bldr1k

Every GS I know buys coach tickets domestically (I know there are lots of GS that purchase first all the time also). They get GS because their companies let them purchase business class internationally.

I flew DEN-BOS the other day on a purchased First ticket and there were 4 GS in first, all upgraded from coach.

halls120

Which is why I've given up chasing 1K. Instruments are near worthless unless you can book months in advance.

why fly

my 12 GPU were all used this year

adambrau

I became GS in 2015 for the first time after being 1K for well over a decade. Partially I found that business or first wasn't always a whole lot more than H fares which I used to buy.

Secondly, I looked at how much I paid on change fees and unless I was about 90% sure I will actually fly a trip, I started to buy fares that were refundable or cancel-able minus a fee - so I didn't rack up ETC's that are sometimes hard to use or I forget about. I travel for leisure mostly so spend my own money, and realize I am paying more than those on corp discounts.

But with First Class on the way out what am I going to use my GPU's on when many of the tickets I buy are in P/Z/C/J class? It's sad to spend all this money when I could be in first on Lufthansa, but knowing you have ultimate priority in IRROPS and breezing through checkin/security at EWR rationalizes my behavior to me.

UA (and DL) have turned their FF programs upside down and frankly I find it only fair that GS get a better shot at the spoils. What I don't understand, and I explain this to my friends, is that stick with one carrier and don't buy codeshare tickets. They rarely listen but they always come to me in a jam when they need a free ticket.

For GS consideration you have to fly UA metal with a UA flight number on 016 stock. Spend around $50k on B or higher and you should be good to go. For that dedication to an arguably inferior product hell yes GS members deserve every perk we get. Especially with the mind-blowingly horrendous coffee that is served - my biggest peeve of UA. I think there are a lot of flyers out there who spend more than me but don't make GS because they don't realize a 016 ticket on say LH metal doesn't count.

My final observation is that Mileage Plus has become a very complicated program to follow - I wish we could have a moratorium on changes for a few years. Thankfully, there is FT

EmailKid

You know, there was a thread about the black/brown swill that UA passes off as coffee. Maybe it needs to re resurrected, as quality has NOT improved.

As to the first point (do wish you used to return key to separate paragraphs to make your post easier to read), yes GS do deserve to be treated special for putting up with inferior product ^

And even as former 1K I post as someone who has ZERO chance of ever making GS. Not .0000001%, zero.

iflyuaaa

you spend $50k of your own money to be GS and to buy premium product on UA? Have you tried other airlines? With $50k, you could probably get a heck of a lot more value from foreign airlines, or heck even AA or DL. I also think your equation of 90% as the cutoff for a refundable fare is way off - even if you threw your ETC's in the trash can.

FlyWorld

Exactly. No rational decision maker would choose to spend >$50k/yr on Jeff's pathetic airline. These days, GS is comped to corporations in exchange for volume commitments but those corporations force lowest fare travel so Jeff is stupidly giving away GS as a perk to secure a bucket of low-margin revenue. Even when these corporate flyers are in J, it's a discounted J.

uanj

For GS you need to fly UA metal on a UA flight number, I don't know that it needs to be UA ticket stock. And this is where it gets really confusing, because that is different from PQD.

At any rate, can't you use PN inventory as an indication of possible R inventory to come? UA is not sending a message to anyone about 1K vs GS, most of the flying public, even at these status levels, are not clear either that they exist or what the difference may be.

Darlox

Not that I'm by any means a defender of most of what UA does, but this does kind of make sense, if you think about it... You're rewarding someone who is bringing in low-margin business, but they're bringing in a big bucket of low-margin business.

Totally fits with UA's worldview to give GS to someone who will rarely use it, in exchange for a pile of several dozen or hundred business travelers, than to chase those pax individually. *shrug* Makes perfect business sense, in that they get to simultaneously devalue GS and whatever miles those business travelers fly, while keeping the decision makers (who thus do not have to suffer through the implications of their decisions) isolated from the impact!

tw747

I agree with you. 1K should be worth something to UA Even flying 150K last year, my $$$ with UA was not large enough. I took 6 people to Australia in February in paid BF, and of course, had issues with UA. As a 1K, we were treated like garbage by UA staff in HNL. Hence, when booking business travel for my staff or myself, we have moved away from using UA.

Unfortunately, UA has chosen to continually dilute the MP loyalty program, thanking you for your business. An example is the "Restore your past MP Premier status" program (http://www.united.com/web/en-US/apps...omoCode=TB4M32) in which you don't even have to fly the required 100K miles to become 1K again. I'm glad UA made a profit last quarter. They may need it, when all of us wake up and start flying elsewhere. My advice, fly who is comfortable, and be loyal to yourself. UA is not going to be loyal to you.

ironmanjt

I don't think you get to be GS by buying W fares internationally and using your GPUs

Kacee

No, but as I mentioned above, GS do take vacations from time to time. When they do, they'll find that upgrade to SYD, CDG, or FRA much easier to clear.

I'm not going to whine about that, I understand the business case. I do find the substantial disparity worthy of note though. If I had to guess, it's something like a 3/10 chance (1K) vs. a 9/10 chance (GS).

CO_Nonrev_elite

There is no debate about whether they should get a better shot at the spoils, the purpose of the thread was the level of inequality in it. PN9 vs R3 for example says that we have lots of space for GS members, and some space for 1K members. PN9 means that space isn't tight, but apparently too tight to give even a scrap from the table to 1K members. Remember, 1K is their highest published tier, and they treat it like they are second class citizens.

RichardInSF

My guess is that is not true. I bet the majority of GS cards are tossed in as perqs to get corporate contracts signed. That's because most GS benefits come at the cost of other customers, not United, so it's an easy sales add-on.

Whoops, sorry for the repetition, just saw that other folks have already made this point.

mmack

How did you get to Australia from Hawaii on United? I wasn't aware they flew from HNL to SYD or anywhere else in Australia?