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Premium Transcon Service SFO-EWR/BOS, LAX-EWR flights-Questions&Experiences {Archive}

Old Jul 6, 2019, 9:31 pm
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: WineCountryUA
Update 2017: United p.s. is now called Transcontinental Service. This service is available on flights between EWR<>LAX, EWR<>SFO, and BOS<>SFO.
Cross Country Comfort: Introducing United Airlines New Transcontinental Service

Originally Posted by United POLARIS FAQ
How does the switch to United Polaris affect United p.s. Premium Service transcontinental flights?
On December 1, 2016, BusinessFirst service on p.s. transcontinental routes became United Business, and now features our custom Saks Fifth Avenue pillow and duvet. Previous p.s. features did not change other than the new bedding.
The first PS flights to/from EWR started 25 Oct 2015
United offers transcontinental travelers the features and comfort of long-haul international flights. Customers enjoy modern aircraft interiors with all-new seats, inflight Wi-Fi, free personal on-demand entertainment at every seat, in-seat power and USB ports.

United also provides:
* Premier Access check-in, security screening, boarding and baggage handling;
* United Club access;
* up to 6 feet, 4 inches of sleeping space in a 180-degree flat-bed seat; and
* pre-departure beverages, hot towel service, multi-course meals and a pre-arrival snack.
E+ passengers -- hot meals and drinks included
Travelers in Economy Plus on our premium transcontinental flights now enjoy more than just extra legroom theyll also receive a complimentary hot entre, fruit and dessert, as well as their choice of free alcoholic beverages, including our featured cocktail and more.
Aircraft 757-200
Original config 28 lieflat BF / 42 E+ / 72 E-
Everything You Want to Know About Where to Sit on a 757-200 (pmUA Domestic and p.s.)

Re-purposed TATL config 16 lieflat BF / 45 E+ / 108 E-
Consolidated "Seats on International 757"

other lie-flat aircraft will be used on the route, such as
Everything You Wanted to Know About Where to Sit on 777-200 HD (28BF,102E+,234E-)
Everything you want to know about where to sit on the 787-10

FAQs
Are all flights on these routes lie-flat, etc?
Yes -- all non-stop flights from SFO/LAX to/from EWR and SFO<>BOS are configured as such regardless of aircraft used. All scheduled aircraft have a lie-flat premium cabin.

Are these CPU-eligible flights?
No -- no CPU on these flights. It will take RPU/GPU/mileage+copays to upgrade. Generally, these are "hard" upgrades.

Are TODs / Cash upgrades offered?
Yes, $298 cash OW upgrades are regularly offered.

Archive: Premium Transcon Service SFO-EWR/BOS, LAX-EWR flights-Questions&Experiences {Archive}
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Premium Transcon Service SFO-EWR/BOS, LAX-EWR flights-Questions&Experiences {Archive}

Old Jan 18, 2019, 12:08 pm
  #1216  
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Originally Posted by findark
Real (cardstock) BPs
I for one have been keeping all printed BPs over the last several years - just in case to have documentation.
The electronic BP on my phone does not allow this.
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Old Jan 18, 2019, 12:35 pm
  #1217  
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Originally Posted by cesco.g
I for one have been keeping all printed BPs over the last several years - just in case to have documentation.
The electronic BP on my phone does not allow this.
Screen shot?

Paper boarding passes, unless for some historical reasons, are just bunch more paper I don't need in my life.
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Old Jan 18, 2019, 2:50 pm
  #1218  
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Originally Posted by cesco.g
I for one have been keeping all printed BPs over the last several years - just in case to have documentation.
The electronic BP on my phone does not allow this.
Save the PDF?
Screen shot the electronic BP
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Old Jan 30, 2019, 1:00 pm
  #1219  
 
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Boston, MA
Programs: UA GS, AA PLAT, DL PLAT, EK SILVER
Posts: 250
Any update on BOS-LAX? I know it's not PS, but it's still exclusively 752. I have an upcoming flight in F and curious about meal but more importantly bedding...
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Old Jan 30, 2019, 1:51 pm
  #1220  
 
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: Tel Aviv (TLV), Chicago (ORD)
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Originally Posted by SvenB1414
Any update on BOS-LAX? I know it's not PS, but it's still exclusively 752. I have an upcoming flight in F and curious about meal but more importantly bedding...

It is PS. Any route between SFO/LAX and EWR/BOS is a PS route. You will receive typical PS bedding (much better than Domestic First but not quite Polaris Business bedding). Also typical PS service which is comparable (although scaled down from Polaris Business).
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Old Jan 30, 2019, 2:20 pm
  #1221  
 
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Originally Posted by NoDestinations
It is PS. Any route between SFO/LAX and EWR/BOS is a PS route. You will receive typical PS bedding (much better than Domestic First but not quite Polaris Business bedding). Also typical PS service which is comparable (although scaled down from Polaris Business).
I'm not sure this is correct, though I could be wrong. Last week I flew SFO-BOS, it was marketed PS, and I received the PS service. In early April my wife has a reservation to fly BOS-LAX in Y, and it is not marketed as PS. In fact, she is listed as eligible for a CPU, which would not be the case if it were PS (PS requires RPU, GPU, or MPU to upgrade).

Looking further it seems EWR-SFO/LAX is PS, and BOS-SFO is PS, but BOS-LAX is not PS.
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Old Jan 30, 2019, 2:21 pm
  #1222  
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BOS-LAX is not p.s. It will have standard domestic TCON service, but the bedding is the wildcard. The lie-flat 752s sometimes show up with Polaris bedding and sometimes not.
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Old Jan 30, 2019, 2:59 pm
  #1223  
 
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Originally Posted by findark
BOS-LAX is not p.s. It will have standard domestic TCON service, but the bedding is the wildcard. The lie-flat 752s sometimes show up with Polaris bedding and sometimes not.
Hmm... wow! You are right. I never knew that. I usually fly SFO<>BOS in PS and always assumed LAX was the same. I guess I was just thinking about the menus that they bring you in Business, they list the cities on top of it as Los Angeles, San Fransisco, New York, Boston, so I just assumed. I went to the PS website on UA.com and you are completely correct!
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Old Jan 30, 2019, 3:04 pm
  #1224  
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Originally Posted by NoDestinations
...I guess I was just thinking about the menus that they bring you in Business, they list the cities on top of it as Los Angeles, San Fransisco, New York, Boston, so I just assumed. I went to the PS website on UA.com and you are completely correct!
Boston - New York and LAX - SFO arent p.s. either, even though they both appear on your menu
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Old Jan 30, 2019, 4:02 pm
  #1225  
 
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Thanks everyone. Wonder what the tcon westbound meals are these days. Been a while since I did something other than (a) BOS-SFO or (b) a breakfast flight.
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Old Jan 30, 2019, 4:11 pm
  #1226  
 
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I flew EWR -> LAX last Friday night on the 787-10 in business. It was my first premium transcon flight in J on UA in a while.

Pros: the plane (brand new Polaris seats, nice larger lavs behind business, extremely quiet and comfortable flight) and congeniality from most of the crew.

Cons: the only non-pop up United Club in EWR is still an overcrowded disaster, despite being friendly, the crew was seriously ill-trained or prepared to serve the business cabin (no one asks to take your coat, no PDBs offered or requests taken other than for OJ/water, pre-arrival snacks only offered to the front of the cabin and then none offered to the back half for some unknown reason), catering is really underwhelming in terms of quality and preparation, IFE offering not as broad as what DL offers.

On the return I flew a DL A330, and while the hard product on UA was superior in every way, the service and soft product on DL (other than a few quibbles with plating everything at once and a cheapskate dessert) was mostly superior to UAs. Imagine what flying this route would be like if just one airline got both areas right.
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Old Jan 31, 2019, 7:52 am
  #1227  
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Originally Posted by SvenB1414
Thanks everyone. Wonder what the tcon westbound meals are these days. Been a while since I did something other than (a) BOS-SFO or (b) a breakfast flight.
Most of the menu items have been around for years. The food is not very good, I try to eat before I fly.

Originally Posted by Benj K
On the return I flew a DL A330, and while the hard product on UA was superior in every way, the service and soft product on DL (other than a few quibbles with plating everything at once and a cheapskate dessert) was mostly superior to UAs.
IME DL's food on the premium t-cons is horrible, and the service is highly variable. Much as with UA, these routes get the more 'senior' DL crews, and that is not necessarily a good thing.

IMO the biggest DL advantage is the SkyClub (T4 JFK and SFO).
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Old Feb 1, 2019, 7:41 am
  #1228  
 
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I do most of my flying between SFO-EWR and SFO-BOS and am generally booking business — increasingly over $3k for a roundtrip ticket. I recently flew MINT on JetBlue and was generally impressed (new aircraft, good food, great entertainment and friendly FAs). The entire experience made we start thinking whether I should consider changing my preferred carrier. It could be JetBlue but would also consider DL as it seems like they have a very good premium product. I just feel that UA is charging a premium price for just a undifferentiated product. The p.s. product hasn’t really changed in a positive way since it was first introduced (same planes, food quality comes and goes) despite all the Polaris marketing hype (okay slightly better amenities and pillows).
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Old Feb 1, 2019, 3:31 pm
  #1229  
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
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Originally Posted by pvilly
I do most of my flying between SFO-EWR and SFO-BOS and am generally booking business increasingly over $3k for a roundtrip ticket. I recently flew MINT on JetBlue and was generally impressed (new aircraft, good food, great entertainment and friendly FAs). The entire experience made we start thinking whether I should consider changing my preferred carrier. It could be JetBlue but would also consider DL as it seems like they have a very good premium product. I just feel that UA is charging a premium price for just a undifferentiated product. The p.s. product hasnt really changed in a positive way since it was first introduced (same planes, food quality comes and goes) despite all the Polaris marketing hype (okay slightly better amenities and pillows).
I switched nearly all my SFO-NYC from UA to B6. Mint is a better product that can usually be found at a meaningful discount. United certainly doesnt miss my business on that route because they keep filling the front of the plane on those utterly insane fares.
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Old Feb 1, 2019, 7:11 pm
  #1230  
 
Join Date: Apr 2004
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Regarding the discussion of BOS-LAX, I just noticed that some domestic first class fares are now including carve-outs for BOS-LAX along with EWR-SFO/LAX and BOS-SFO. For example, fare basis LAA2AHFN BOS-SAN says

Code:
04.FLIGHT APPLICATION
THE FARE COMPONENT MUST NOT INCLUDE TRAVEL BETWEEN EWR
AND LAX.
AND
THE FARE COMPONENT MUST NOT INCLUDE TRAVEL BETWEEN EWR
AND SFO.
AND
THE FARE COMPONENT MUST NOT INCLUDE TRAVEL BETWEEN BOS
AND SFO.
AND
THE FARE COMPONENT MUST NOT INCLUDE TRAVEL BETWEEN BOS
AND LAX.
Compared to the same fare published last week, which said:

Code:
04.FLIGHT APPLICATION
THE FARE COMPONENT MUST NOT INCLUDE TRAVEL BETWEEN EWR
AND LAX.
AND
THE FARE COMPONENT MUST NOT INCLUDE TRAVEL BETWEEN EWR
AND SFO.
AND
THE FARE COMPONENT MUST NOT INCLUDE TRAVEL BETWEEN BOS
AND SFO.
I checked a few other markets and I see the same thing. Not sure what that means...
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