JetAway

I doubt very much that the people who are earning higher status because they are buying premium fares are much concerned about CPUs or even instrument upgrades. By definition, they are already in First. So there won't be more instruments or CPUs "in play" for upgrades although there will likely be fewer available premium seats 'in play."

jjmoore

The CPU's will very much be in play, as the example I noted in my previous post flies a pretty even split between refundable Y and cheap F... with RPU's in hand, I guarantee they would be applied. Additionally, the GPU's would also be in play for some int'l travel as well.

In my case, I fly a lot of cheap to mid-range F and J... My RPU/GPU certificates are all used, whether I use them for some of my travel in Y, or I give them to friends and family when they fly. I guarantee that all of my RPU and GPU instruments will be applied in one way or another. Most people that I know that have 1K status do likewise.

sapguy

My situation is more or less the same as yours:
1. I will buy A & P fares, or other discounted F & J fares, most of the time
2. RPUs a& GPUs will be in play for myself & my family & friends, and they are far from worthless- all will be used by Q3 at the latest

I'm looking forward to requalify for 1K early like back in the 2009-2013 days when I achieved 1K in July/August ^

villox

You know, in a way, this actually IS bringing back something like e500s. So long as you get 2 RPUs for every 25k PQM, more and more of them are going to be issued. You'll start needing to use them to get any hope of upgrading, just like pre-CPUs.

jjmoore

I have already purchased 60,000 PQM for 2016 (Jan/Feb - one J class int'l + weekly refundable first class to one of the work sites). With a second int'l in April and a third in May, I will probably requalify by the end of April for 1K next year... insane.

The one thing I will change is that I will try to apply my RPU / GPU instruments as soon as I get them vs. hanging onto them, as I will have more than I can probably use since I am booking mainly premium cabin. I will have some happy friends.

Good luck with the new PQM system everyone... gonna get competitive out there next year (though I am hoping my GS qualification comes next week and that I will be a step ahead of all this nonsense)!

Soccerdad1995

Exactly.

It is a near certainty that most of the people calling for an increase to a specific PQD / PQM amount are planning to easily hit somewhere around 110% - 125% of that amount. These types of threads seem to devolve into a lot of people focused on their own self-interest.

The Chase spend waiver does not get you to 1K, and I am going to guess that a lot of the Plat's earning between 75,000 - 100,000 PQM do not come close to hitting the existing PQD thresholds, so this increase in PQM's will not make much of a difference.

In my situation, UA will likely get less overall revenue from me. Last year I did an accelerator purchase to hit Plat. That purchase would not have been needed if these bonuses had been in place. This change will make it more likely that I will buy FC on every leisure trip in 2016, however. So lower revenue to UA, and lower availability of CPU inventory. Bad for UA. Bad for the 1K / GS'ers who actually have a chance at a CPU today, and good for me.

In other words, I like this change!

chinatraderjmr

The whole point of these programs has always been (from the airlines perspective) to lure business Travellers so of course it's using company money (NOT OPM, that's a ridiculous way of putting it. If I buy my GF her tkts does she make 1K on OPM??). FT gets a inordinate amount of young Travellers who would not get near a 1st class cabin on airlines like LH or TG without the help of these programs. There is no reason to begrudge people who are flying in C or F on business with company money. Without them there would be no FF programs

morelegroom

IMHO you are confusing the meaning of OPM. It is not literal, it means an indifference to the cost because the source is something other than you.
To your GF it is OPM, but not to you, if she is "indifferent" as to the effect on the source . Why do you think engagement rings are enormously expensive ? Or parental paid college tuition? Most premium business class is OPM
if it is deductible it is at east in part OPM.
No one begrudges those who can spend OPM, envy perhaps.

OH and BTW I have spend my own money without deduction on travel for many years.

Baze

I use "OPM" and I am conscience of the cost of tickets. If I'm indifferent I hear about it from my manager.

sapguy

Ditto! +1

I even had to negotiate on booking Biz Class fare even though I am allowed to per company policy but my management invoked budget cuts as the reason that I should fly Coach to Europe & to India ��

unitedfflyer

Have the qualification levels for 2017 been posted? Right now, I think, everyone on this thread assumes that the qualification levels for 2017 will remain the same as 2016. That may be a correct assumption...but it is after midnight EST 31 Dec and we still don't have qualification levels posted on united.com. Unless I missed something...which is ALWAYS possible. Did UA Insider confirm qualification levels for 2017?

WineCountryUA

There has been some changes announced (like the higher PQM for premium cabins - subject of this thread) but there have been fewer changes than in previous years so far announced. Some think there is a major bomb coming, other think we have hear the bulk of the changes already and others are wait and see. I'm of the opinion closer to we have seen the bulk of changes already. See the discussion in http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unite...p-changes.html.

hdfdisk

For me, it is about I can hit 1K in three roundtrip from SFO TPAC on my company expense, and use its benefit when I'm traveling for leisure :-).

LaserSailor

There is a lot of lack of awareness about business travel here. Those who think you get a bank account to draw on as you see fit have never lived the life of the road warrior. Moreover, the most generous travel policies are one quarter away from turning nasty when the balance sheet turns red( for you, Kacee)



Happy new year everyone!!

MHDFLYER

I booked about half of my approximately 40 trips this year in P/A fares this year. This allowed me to earn extra segments and move to 1K status on what otherwise would have been another year of Platinum for me. Many of my trips are quick overnights and the guaranteed seats in F allow me to be more productive when traveling. Since we book close in, the fare difference was usually around $100 each way. As an owner of a company, I can say without hesitation, that the extra cost of the ticket was worth it to me, even though it hits the bottom line as an additional expense. Also, the fares are usually similar to what WN is charging for their close in fares in Y. This makes the decision even easier.

The decision to incentivize the P/A/F fares will benefit me, but I was doing it anyway. I am a bit concerned that it will reduce the inventory to a point where the price difference will increase, thus reducing my likelihood to jump on the paid upgrades.

I already have booked my first A/P for 2016. Knowing it will make re-qualification via PQM easier, will allow me to reduce my gratuitous PQSs for 2016.

I hope everyone has a great 2016.