Are The United 777s Getting Too Old?
Jul 5, 2014, 5:34 pm
#46
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Wichita
Posts: 628
You're kidding, right? My flight ICT-DEN had three UA pilots occupying FC seats (out of 16) Monday. While I have practically eliminated flying UA, whenever I do there are UA employees in First.
Jul 5, 2014, 7:12 pm
#47
Suspended
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: LAX
Programs: AAdvantage EXPLAT, Hilton Diamond, SPG/Marriott Gold, IHG Platinum, Citi Exec MC, Amex Plat
Posts: 1,443
They could be on positive space tickets, which are effectively paid F tickets bought by their employer, who happens to also be the same entity that operates the flight. No different than any business traveler who's company pays for F.
Jul 5, 2014, 7:59 pm
#48
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: New York, NY
Programs: UA, AA, DL, Hertz, Avis, National, Hyatt, Hilton, SPG, Marriott
Posts: 9,447
There are contractual provisions requiring pilots to be booked positive space in F under certain conditions, but employee NRSA travel in domestic premium cabins is extraordinarily rare these days.
Jul 6, 2014, 10:22 am
#49
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: SF Bay Area
Programs: UA 1K MM, Marriott Life Plat, various others of little note
Posts: 2,763
So 1/3rd of the fleet is less than 14 years old (and not much less it looks like)? That's a pretty old fleet. Come to think if of, it's consistent with staffing compared to the Asian carriers (which have a "young fleet" in both senses of the word).
Jul 6, 2014, 10:32 am
#50
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: SF Bay Area
Programs: UA 1K MM, Marriott Life Plat, various others of little note
Posts: 2,763
+1. This is true, friends who are UA employees say they've gotten exactly on in the past year. With the removal of intl F they are expecting a lot less premium class international travel, too.
Jul 6, 2014, 10:51 am
#51
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: IAD
Programs: Chase Million Miler, SPG Gold, HHonors Gold, Hyatt Platinum
Posts: 2,729
Fair enough, but the other half of my comment was related to UDU, which still isn't selling f for much additional revenue. Compare that to intl flights, where the premium cabin sells.
Jul 6, 2014, 12:16 pm
#52
Join Date: Oct 2009
Programs: UA 1K, Hilton ♦ , Hyatt Carbonado, Wyndham ♦, Marriott PE, "Stinking Bum" elsewhere.
Posts: 4,993
Small sample, I know, but there is still some employee/dependent travel in domestic F.
Last edited by zombietooth; Jul 6, 2014 at 12:26 pm
Jul 6, 2014, 2:18 pm
#54
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: Port St Lucie, FL, UA1K since 1994 and 3mm, Delta 1mm
Programs: Marriott Titanium Life, Hilton Gold
Posts: 566
No the entire fleet is 12+ and older. Look closer at the 2010 planes. They were pmCO from 1999 transferred to the new United. The newest seems to be 2002.
Jul 6, 2014, 3:19 pm
#55
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: EWR, BDL
Posts: 4,471
Jul 6, 2014, 4:06 pm
#56
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: New York, NY
Programs: UA, AA, DL, Hertz, Avis, National, Hyatt, Hilton, SPG, Marriott
Posts: 9,447
replacement schedules, owing in part to accelerated depreciation and more extensive use of widebody equipment on short hauls. Most other major carriers are comparable to United in terms of average longhaul fleet age, and (depending on usage) 10-20 years is firmly within the 'prime' of an aircraft's design life.
Jul 6, 2014, 10:16 pm
#57
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Syd
Programs: UA 1k 1MM, VA G
Posts: 886
Can't comment on the sCO777 or 787 as I have still yet to fly one
Lack of lav's on the 777 kill it for me, on the 747 I never spend more then 5min waiting for a lav
on a recent 777 SYD->SFO flight I got in line as number 10 and got to wait about 30min
The next time I had to go... it was only #3 and only had to wait 10min
Jul 7, 2014, 12:17 am
#58
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: where lions are led by donkeys...
Programs: Lifetime Gold, Global Entry, Hertz PC, and my wallet
Posts: 20,340
Bins on a sUA747 are way bigger then on a sUA777
Can't comment on the sCO777 or 787 as I have still yet to fly one
Lack of lav's on the 777 kill it for me, on the 747 I never spend more then 5min waiting for a lav
on a recent 777 SYD->SFO flight I got in line as number 10 and got to wait about 30min
The next time I had to go... it was only #3 and only had to wait 10min
Can't comment on the sCO777 or 787 as I have still yet to fly one
Lack of lav's on the 777 kill it for me, on the 747 I never spend more then 5min waiting for a lav
on a recent 777 SYD->SFO flight I got in line as number 10 and got to wait about 30min
The next time I had to go... it was only #3 and only had to wait 10min
Jul 7, 2014, 1:40 am
#59
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 2,324
On a recent flight, I was seated in F next to a very bright young boy who volunteered that his grandfather was a UA mechanic, and how they were flying for free, etc. Across the aisle, was his sister.
Small sample, I know, but there is still some employee/dependent travel in domestic F.
Small sample, I know, but there is still some employee/dependent travel in domestic F.
p.s. is essentially the only holdout wherein NRSA have an actual shot at sitting up front domestically.
Jul 7, 2014, 2:10 am
#60
Join Date: Oct 2009
Programs: UA 1K, Hilton ♦ , Hyatt Carbonado, Wyndham ♦, Marriott PE, "Stinking Bum" elsewhere.
Posts: 4,993
Only possible on flights where all UDU eligible elites are cleared for F - i.e., very rarely. Compare that to pre-UDU, when domestic NSRA F travel was extremely common. UDU, for all intents and purposes, relegated NRSA premium cabin travel to international routes only. It was a big blow to NRSA flight benefit privileges.
p.s. is essentially the only holdout wherein NRSA have an actual shot at sitting up front domestically.
p.s. is essentially the only holdout wherein NRSA have an actual shot at sitting up front domestically.
It is certainly not good for employee morale to diminish privileges like that, especially in light of the increased work load and other decreased benefits.
I, for one, always liked the old 500 mile upgrade certificates. It was a much fairer system for upgrading, and obviously things were better for the employees under that system. Don't get me wrong, UDU has been very good to me---I have a very high (around 90%) UG rate in 2014. However, the 500 mile cert. system was more predictable, and allowed elites to buy-up to F for a reasonable price, without the TOD aggravation, where kettles get cheap buy-ups at everyone's expense.