Is this allowed?
 

If it is showing Y2 B2 etc......

I make a booking and hold it so it goes down to Y1. and when the flight comes within the 4 hour mark I release the hold and I call united and use the $25 dollar confirm fee and take the spot :confused: :p

Ethically questionable aside, that's not how yield management works. :rolleyes:

Nope, because the second you release the spot, it goes back into general inventory and if there are other people on the waitlist, the rez system will instantly clear them.

And it's a slimy thing to do. ;)

Can you explain what you mean? I sure don't understand... :confused:

I'm confused also, but this does not sound good.

Hey? Are you serious man? :confused:

You have more than 1,700 post then me, and you're into unethically yield management.

Hey, why not just go all the way and book the entire flight in full Y and refund it all the day before the flight so you can fly alone? I believe this practice is against the CoC and United can (justifiably) put you on their no-fly list.

How is this not how yield management works? And as far as clearning standbys... that's done at the gate just prior to departure, so releasing this seat hours before would dump it back into Y without anyone on the list able to immediately claim it.

I think it's slimy, but that it would work.

Decided not to do it as it is unethical. I'll just go on my ticketed flight.

Almost all flights will overbook in coach, so when a flight is showing Y2 B2 etc then it is already overbooked by quite a bit. The $25 confirm only works if the flight is not overbooked, that is actually has fewer passengers booked than seats available. Flights that are not overbooked are generally Y9 B9 etc. So taking one seat in and out of inventory won't help you.

Note that many passengers don't show up or misconnect so that a flight can be overbooked by 10-20% or more and still go out with standbys cleared and empty seats. But you can't do confirmed $25 changes onto such flights, only regular standby.

Charles

Forgetting the slimeyness of the OP's tactic, it would not work. Same-day confirmed books into H and therefore H or lower must be available..

It was showing. Y2 straight down to L2 so my tactic would have worked ;)

I think LAX UA 1K explained it very well. When a flight is oversold Y0, cancelling a Y seat may not result in Y1. The seat will simply be absorbed into the oversold inventory. It would work if the flight is not oversold, but then it would have worked without this trick anyway.

Sorry for my n00bness. Would someone mind explaining what this means for me? I read the FAQ and the Glossary first but am still not clear. Thx.

Not true. $25 confimed cannot be used when a flight is overbooked, booked even, or underbooked by one seat, no matter what the fare class availability. Flight must be underbooked by two or more and H or lower available. In practice, I think H or lower will always be available whenever the underbooking condition is satisfied.

That was my point. Nothing you do on a small scale is going to make the flight more underbooked; the only thing you can do is to book extra seats, and that won't help you. In cabins where they don't overbook, you have more leverage, but it is unethical for sure and almost certainly a violation of the CoC.

Charles