite the notion that it's somehow wrong to do so.

musing

With F4 and Y5, but the seat map showing many open E+ and FC seats my guess is that the economy cabin may in fact be oversold, with many Silver/GM without seat assignments because they didn't want to pay for the E+, and that they are cutting FC seat availability so that they don't significantly oversell the flight.

And of course instead of upgrading at the windows to free economy cabin seats they hope to get the TODs.

tomj888

I am on a bottom of the barrel "K" class fare. The whole point of starting this thread was my surprise that UNITED claims that CPU's will be offered at stages based on one's status, therefore, as I 1K, if CPU inventory was/is available, I should of been offered a CPU at 96 hours. Isn't that correct?

fjfv19

Thank you for the clarification. ^ I hadn't taken the time to do the research about which flight it may be but that information explains quite a bit.

IAH-OIL-TRASH

I flew OGG-LAX Sunday. something like 14 seats unbooked w/ no upgrades processed until about T-30ish. Myself and another 1K or a GS were upgraded at that point. Plats and below weren't unpgraded until day of. Listened to one Silver and companion not believing their luck being upgraded. Ended up with a couple of employees and op-ups to fill cabin. Coach full. I think talk of ToDs is exaggerated. You'll get your upgrade. I'm waiting for an upgrade for Saturday LAX-OGG. 11 seats available. I'll get it. Don't worry about it. They're just running later than usual.

Antipode

If it was available and there were no others with higher priority than you, yes. But just because there are seats open doesn't mean there's CPU inventory. Also, CPU inventory could open up after your window has already passed, in which case it won't be allocated until the next sweep at the next window.

IAH-OIL-TRASH

This. There are plenty of unbooked seats even though F is 4. Something like 5 are actually booked. OP will get upgrade. I think this is what happened on my flight last Sunday ex-OGG. Economy was overbooked.

spin88

This is the explanation that makes sense, and when you mentioned it, what I have seen on Hawaii flights. They don't upgrade anyone (hoping for TODs) but hold back large numbers of FC seats not because they are booked (I think we can all agree that when only 4 seats show as taken, that another 16 are purchased but with no seats assigned is not what is going on, that is not how it works) to F=4 in FC, but because they are nearly entirely overbooked on the entire plane.

I have seen this before, and if they sell a single seat in Y, F will also drop one as they are near the max booking.

Also agree the OP is likely to clear perhaps after getting the TOD upsell.

Its just sort of cheesy to hold off upgrading 20 elites (and those beyond them) in the hope one of them will then pop for the TOD. But instructive on how management thinks.

WineCountryUA

You must have missed the OP stating

The F4 comment was by another poster speculating on which flight it might have been. But appears the OP got the info from an agent, not just the seat maps and the OP was not speculating -- rather another poster was. And as yet another poster mentioned there may be an oversold situation in Y, effecting the inventory number -- yet there still be the larger number of "unsold" F.

not quite -- it has never been true that if empty seats exist, then upgrades are automatic are the selected time windows. This was not true for PMUA, PMCO or now. Previous a high percentage of the available seats may have been release but it has never been automatic - there has always been an element of judgement by the airline to usually hold back some seats for late purchases. It just seems that on some rules UA is much stingier on releasing early -- still may happen, but closer to flight time.

GroundStop

Mobile site shows of 24 F seats, 5 have been filled (4 upgraded) and 15 are blocked, leaving F4 for sale.

WineCountryUA

does look like a significant oversell of Y for that flight -- UA is probably hoping for some paid upgrades first (if they can find the right price point), maybe some misconnects and a fair number of upgrades at some point (closer to departure).

IAH-OIL-TRASH

No. If you look at the language, it states you may receive Complimentary Premium Upgrades AS EARLY as 96 hours out. There is absolutely no promise of upgrades at your 96 hour window. But you are right - "if CPU inventory is available". If you don't get one at 96 hours, obviously the inventory has not been made available, and UA makes no promise that any will be available at that time or at any time.