emcampbe

You can get ORC when rebooked on *A but that is instead of the new routing miles.

For example, Dec. 2011 was flying CVG-ORD-EWR and return, partly because this was going to bring me to exactly 60 segments and 1P for the first time. CVG-ORD ended up canceling (or severely delayed, can't remember), and I got rebooked on the direct CO flight. Got the credit for the original instead so I could claim
Gold.

Also had something similar happen last year, but destination was YYZ and other *A carrier was AC.

Aspen

So Fri Aug 10 839 LAX-SYD cnx
= Sun Aug 11 840 SYD-LAX cnx

two of the busiest days of the week for Trans Pac flights.

docbert

Complaining that you didn't get a CPU on a GF route? Yeah, good luck with that...

And before you say anything about them building up your hopes and then squashing them, how did you know that it was your name up there? Surely there could have been someone else with the same 3/1 letters, no?

ffI

UA did not refuse; the agent was perfectly OK with it on full fare Biz.
Now to wait for the AA miles and UA miles ...

docbert

And just to show it's not just UA, QF12 LAX to SYD was cancelled the same night after 2 aborted takeoffs.

Aspen

A third UAL aeroplane departed SYD on Tuesday Aug 13 as UA6873 flying overhead at 16.25

I am not sure where the third aeroplane materialised from because there were delays departing SYD on Monday Aug 12 due to severe winds at the aerodrome (causing all sorts of havoc around SYD) but both 840 & 870 departed about 90 minutes late.

Today Tuesday Aug 13 both 840 & 870 departed close enough to STD and then there was a third aeroplane a couple of hours later.

bwiflyer01

Looking for a little advice. I'm scheduled to fly PHX-SFO-SYD later this month. PHX-SFO is on US then a 4-hour layover and SFO-SYD on UA all in F on an award ticket.

With the reliability of the UA SYD flights being what they are, I'm wondering whether doing PHX-SFO-ICN-SYD with the SFO-ICN and ICN-SYD flights on OZ is a better idea.

Thoughts?

hotturnip

Right.

United NEVER had these problems with this route before the merger. It's all Continental's fault.

I don't know why I take such a perverse pleasure in reading about these particular flights to Australia. Partly it's because it's so completely ludicrous--successive cancellations piling up, hundreds (thousands?) of distress passengers at once, creaky 747s "limping across the Pacific" as someone aptly put it--it's like it's an alternate reality. Or a nightmare.

Or perhaps it's because I flew this route way back in 2008 and survived unscathed, not knowing until after my return how lucky I was. Just the usual UA ignoring my seat requests and putting me in a middle seat, etc.

It's just such an extreme example of the problems with commercial air travel. It's been going on so long I think we can safely say it has achieved legendary status.

LordTentacle

I'm on the Syd->USA route on UA for 14-20 segments per year every year
I've had a single cancelation over the last 50 segments for TPAC flights
(Someone drove a truck into the side of the plane... not UA's fault...)
Never missed a connection due to delay on the route either

I've tried buying lotto tickets but never win... so it cant be my luck

nobleoz

I fly SFO-SYD-MEL 3 times a year & have been doing so since 1994. Never had one cancellation.

flyerbjorn

ICN sounds like a terrible idea. 23h SFO-SYD instead of 14h. If you're already ticketed in F, I'd keep that.

I've flown SYD-SFO a few times a year for the last 5 years. Never had a cancellation. Sometimes a late departure, but always on time or early arrivals.

boss315

And yet these are sUA metal that they never took care of in the first place!!

river_rower

I've flown SFO-SYD RT twice per year for the last eight years and experienced multiple delays and two cancellations due to mechanical, one in SYD and the other in SFO. So 2 cancellations out of 32 legs; 6%.

LHR/MEL/Europe FF

totally agree with flyerbjorn.... add in transit time for you flight via Asia and you could be looking at and extra twelve hours over flying non-stop. plus OZ has the old angled bed biz class product on the syd flight (unless it's changed recently). another reason to stay away.

ozflier

I've done 4 returns SYD-SFO / LAX in the last 12 months.

One cancellation ( mechanical) and a couple of signifigant delays - ie 4 hours on two occasions though last one was due to fuel stop in Fiji because of fog in SYD and BNE - so can't blame UA for that.

I am very careful now with connection time on the west coast after arrival from SYD. I insist on there being at least 3 hours to avoid a miss.

I also agree with an early poster re the relatively poor soft product in transpac J - just not comparable to QF or Virgin. Can't comment on AC or DL as never flown them.