Can't redeem domestic first class(I) (SFO-HNL) on United with Krisflyer miles

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Mar 24, 2019, 8:03 am

tingadingling

Original Poster

Join Date: Mar 2013

Location: singapore, the netherlands

Programs: SQ PPS, KLM Platinum, Air Berlin gold, HHonors Gold, SPG gold

Posts: 81

Can't redeem domestic first class(I) (SFO-HNL) on United with Krisflyer miles

Gday all. I'm SQ KF departing on a *A round the world redemption soon with the wife, and we haven't been able to redeem United 1st domestic after 10 months of trying. Absolutely no availability on first between HNL and SFO, only economy. Is the problem the popularity of the route, or United saving redemptions in first for its own premium passengers?

If it makes any diff I'm KF Gold and all other rtw legs are on business, booked via KF miles.

Mar 24, 2019, 8:33 am

IADFlyer123

Join Date: Oct 2013

Location: WAS/ BOM

Programs: UA 1K, Marriott Gold, HHonors Gold

Posts: 1,567

SFO-HNL is an extremely popular route that gets sold out up front. Even UA elites can’t get award space.

nomad420 likes this.

Mar 24, 2019, 9:21 am

cfischer

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Aug 2005

Location: BOS/EAP

Programs: UA 1K, MR LTT, HH Dia, Amex Plat

Posts: 32,017

Any I-class is difficult to come by for domestic flights. HNL-SFO is particularly bad. Don't waste your time searching for it ... it will likely never appear.

Mar 24, 2019, 9:26 am

tingadingling

Original Poster

Join Date: Mar 2013

Location: singapore, the netherlands

Programs: SQ PPS, KLM Platinum, Air Berlin gold, HHonors Gold, SPG gold

Posts: 81

Thanks for the advice, should've saved myself some Award Flyer points as I kept a daily search going for more than 6 months. Nada. Nonetheless, shan't complain about going to Hawaii!

coolbeans202 likes this.

Mar 24, 2019, 9:27 am

BF263533

Join Date: Dec 2004

Posts: 2,866

Domestic I class very very hard to get.

Mar 24, 2019, 12:30 pm

rankourabu

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Jan 2002

Location: Canada

Programs: UA*1K MM

Posts: 23,297

Do saver awards even exist to Hawaii?

Mar 24, 2019, 12:52 pm

kale73

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Mar 2012

Posts: 19,501

So? It's been impossible to redeem MP miles for any class on SQ for several months.

All UA award space for TP&TG (gone - now back?) & SQ still gone??

Last edited by kale73; Mar 24, 2019 at 12:56 pm Reason: add link

Mar 24, 2019, 1:04 pm

HNLbasedFlyer

Join Date: Sep 2006

Location: HNL

Programs: UA GS4MM, MR LT Plat, Hilton Gold

Posts: 6,447

Quote:

Originally Posted by rankourabu

Do saver awards even exist to Hawaii?

There are plenty of Saver First awards HNL-SFO available - you have to be prepared to fly last minute - they typically are not available in more than a week in advance.

40K F awards available 3/25, 3/27, 3/28

Mar 24, 2019, 3:57 pm

Ari

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Aug 2005

Location: Chicago

Posts: 11,513

Quote:

Originally Posted by tingadingling

or United saving redemptions in first for its own premium passengers?

No, but if they did (and withheld them from just SQ), that would be called well-deserved karma.

Mar 24, 2019, 4:05 pm

#10

jsloan

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Oct 2001

Location: Austin, TX

Posts: 21,386

Quote:

Originally Posted by HNLbasedFlyer

While this is accurate, I'm not sure how helpful it is for someone trying to plan a RTW award.

nomad420 likes this.

Mar 24, 2019, 4:10 pm

#11

Ari

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Aug 2005

Location: Chicago

Posts: 11,513

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsloan

While this is accurate, I'm not sure how helpful it is for someone trying to plan a RTW award.

I think the OP can book the segment in X and then change it to I if/when it becomes available . . .

RTW tickets can usually be changed en-route.

Mar 24, 2019, 7:01 pm

#12

mherdeg

Join Date: Jan 2009

Location: LHR (sometimes CLE, SFO, BOS, LAX, SEA)

Programs: UA 1K

Posts: 5,893

Quote:

Originally Posted by rankourabu

Do saver awards even exist to Hawaii?

Searched this about a month ago and saw one day in the schedule -- it was 1 March 2019 iirc -- with I1 on SFO-HNL, I0 on all other UA sectors to Hawaii otherwise. I only searched for 6 months though.

Mar 24, 2019, 9:56 pm

#13

tingadingling

Original Poster

Join Date: Mar 2013

Location: singapore, the netherlands

Programs: SQ PPS, KLM Platinum, Air Berlin gold, HHonors Gold, SPG gold

Posts: 81

Quote:

Originally Posted by kale73

So? It's been impossible to redeem MP miles for any class on SQ for several months.

All UA award space for TP&TG (gone - now back?) & SQ still gone??

I can emphathise. On its best day, SQ award bookings for J and F are still painful to get. Fact is, they have to offer an awards program but they don’t make it particularly easy. When I was PPS (1K equivalent?) I’d still be waitlisted all the time and have to harry their operators to clear several weeks before a flight (which they often eventually did). I’d hate to be an alliance partner member trying to redeem on SQ.

Though in this instance, it seems to be a multi partner problem with UA that has now been resolved except for SQ. I don’t see why they’d be in a hurry to fix it frankly.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ari

I think the OP can book the segment in X and then change it to I if/when it becomes available . . .

RTW tickets can usually be changed en-route.

Yes, this is exactly what I’m doing. If we don’t get I we’ll fly X for this leg, my main concern is baggage limits and not so much cabin/seating as we plan to sleep during the red eye anyway.

For future reference, try and book *A RTW redemptions a year in advance and be prepared to amend routes if I or F is important to you. I was flexible and still landed with a suboptimal routing. You can call in to change flights when I becomes available, but have to pay $125 for each change, on SQ anyway.

Quote:

Originally Posted by HNLbasedFlyer

Great advice - thanks shall try this. Your nick name lives up to its promise!

Last edited by WineCountryUA; Mar 24, 2019 at 10:27 pm Reason: merging consecutive posts by same member