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Have a Simple Question About United Airlines/MileagePlus? Ask Here [2019]

Old Jan 6, 2019, 12:17 pm
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Last edit by: WineCountryUA
Welcome to this thread to ask your basic, simple questions about United Airlines, its operations, or the MileagePlus program. We know that the airline is complex and weve created this thread for new and veteran members to ask those basic questions about United Airlines that you think must have an easy answer but just cant find it or arent sure where to look.

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Have a Simple Question About United Airlines/MileagePlus? Ask Here [2018]

Have a Simple Question About United Airlines/MileagePlus? Ask Here [2017]

Have a Simple Question About United Airlines/MileagePlus? Ask Here [2016 Part II]

Have a Simple Question About United Airlines/MileagePlus? Ask Here [2016 Part I]

Have a Simple Question About United Airlines/MileagePlus? Ask Here [2015 -Part II]...

Have a Simple Question About United Airlines/MileagePlus? Ask Here [2015 Thread]...
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Have a Simple Question About United Airlines/MileagePlus? Ask Here [2019]

Old May 21, 2019, 2:40 pm
  #496  
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Originally Posted by stormpelt
the last leg has been cancelled by the european airline!!! I have been on hold for the last half an hour, as the United rep is trying to figure out what to do about my flights. Is there any compensation?
No, there is no compensation due.

Originally Posted by stormpelt
It was booked as a one-way itinerary (going from A-B, stop in C).
Do an award search on the United site for the day that you want. See if any options come up. Ignore the number of miles. If they do, ask for those flights. If UA has service to "C," you can ask to be put on UA's flight, even if there's no award space.

Originally Posted by stormpelt
WORST OF ALL, NO ONE EMAILED ME ABOUT THIS CANCELLATION. I HAD NO IDEA.
Sadly, this sometimes does happen. Provided that you had a valid ticket (did you ever get an email with a ticket number?) UA is on the hook to get you where you need to go or to give you a refund.
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Old May 21, 2019, 2:57 pm
  #497  
 
Join Date: Feb 2018
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Originally Posted by jsloan
No, there is no compensation due.


Do an award search on the United site for the day that you want. See if any options come up. Ignore the number of miles. If they do, ask for those flights. If UA has service to "C," you can ask to be put on UA's flight, even if there's no award space.


Sadly, this sometimes does happen. Provided that you had a valid ticket (did you ever get an email with a ticket number?) UA is on the hook to get you where you need to go or to give you a refund.
I actually did look up other award tickets from A-B, but the agent who was on the phone said she "didn't see them on her end" and said there's "no availability on those". They showed up on my end. But not on hers for some reason. Then she put me on hold for 30 minutes, so I had to hang up. Now I'm calling them back. It's all on partner airlines though, as it's in europe. Well, there's one flight in the US to get to LA, and then it's on partner airlines.

AND now that I looked up the awards for my last leg, I AM STILL SEEING THAT FLIGHT THERE, available. So, why the heck was it cancelled for me? I can still see it being offered! .... I am honestly so frustrated right now that I have to spend probably the next 2-3 hours on the phone figuring what the heck is going on.
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Old May 21, 2019, 3:10 pm
  #498  
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Originally Posted by stormpelt
AND now that I looked up the awards for my last leg, I AM STILL SEEING THAT FLIGHT THERE, available. So, why the heck was it cancelled for me? I can still see it being offered! .... I am honestly so frustrated right now that I have to spend probably the next 2-3 hours on the phone figuring what the heck is going on.
If the flight is still available, a representative should be able to put it back onto your reservation.

However, it may disappear again. You're going to want to follow up with the operating airline and make sure the ticket looks OK in their system. Make sure that they see a valid ticket number in their system and it matches what UA has.
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Old May 21, 2019, 4:16 pm
  #499  
 
Join Date: Sep 2014
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Originally Posted by stormpelt
AND now that I looked up the awards for my last leg, I AM STILL SEEING THAT FLIGHT THERE, available.
There is a big difference between a flight being cancelled (no longer operating) and your reservation being cancelled (or the flight being dropped from your reservation). If it's the latter, call back and try to get them to add you back onto that flight. Then, as others have said, call the operating airline and make sure everything looks good on their end.

If the former, no one on the phone can magically make the partner airline operate that flight. You're going to have to find a different itinerary to get to your destination. UA has to get you there or give you a full refund. Make sure you know what you're asking for before you call, and be ready to HUCA even if it means waiting on hold again.
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Old May 23, 2019, 5:17 am
  #500  
 
Join Date: Apr 2015
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Does anyone know why the PQM is slo low for my flight in May 2018 vs September 2018?
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Old May 23, 2019, 7:11 am
  #501  
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Originally Posted by haoxu123
Does anyone know why the PQM is slo low for my flight in May 2018 vs September 2018?
I assume you mean PQD? The PQM for the May flight is higher than that of the September one because SFO-HKG is further than PVG-SFO. Who issued the ticket, and what other segments are on it?
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Old May 23, 2019, 5:32 pm
  #502  
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
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Fare differences

Hi,

what, if any, is the difference between me purchasing a Z fare and a First (2 cabin lowest) fare?

Thanks.
Eric
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Old May 23, 2019, 5:38 pm
  #503  
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Originally Posted by ekwang
Hi,

what, if any, is the difference between me purchasing a Z fare and a First (2 cabin lowest) fare?

Thanks.
Eric
On a domestic flight?
Z fare is a discount First Class Cabin fare --- (note UA no longer uses F as a fare class)
J, C, D, Z, P is the present hierarchic

The different fare classes have different restrictions, some are refundable, some a non-refundable, some have a change fee, some don't, some need to purchased x days before travel, some can be purchased on the day of travel, ......

The PQM earnings vary -- the lowest is 150%, the highest (and most expensive - J) is 300%
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Old May 23, 2019, 6:06 pm
  #504  
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Originally Posted by findark
I assume you mean PQD?
I think he means base miles or RDM, since PQM is pretty close. 915 for SFO-HKG versus 19,965 PVG-SFO. Miles are based on fare paid - the SFO-HKG flight was much cheaper, and therefore earned far fewer miles.
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Old May 23, 2019, 6:09 pm
  #505  
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Originally Posted by mahasamatman
I think he means base miles. 915 for SFO-HKG versus 19,965 PVG-SFO. Miles are based on fare paid - the SFO-HKG flight was much cheaper, and therefore earned far fewer miles.
Well, base miles are calculated from the PQD, so that's really the same thing. And $183 is not a reasonable SFO-HKG C fare on its own -- the only way that you'd expect to see that would be if there was a strange allocation somewhere else (or if the 75K cap were hit).
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Old May 23, 2019, 6:13 pm
  #506  
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Originally Posted by jsloan
And $183 is not a reasonable SFO-HKG C fare on its own
I would guess that the two super-cheap ANA flights were on the same itinerary, so it was either a mistake fare or not really a C fare.
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Old May 23, 2019, 11:16 pm
  #507  
 
Join Date: Apr 2015
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Originally Posted by mahasamatman
I would guess that the two super-cheap ANA flights were on the same itinerary, so it was either a mistake fare or not really a C fare.
yeah the total flight costs (SIN=>NRT=>SFO=>HKG) about 8564 SGD, so i dont understand how it's so cheap for each of the segment.
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Old May 24, 2019, 12:27 am
  #508  
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Originally Posted by haoxu123
yeah the total flight costs (SIN=>NRT=>SFO=>HKG) about 8564 SGD, so i dont understand how it's so cheap for each of the segment.
OK, if that was the entire ticket, and it looks like it was ticketed on United, you need to call the MileagePlus Service Center and ask them to fix it.
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Old May 24, 2019, 10:57 am
  #509  
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Originally Posted by haoxu123
yeah the total flight costs (SIN=>NRT=>SFO=>HKG) about 8564 SGD, so i dont understand how it's so cheap for each of the segment.
Originally Posted by jsloan
OK, if that was the entire ticket, and it looks like it was ticketed on United, you need to call the MileagePlus Service Center and ask them to fix it.
Or write! Often easier for things like this.
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Old May 24, 2019, 5:36 pm
  #510  
 
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Is there some sort of pattern to determine when Mileage Plus miles can be used to book non-Star Alliance subsidiaries/partners of Star Alliance carriers?

I (pleasantly) discovered that Mileage Plus miles can be used to book Ibex Airlines, who cooperates/codeshares with ANA but isn't even majority owned by ANA. But Mileage Plus miles can't be used to book AirDo, even though AirDo is majority owned by ANA.

As another example, for Air China's majority-owned subsidiaries, Mileage Plus miles can be used on Dalian Airlines, but not Air Macau nor Tibet Airlines.

Is it just per the whims of the Star Alliance parent?
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