Nov 15, 2016, 1:38 pm
Last edit by: WineCountryUA
Related thread: Basic Economy Airport and Plane Experiences (First or Second Hand)
If purchased on united.com you will have to accept a warning about choosing Basic Economy and there will be orange "Basic Economy" highlights everywhere during the booking process.
Link to UA's description of how these fares will work: Basic Economy.
Here are the key facts:
To avoid domestic BE fares ITA Matrix ~bc=N . Ignoring them on international flights is much trickier because they do not have a consistent pattern in the fare basis; it appears to change by market / region. (That said, as UA is lifting BE from legacy GDS systems, it may result in them disappearing from ITA Matrix anyway).
Google Flights -- select 1 Carry-on bag
NO UNUSED TICKET MAY BE USED TOWARD THE PURCHASE
OF A BASIC ECONOMY TICKET.
-------
NO RESIDUAL VALUE MAY BE USED TOWARD THE PURCHASE
OF A BASIC ECONOMY TICKET.
How is this different from buying up BE to regular economy?
related threads
New UA/*A TATL -LGT Economy fare - no free first bag, no changes/upgrades allowed
Benefit impact of restricted economy fares on UA Elites (Basic Econ, -LGT, Light Econ
Pre-announcement speculation thread (now closed) New "Budget Economy" fares
United's Basic Economy - Discussion, Q&A, ... {Archive}
If purchased on united.com you will have to accept a warning about choosing Basic Economy and there will be orange "Basic Economy" highlights everywhere during the booking process.
Link to UA's description of how these fares will work: Basic Economy.
Here are the key facts:
- No free seat assignments until check-in. Seats will be assigned by the system. Flyers (including elite) have the option to purchase regular economy and preferred economy (white seats with black triangle on seat map) seats after ticket purchase. E+ seats are not available for purchase until check-in. If you don’t purchase an advance seat assignment, your seat will be automatically assigned to you prior to boarding, and you won't be able to change your seat once it's been assigned.
- No guarantee of adjacent seats with companions
- No voluntary ticket changes after 24 hour purchase period including SDC (occasionally 1K's have successfully used Same Day Standby and received a confirmed seat without penalty)
- Carry on limited to one personal item unless the customer is a MP Premier member, primary cardmember of a qualifying MileagePlus credit card, or Star Alliance *G, or traveling on an international BE product
- Customers ineligible for carry-on who bring one to the gate will be charged a $25 convenience fee to gate-check in addition to standard baggage fees (source: @united twitter)
- Customers are not eligible for premium cabin upgrades either via CPU, mileage upgrade award or PlusPoints
- Customers will board in the last boarding group (currently Group 5) unless the customer is a MP Premier member, primary cardmember of a qualifying MileagePlus credit card, or Star Alliance *G, or traveling on an international BE product
- Companions on same PNR will have same boarding group and carry-on if one on the PNR has a waiver
- No combinability with regular economy fares or partner carriers. Interline travel is not permitted.
- Normal PQPs / RDMs based on fare and elite multipliers
- No PQFs
- Flight(s) do count towards the 4 flight minimum for UA-operated
- Full Lifetime mileage
- Domestic Basic Economy tickets will use booking code 'N'. International BE can be in any class.
- Online check-in only with paid checked bag, otherwise need to see a United representative to verify the onboard bag allowance and receive a boarding pass
- Canceling a basic economy ticket will receive a flight credit for the price of the ticket, minus a fee. For domestic flights, the fee is $49.50 for one-way tickets and $99 for roundtrip tickets. For international flights, the fee is $99.50 for one-way tickets and $199 for roundtrip tickets
To avoid domestic BE fares ITA Matrix ~bc=N . Ignoring them on international flights is much trickier because they do not have a consistent pattern in the fare basis; it appears to change by market / region. (That said, as UA is lifting BE from legacy GDS systems, it may result in them disappearing from ITA Matrix anyway).
Google Flights -- select 1 Carry-on bag
NO UNUSED TICKET MAY BE USED TOWARD THE PURCHASE
OF A BASIC ECONOMY TICKET.
-------
NO RESIDUAL VALUE MAY BE USED TOWARD THE PURCHASE
OF A BASIC ECONOMY TICKET.
How is this different from buying up BE to regular economy?
related threads
New UA/*A TATL -LGT Economy fare - no free first bag, no changes/upgrades allowed
Benefit impact of restricted economy fares on UA Elites (Basic Econ, -LGT, Light Econ
Pre-announcement speculation thread (now closed) New "Budget Economy" fares
United's Basic Economy - Discussion, Q&A, ... {Archive}
United's Basic Economy - Discussion, Q&A, ...Now cancellable for a fee
Feb 9, 2023, 11:32 pm
#181
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: if it's Thursday, this must be Belgium
Programs: UA 1K MM
Posts: 6,484
Another question for UA Basic Economy experts --
For flight check-in strategy, suppose that you can see that there are E+ windows and middles left at the start of check-in. Does BE algorithm tend to assign you a middle seat instead of a window seat if both types are available? I.e. preserving the better seats for non-BE/regular customers? Or is the seat assignment random to whatever is remaining?
I assume that if E- were available it would put you there first. But this is specifically asking about if only E+ windows and middles are available.
Just strategizing whether I should wait until probably other BE passengers have been assigned the middle seats first (if that's how it works).
Thanks!
For flight check-in strategy, suppose that you can see that there are E+ windows and middles left at the start of check-in. Does BE algorithm tend to assign you a middle seat instead of a window seat if both types are available? I.e. preserving the better seats for non-BE/regular customers? Or is the seat assignment random to whatever is remaining?
I assume that if E- were available it would put you there first. But this is specifically asking about if only E+ windows and middles are available.
Just strategizing whether I should wait until probably other BE passengers have been assigned the middle seats first (if that's how it works).
Thanks!
Feb 10, 2023, 12:42 am
#182
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
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Folks have trying to figure out how to game the BE seating algorithm for years and I have never heard predictable strategy. Suspect because the GA has some free will.
Feb 10, 2023, 1:51 am
#183
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: if it's Thursday, this must be Belgium
Programs: UA 1K MM
Posts: 6,484
Feb 10, 2023, 8:09 am
#184
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while certainly possible that as BE you could get assigned E+, I wouldnt count on this. That said, on some routes (not hub to hub for sure) and depending on how many E+ seats there are on the plane being used, length of flight, elite population, etc., these are some of the last seats available, as many don’t want to pay for these (on domestic, anyway). I’m doing YYZ-SFO nonstop in a week or two, and E+ looks like very light, only a couple of ‘blue’ seats selected, while the non-preferred seats are pretty full - mostly middles only left.
Feb 10, 2023, 10:22 am
#185
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: if it's Thursday, this must be Belgium
Programs: UA 1K MM
Posts: 6,484
Oh you are right! I just looked (I have not yet checked-in, but it is just within the window), and I have a seat without having done anything. I guess I have no choice anyway, but thanks for the info.
And just to clarify above, I was mostly interested in whether the algorithm would prefer to give BE passengers the less-valuable middle seats over window (since E- is already full on my flight), but now it's moot. It gave me a E- window, when there were E- middle/windows available, and E+ available.
Thanks!
Last edited by TA; Feb 10, 2023 at 11:28 am
Feb 10, 2023, 4:22 pm
#186
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Oh you are right! I just looked (I have not yet checked-in, but it is just within the window), and I have a seat without having done anything. I guess I have no choice anyway, but thanks for the info.
And just to clarify above, I was mostly interested in whether the algorithm would prefer to give BE passengers the less-valuable middle seats over window (since E- is already full on my flight), but now it's moot. It gave me a E- window, when there were E- middle/windows available, and E+ available.
Thanks!
And just to clarify above, I was mostly interested in whether the algorithm would prefer to give BE passengers the less-valuable middle seats over window (since E- is already full on my flight), but now it's moot. It gave me a E- window, when there were E- middle/windows available, and E+ available.
Thanks!
if available.
David
Feb 10, 2023, 4:52 pm
#187
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Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Floating around
Programs: UA 1K (1MM), DL Gold (1MM), Marriott LTT
Posts: 10,346
In my experience with BE fares so far that I have both kept (meaning booked and flown) and those that I haven't kept (meaning booked but subsequently cancelled within 24 hours)...
BE seat assignments are handed out 3 days before departure. It's not a T-72h type of assignment though; they seem to be done overnight (maybe midnight ET or CT?). I've been auto-assigned both E- and E+ seats as a 1K but never E+ if there are E- available.
If you book your ticket within 3 days of departure then no advance seat assignment appears to occur. I've been assigned seats during check-in in these situations and the above E-/E+ rules still apply.
The crazy thing about BE fares are that E+ seats cost $35 if you want to guarantee your favorite spot. Meanwhile all the other seats (e.g. "black triangle" or "regular white") cost $11-$65. It's ridiculous that E+ is priced lower than an inferior seat so I'm not really sure what United is doing here. Alternatively, just get to the airport and ask the gate agent for the seat you want. They can assign any seat in the economy cabin for free. As a 1K I've never had pushback doing this. On all TATL BE fares that I've flown (2 or 3) I've always paid the $35 for E+ on the westbound TATL because UA doesn't run most European stations I fly out of and I don't expect the third party crew to know what to do with a free seat change on a BE ticket. Sure, some may know but I'd rather not take the chance if it's important to me on a 8-10 hour flight.
-RM
BE seat assignments are handed out 3 days before departure. It's not a T-72h type of assignment though; they seem to be done overnight (maybe midnight ET or CT?). I've been auto-assigned both E- and E+ seats as a 1K but never E+ if there are E- available.
If you book your ticket within 3 days of departure then no advance seat assignment appears to occur. I've been assigned seats during check-in in these situations and the above E-/E+ rules still apply.
The crazy thing about BE fares are that E+ seats cost $35 if you want to guarantee your favorite spot. Meanwhile all the other seats (e.g. "black triangle" or "regular white") cost $11-$65. It's ridiculous that E+ is priced lower than an inferior seat so I'm not really sure what United is doing here. Alternatively, just get to the airport and ask the gate agent for the seat you want. They can assign any seat in the economy cabin for free. As a 1K I've never had pushback doing this. On all TATL BE fares that I've flown (2 or 3) I've always paid the $35 for E+ on the westbound TATL because UA doesn't run most European stations I fly out of and I don't expect the third party crew to know what to do with a free seat change on a BE ticket. Sure, some may know but I'd rather not take the chance if it's important to me on a 8-10 hour flight.
-RM
Feb 10, 2023, 4:54 pm
#188
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Join Date: Oct 2006
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of course, though YMMV. With BE, unless you pay for seat selection, that is at UAs discretion. You can get lucky with a window or aisle in E+, or unlucky with middle/last row. You can always ask, and GA may honor your request, or may say no. YMMV.
Feb 10, 2023, 8:16 pm
#189
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David
Feb 18, 2023, 3:01 pm
#190
Join Date: Feb 2023
Posts: 2
Carry-on allowed from US to Canada on United Basic Economy?
I know basic economy BE fare doesn't include carry one for US domestic flights. It looks like BE to Europe and south America does allow carryons. Unfortunately I can't find any info regarding US-Canada. Booking sites seem to suggest yes carryons are allowed for US - Canada routes but I am not sure...
Anyone knows? TIA.
Anyone knows? TIA.
Feb 18, 2023, 3:42 pm
#191
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
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Welcome to FT!, freebliss
For North America, BE will be an N-fare ticket, BG5 and not allow carryons.
Carry-on bags are not included unless you're flying to South America, across the Atlantic or across the Pacific. You can prepay to check a bag or check a carry-on at your gate for the regular bag fee plus an additional $25.
Feb 18, 2023, 3:53 pm
#192
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I know basic economy BE fare doesn't include carry one for US domestic flights. It looks like BE to Europe and south America does allow carryons. Unfortunately I can't find any info regarding US-Canada. Booking sites seem to suggest yes carryons are allowed for US - Canada routes but I am not sure...
Anyone knows? TIA.
Anyone knows? TIA.
Feb 18, 2023, 9:22 pm
#193
Join Date: Feb 2023
Posts: 2
So not sure what happened. Boarding pass clearly states Basic Economy International.
Feb 18, 2023, 9:43 pm
#194
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Hasn’t come up much, probably because BE fares to Canada are so new. I have to suspect that with the amount of transborder (/JV?) traffic flown by AC, maybe they are trying to streamline benefits between the two carriers? And maybe with the differences, at least as it looks now, maybe that’s what took UA so long to implement BE fares to Canada? All speculation by me, just what I’m thinking might be happening.
wonder if the wording in the website is simply outdated - based on the time there was no BE to Canada.
Last edited by emcampbe; Feb 18, 2023 at 10:04 pm
Mar 2, 2023, 7:51 pm
#195
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: IAH
Programs: UA MM, AA almost MM
Posts: 1,164
For a few moments tonight, I was considering buying BE tickets IAH-MSY. Short fights, so why not. After doing some reading, I wasn't sure about some of the details for MP elite. I understand that I can not chose seats and BE tickets are not eligible for upgrades. I will be able to board with my elite group rather than group 5. What about full size carry one and check bag benefits?