May 7, 2022, 3:00 pm

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Active thread; UA-Schedule changes; +25% TATL 2022 capacity, Q2 TPAC down 65% vs 2019; June changes

UA publishes a schedule for 330 days in advance (called Beginning of Schedule) and in the past would make tweaks quarterly and things would be fairly settles 3-4 months out. Updates would occur Friday evening / Saturday morning (Chicago time). Routine additions could occur anytime.
20 Oct 2021

Quote:

Originally Posted by EWR764

In the earnings call today, UA noted that has been transitioning back to its 'normal' (pre-pandemic) 90-day schedule load process, which should be complete in the very near future.

Quote:

Originally Posted by UA Insider

The only thing constant is change and at United Airlines, some of the fees associated with changes related to flying are gone for good. The carrier announced today that it is permanently getting rid of change fees on all standard Economy and Premium cabin tickets for travel within the U.S., effective immediately. And starting on January 1, 2021, any United customer can fly standby for free, regardless of fare type, on a flight departing the day of their travel, a first among U.S. carriers, while MileagePlus® Premier® members can confirm a seat on a different flight on the same day with the same departure and arrival cities as their original ticket if a seat in the same ticket fare class is available.

United is also extending its waiver for new tickets issued through December 31, 2020, to permit unlimited changes with no fee. This policy applies to all ticket types issued after March 3, 2020 and is valid for domestic and international travel.

The new change fee policy applies to all standard Economy and Premium cabin tickets for travel within the U.S. 50 states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and customers will not be limited in the number of times they adjust their flights.

Additionally, United is giving customers more flexibility to change their flights on the day of their travel so they can head home if a meeting ends earlier or enjoy a few more hours on vacation. With the ability to list for same-day standby for free, customers will now have an option to take a different flight with the same origin and destination airports as their original itinerary if space is available at departure. This enhanced option will be available to all customers for travel within the U.S. and to and from international destinations beginning on January 1, 2021. Customers who want to switch flights will be able to add themselves to the standby list through United’s award-winning mobile app, on united.com or at the airport no later than 30 minutes prior to departure for domestic flights and one hour before departure on international flights.

The carrier is also improving the travel experience for its MileagePlus members including waiving all redeposit fees on award travel for flights changed or cancelled more than 30 days before departure and allowing all MileagePlus Premier members to confirm a different flight on the day of their travel. As a way to thank MileagePlus Premier members for their loyalty, beginning January 1, 2021, all Premier members will be able to confirm a seat for free on a different flight with the same departure and arrival cities as their original ticket. This expanded option will allow MileagePlus Silver members and above to confirm a new seat in the same ticket fare class if space is available. Earlier this year, United announced that it will extend status for MileagePlus Premier and United Global Services® members through January 2022. United also reduced thresholds for Premier qualification by 50 percent for each status level, to make reaching an even higher status tier easier.

For more information on United’s new flexible travel policies, visit https://www.united.com/ual/en/us/fly/travel/change-fee.html.

Quote:

Change is here. Change fees are gone.We’re permanently getting rid of change fees for most Economy and premium cabin tickets for travel within the United States. This includes Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Learn more

For all other destinations, change fees are waived through December 31, 2020. See terms and conditions

Quote:

We’re extending electronic certificatesTo give you more flexibility when you travel, electronic certificates are now valid for 24 months from the date they were issued. This includes all currently valid electronic certificates and all new ones issued on or after April 1, 2020.

This policy change will automatically appear, but it may not be reflected everywhere right away. We’d appreciate your patience as we work to make that happen.

Quote:

Award flight redeposit fees waived

We’re waiving redeposit fees for award flights issued on or before December 31, 2020, that are canceled at least 30 days before the departure date. You can also change your award flight with no fee. Learn more about changing or canceling your award flight.

International travel advisories and waivers

For more information about international travel:

View our current travel waivers
See our country-specific travel updates
Search by destination for passport, visa and health requirements provided by the International Air Transport Association (IATA)
Visit the U.S. Department of State’s website for detailed information on coronavirus by country[/quote]

CARES service exemptions for United
United Exemption 042520 FINAL ISSUED.pdf
United Airlines 2nd Exemption_051220_FINAL ISSUED.pdf
latest (tentative) -2020-5-5 Order to Show Cause

Other Resources and Statistics

COVID19 UA-Schedule {Archive}

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Mar 8, 2020, 5:16 pm

#1141

kb1992

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Jul 2003

Location: BOS, PVG

Programs: United 1K and 1MM, Marriott Ambassador

Posts: 10,000

Quote:

Originally Posted by daisyatl

Apologies if this has been asked but any thoughts or word on whether the extension of PlusPoints to April 30 will be further extended? I am guessing not since it was a courtesy. Thanks!

IMHO they should not only extend the April PP to January but also extend Jan 2021 PP to 2022.

Mar 8, 2020, 5:18 pm

#1142

jsloan

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Oct 2001

Location: Austin, TX

Posts: 21,413

Quote:

Originally Posted by eng3

I'm sorry, I'm still a little confused about the waiver.

If you do a change and the value is higher, you pay the fare difference, if the value is lower, you dont get the residual.

However, you have the option to cancel, in which case you can use the full value with no fee. Why wouldn't one just always choose the cancel/rebook option to get the full value.

Based on reading the fare rules, I don’t think that the cancel / rebook option actually makes any difference. It’s still functionally a change, in that the fare rules of the original ticket apply. And those specifically say that residual value is ignored.

Mar 8, 2020, 5:37 pm

#1143

RNE

Join Date: Sep 2005

Location: JZRO

Posts: 9,169

Quote:

Originally Posted by AeRoSpaceman

United’s new policy is that a schedule change has to be 25 hours

My signature advice was reasonable under the 2-hour rule. Now more so than ever.

Mar 8, 2020, 5:45 pm

#1144

Kacee

A FlyerTalk Posting Legend

Join Date: Apr 2013

Location: PHX

Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)

Posts: 56,467

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsloan

It absolutely won't make a difference, unless the IT glitches.

Mar 8, 2020, 5:48 pm

#1145

uastarflyer

A FlyerTalk Posting Legend

Join Date: Aug 2003

Programs: UA 1K 1MM (finally!), IHG AMB-Spire, HH Diamond

Posts: 60,174

Quote:

Originally Posted by HGHUA

EWR-MXP Canceled Saturday and now sunday. Monday still on schedule.

Italy’s definition of lockdown varies from the actual definition of lockdown...

Mar 8, 2020, 6:16 pm

#1146

emcampbe

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Oct 2006

Location: SFO/SJC

Programs: UA Silver, Marriott Gold, Hilton Gold

Posts: 14,891

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsloan

If you look at the fares UA has currently published, they have “ignore residual” all over the place. That means what it sounds like: if there’s a residual value in the ticket after computing the new fare, ignore it (and thus UA keeps it).

only looked up a couple of fares over the weekend, and I’ll admit I didn’t read into the fare rules in depth.

Any thoughts on whether this is temporary while there are no change fees on tickets and this will go back to what it was after that, or whether they will try and keep this going forward, even after normal change fees return?

i really hope the former, but fear this could be an easy way to normalize this for the future. Stay tuned, I guess?

Quote:

Originally Posted by spartacusmcfly

Well, the new schedule seems to be loaded. If EWR-SFO is representative of what they've done transcon, it's an interesting story. The change is milder than I expected. Here is what I see:

1. EWR-SFO typically runs 14x per day.
2. In March, it will run 12x per day.
3. In April, it will drop to 11x per day.
4. In May, it goes back up to 14x per day.

They could have cut further. It's clear to me UA assumed a best-case outlook. Let's see how it goes.

Seems in line with their announced schedule cuts of 10% of domestic flights. Technically, getting rid of 2/14 is more than that. So not really that much a surprise there. Like I said upthread, I’d expect things to remain dynamic, with further flight cancelations as they feel the situation warrants.

Quote:

Originally Posted by david_oz

not quite everywhere. My ORD-LHR on June 4 is still waitlisted, and I’m not finding anything on a trip I want to take to Sydney in early July. Having said that, I have never felt more comfortable playing the upgrade lottery. The chances are excellent regardless of flight and date. Although now the upgrade lottery seems to have been replaced by the quarantine lottery.

id guess they are taking a wait and see approach for flights into the summer, especially to EU since it’s high season. Really, Looking at this a month or two ahead, and will re-assess.

flight cuts for now are mostly April/May - I assume there will be further adjustments as they see loads and how the situation unfolds over the next couple of months. If things look similar or worse for June/July in late April/May, I’d assume further flight reductions, and more open upgrade space if the loads remain low, but they’re hoping demand will return, so leaving PZ=0 until closer and they can better assess the demand.

Quote:

Originally Posted by RJ1

Just want to be sure I understand the waiver policy currently in effect.

If I purchase a ticket by 31 March 2020 for travel in August 2020, and if I end up cancelling that travel, I would be able to retain the value of that ticket and rebook without a change fee. And the new ticket would have to be for travel within 12 months of the original ticket issue date (which would be prior to 31 March 2020).

Do I have that correct?

technically, I believe that’s correct. Though most reports in the forum seem to indicate new flights need to be rebooked by a year from original date if issue, not flown by then.

That said, If there was ever a time that they might strictly adhere to the rules, seems now would be it, given some of the other recent changes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by eng3

I always look at it as one and the same. You can either cancel and rebook on the spot (What you refer to as a change), or cancel now and leave the value in the PNR to rebook later. not sure there’s really a difference.

you could almost certainly do what you suggest, as long as you actually use the funds in the existing PNR before they expire. Some people don’t fly enough where if they book a lower fare as a new ticket, and then wait to use the full value, it might expire before they are able to use it. For those folks, losing a, say, $75 fare difference may be the lesser of two evils than losing a full, say, $400 fare.

Mar 8, 2020, 6:30 pm

#1147

Mike Jacoubowsky

Join Date: May 2003

Location: Redwood City, CA USA (SFO/SJC)

Programs: 1K 2010, 1P in 2011, Plat for 2012,13,14,15 & 2016. Gold in 17 & 18, Plat since

Posts: 8,826

Credit goes to purchaser, or individual ticket holder?

If I purchased two tickets SFO-CDG for July, and can't use them, does the value of both tickets go to me (since I purchased them) or is the value restricted to the person whose name is on each ticket? I suspect the latter. Comes up because SFO-CDG just went dirt-cheap for July ($771 for standard economy), but there's a chance the Tour de France might not even happen this year, due to the Corona virus. In which case I can use my ticket for a trip with my wife in November, but sounds like my son's ticket might only be useful for a different trip for him.

Mar 8, 2020, 6:46 pm

#1148

jsloan

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Oct 2001

Location: Austin, TX

Posts: 21,413

Quote:

Originally Posted by emcampbe

Any thoughts on whether this is temporary while there are no change fees on tickets and this will go back to what it was after that, or whether they will try and keep this going forward, even after normal change fees return?

That language already existed on a number of UA fares, mostly international P sale fares. I suspect that they’ll follow their competitors’ lead; if they don’t follow suit, I suspect UA will roll that language back out when the no-change-fee promo expires. If they do, though, then this would be our new normal.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Jacoubowsky

Credit must be used by the person whose name is on the ticket. If the fare allows residuals — you’d have to check the fare rules — then the residual amount could be used by anyone. But note that the no-change-fee promo is coming with a lot of “residual will be ignored” language, meaning any extra amount over the new fare would be forfeit.

Mar 8, 2020, 7:18 pm

#1149

NCNyrk

Join Date: Apr 2005

Posts: 14

Schedule Changes Fully Loaded?

I'm supposed to fly RDU-DEN-NRT on 17 March, and the DEN-NRT flight no longer appears on United Website for that date, and for other somewhat random dates in March. I did not see that as one of the original Japan schedule changes, but not sure if maybe it got cut in this weekend's additional schedule changes. No notice from United. Anyone else experiencing any aberrations with soonish tickets?

Mar 8, 2020, 7:35 pm

#1150

WineCountryUA

Moderator: United Airlines

Join Date: Jun 2007

Location: SFO

Programs: UA Plat 1.995MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat

Posts: 66,857

Quote:

Originally Posted by NCNyrk

For a more extensive list of the recent changes see March 7 OAG changes As per this source, only a few international flights in that list -- so there may be further international cuts.

Mar 8, 2020, 7:36 pm

#1151

eng3

Join Date: Aug 2008

Location: PHL

Programs: UA 1K 1MM, Marriott Gold, IHG Platinum, Raddison Platinum, Avis Presidents Club

Posts: 5,271

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsloan

So if one "cancels" the ticket, then tries to use the value to "rebook" a cheaper ticket, they will NOT receive an ETC for the residual.

Mar 8, 2020, 8:04 pm

#1152

fatlasercat

Join Date: Feb 2015

Location: SFO

Programs: UA 1MM 1K, BA Gold

Posts: 431

Quote:

Originally Posted by eng3

So if one "cancels" the ticket, then tries to use the value to "rebook" a cheaper ticket, they will NOT receive an ETC for the residual.

The only advantage of the "cancel" (and then later change) option is that you don't have to know what you are changing to at the time your originally bought first segment departs.

Mar 8, 2020, 8:05 pm

#1153

cfischer

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Aug 2005

Location: BOS/EAP

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

Posts: 32,064

Quote:

Originally Posted by ironmanjt

Sigh, IAD-BRU which is usually packed has gone 772 > 764 (no Polaris, boo) and lots of other routes downsized too. Oddly, IAD-ZRH is going from 763 > 763 high J config. Odd.

ZRH has been high J for a while. My May flights have been high J since I booked them in January

Mar 8, 2020, 8:34 pm

#1154

Brandinho1

Join Date: Feb 2016

Location: EZE

Programs: UA Gold,Delta Gold Bonvoy Titanium Elite, HH Diamond , AA Platinum, EENational, Hyatt Globalist

Posts: 1,548

Quote:

Originally Posted by susiesan

Flights were booked months ago. Thanks. I won't waste my time calling in to try to get better award flights. I am not willing to pay just to save 2 hours time. My flights are on Air Canada and SAS metal, the flights I wanted to change to are UA metal. I might wait for a schedule change to one of the segments of the trip and maybe then I can change the routing. My trip is not until June 23, who knows what will happen by then. UA could be bankrupt. I can cancel the cruise I am taking up to 48 hours before the sailing and retain 100% of the cost as a future cruise credit.

On Saturday I changed my MSY-ORD-ARN-CPH that was originally booked on 2/4/20 to MSY-ORD-CPH still a UA/SK award and I was not charged a change fee

Mar 8, 2020, 9:17 pm

#1155

Mike Jacoubowsky

Join Date: May 2003

Location: Redwood City, CA USA (SFO/SJC)

Programs: 1K 2010, 1P in 2011, Plat for 2012,13,14,15 & 2016. Gold in 17 & 18, Plat since

Posts: 8,826

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsloan

Thanks, yes, I checked the fare rules and no residuals allowed. But at least the tickets aren't tied together, meaning that the two separate travelers can travel separately in the future, right?

One other thing I noticed in the rules- the 12 month clock starts running from the date the tickets are issued, not from the date of travel (which I'm sure has been pointed out previously).