nomad420

Thanks, working on it now and not optimistic about getting out on the red-eye tomorrow. Flight out in 2 hours I hear with a couple of seats left but I am still buttoning things up here at the home and office. Yeah the RUP clearance doesn't mean much anymore...LOL. If need be I can weather the storm out here and fly out on Sunday or Monday.

cfischer

tried for a colleague today SFO-PHL. No chance on a W fare. 7th on the list.

Aussienarelle

I also get upset when I cannot use GPUs (less so with RPUs but I do very few domestic flights) and I am 7 for 8 this year (waiting for last GPU to take for a November flight) and I have used all my RPUs but I tend to use them on short domestic flights so it is all good.

There was a time a couple of years back where my GPUs were sitting unused, but the approach I decided to take was if it were really that important to sit up front I paid the "P" fare or flew OAL.

I remember back in the 1980s in Australia, the UGs were assigned by people who recognized you in the lounge and not due to applying a certificate. My first use of a certificate/miles was on Continental flying from Sydney to Houston - that was a treat as I had seat 1A. I then discovered that time upgrading with miles got me miles flown at the Business First rate rather than the Coach rate, and then discovered the same thing when flying United - best system in the world IMO.

Then it all started to change and now the UG only earns at the fare purchased rate, and we now complain that the upgrades do not happen as much as we would like. However, I still take the approach that it is fortunate if the UG happens and I compare price of the "W" fare to a lower fare plus the co-pay for the GPUs. As I mentioned I like the RPUs but just as happy to give my first class seat on a domestic flight to a uniformed military person.

The GPUs and RPUs and CPUs are to reward their loyal customers but basically the airline is their to make money for the shareholders, so sell the upgrade on the day makes more money - my only compliant is that when I have applied an instrument I do not get the TOD, or it is more than a non-status travel companion - now that they should fix.

PPM

As a 1K, I am sitting on unused RPUs and GPUs that do not clear. I had booked a saver award fare for my sister to fly from IAD to LAX yesterday evening. She told me that yesterday morning, she found an offer to upgrade to first class for $169. She paid the $169, and is not even a silver member and was flying on a free ticket. I can only imagine how many 1Ks with RPUs for this flight she displaced. This is an outrage.

Kacee

IAD-LAX? At least half a dozen. On IAD-SFO would have been minimum double that.

te36

Have been 1K in a few years. Managed to use up my GPU all the time because i am able to fly Tue-Thur.
Never used up my RPU as i haven't been flying domestic a lot. But just managed to upgrade a colleague on SFO->IAD.
Domestic upgrades for < 4 hour flights aren't worth the bother anyhow IMHO.

StuckinITH

She only displaced one 1K (or GS or Platinum) with RPU. But 5 other passengers taking the offer would have displaced 5 1Ks (or GS or Platinum) on the IAD-LAX passengers.

But, also, when I flew ORD-LAX-ORD the price of the ticket in First was just $300 more than the price in Economy.

Artpen100

That is the way it is. I'm a 1K and I take domestic cash buy up offers all the time. I do that because I know others will, and as a result, few on the waitlist clear (and I believe I've only gotten a CPU once that I can remember). A waitlist is a real long shot - if I really want to be in first or business, I will look for a discount fare or R at booking, which is what I always do for international flights, where it really matters. I will occasionally throw a certificate at a domestic flight just for the heck of it, and they clear maybe a third to a half of the time. Still, between 3-4 international trips and a dozen domestic trips a year, I manage to use up every certificate. They are just not worth the thousands of dollars apiece they might be if you could use them all the time on international flights.

jjmoore

I think the price of buy-ups has increased sometime in the last 1-2 weeks. I am seeing SFO-DEN / DEN-SFO at $169 instead of $149 now.... likewise, I am seeing ORD-DEN at $149 instead of $139. Looks like UA is getting even greedier.

Don't forget that even when you view the reservation and see the buyups (greater than 24 hours prior to departure), these buyups do not give you any PQD/RDM bonus anymore like they used to give when it actually adjusted your base fare.

I hope this reduces the number of buy-ups and allows a few more upgrades to clear. It's really a sad state of affairs for upgrade certificates right now... I am sitting on a bank of them, and am unfortunately flying lots of DEN-SFO and some trans-cons in the next few weeks, which are certain to not clear regardless of what I do... but there is hope to maybe clear 1-2 more at the gate with the higher buy-up prices......

AirbusFan2B

fumje

Note that they have enhanced the upgrade list so that any cleared before check in do not show.

jjmoore

I like this a lot, as it gives much more anonymity to those sitting in first on upgrades vs. paid fares.... I like this.

Billygreg

How do I get an offer to buy up prior to the flight. I am 1k on E fare that applied an RPU to IAD-Den on Monday on a 787. An E fare and there are now only 4 biz class seats left and the seat map shows Y mostly full. Yet online I can't find anyway to upgrade with $ ahead of the flight, nor can I get back into the upgrade my reservation screen on the new, terrible flight management page. Do I have to call in and have the agent do it?

jjmoore

I would certainly call in.

I have noticed on flights where I have applied an instrument, I am not able to buy up after check-in, even if seats are available.... this is very frustrating.... to the point that I may call in and have the instrument refunded prior to check-in in the future so at least I have a chance to buy on on my trans-con flights.

StuckinITH

I don't think that an additional $10 or $20 is going to change the situation, especially when at check-in UA can adjust the number down. Example, days before my flight the upgrade for my DCA to ORD flight was $149. At check-in it was $113. I did not take the offer as I never do it on domestic flights. And I already give too much money to UA for the upgrades on the international long hauls. I have to save somewhere.....