Fredd

I just found this information in a thread on the Ameniti cancellation (http://tinyurl.com/2a38vm
- thanks SanDiego1K ^ ) and IMHO it deserves its own thread:

An Important Message

For years, Silver Wings Plus has brought members numerous opportunities to earn extra miles and save on travel.

As part of United Airlines' efforts to control costs, optimize revenue and respond to customer feedback, we have decided to discontinue the Silver Wings Plus program. Starting July 1, 2007, Silver Wings Plus will no longer offer annual memberships. And, effective immediately, Silver Wings Plus will no longer activate, renew or extend annual memberships.*

http://tinyurl.com/2gxd76

I notice the fine print at the bottom may apply to those of us who are "Lifetime Members."

* If you joined Silver Wings before September 2005, you will retain access to special Zone Fares. Just call United Airlines at 1-800-720-1765 and refer to your Silver Wings member ID for more details.

Maybe I should have clarified before signing up whether the "lifetime" referred to mine or to the program's.

Pegasus23

[[Maybe I should have clarified before signing up whether the "lifetime" referred to mine or to the program's.]]

Good point!

I'm a Silverwings Plus but lifetime too....guess I'll try and reclaim my lifetime Zone Fares.

tomwht

I'm also a lifetime member. The overseas zone fares are the only benefit I use, since they are sometimes the least expensive SWU-upgradeable fares (V class) available. It appears they will still offer those.

Fredd

When I try to go to silverwingsplus.com I now get the following message:

No, you did not make a mistake

We've redesigned our Web site. Unfortunately, the URL you requested is no longer valid.

It's too bad UA isn't as efficient on the rest of its .com.

Fredd

We've been using them about the same way, although occasionally the domestic zone fares have been useful when flying into our out of a smaller airport.

It's interesting that UA has put this announcement out, worded almost identically to the Ameniti release, and now apparently have already closed down the Silver Wings Plus site, but they haven't yet bothered to send an e-mail out to Silver Wings members.

tomwht

Strange. I was at the site a few minutes ago, but now the message says,
"Sorry. The site is currently undergoing maintenance. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Please contact 1-800-720-1765. if you have any questions."

Perhaps more updating?

Fredd

Let's put it this way. If this were the website of the Fly-By-Night Travel Club that Mrs. Fredd paid a few hundred bucks to for lifetime memberships I'd be distinctly worried about our investment at this point.

Fredd

Up again and now directing us to Lifetime Membership
Benefits and Offers...

gfowler-ord-1k

One BIG change, you will not be able to use your existing credits for international travel after June 30, 2007.

StSebastian

That's odd -- I just read this on Smarter Travel:

http://www.smartertravel.com/travel-...tml?id=2345671

Maybe that brought too much attention to the program.

gfowler-ord-1k

For those of you considering the travel credit e-cert refund you need to be prepared to invest a lot of your time getting them to work correctly. Right now I am trying to use a $100 Silver Wings e-cert and it is not pricing out correctly. It is only giving a $50 discount rather than $100. I am on hold with web support and they are investigating. I will edit or followup this post with my results.

gfowler-ord-1k

Web support verified that the e-cert was not being priced correctly. At first I was told they showed that the e-cert was for 10% not $100 and I had to be a bit insistent that it was $100.

It cost me about an hour total time including 29 minutes and 18 seconds talking to web support. The web support person explained that the problem was even though the e-cert had a $75 minimum base fare restriction ual.com was enforcing a higher minimum therefore it picked an S for the return to increase the fare to be above the minimum. The total fare without the cert is $170.79 and with the $100 e-cert it was pricing as $129.80. I was told to purchase the ticket and a $100 credit will be issued within 3 days. This has rarely worked in the past so I am prepared to dispute it with my credit card if I don't get the credit on time.

Rudi

I am lifetime Silver Wing (did never upgrade to Silver Wing PRO). I only used the program once (buying 4 USA Collection Zone Fares) since I joined in the late 90ies. Some changements of rules in the past made the program not very attractive to me anymore (having to start in the USA, removal of the 10% senior discount, etc.). But the initial signing in perks they offered some years ago were allready worth joining.

Reading the FAQs at the SilverWiong homepage (access only with SilverWing membership possible) it looks like the lifetime membership will go on (but many perks disappear):

What happens to my lifetime membership if I upgraded to Silver Wings Preferred?
Your Silver Wings Lifetime membership will revert back to active status when your Silver Wings Preferred membership expires on June 30, 2007.

As a Silver Wings Lifetime or Silver Wings Plus member, whom do I contact if I want to book travel after June 30, 2007?
To book a domestic or international Zone Fare ticket, please contact Silver Wings at 1-800-720-1765 and press option 2 for Travel. After June 30, 2007, the customer service number will be staffed Monday through Friday from 9 am to 5 pm (CST).

from the silverwing website (when I log-in as a lifelong member) it looks like Zone fares will be still available also in the future (but only to lifelong members):

2007 USA Collection Zone Fares (for travel starting April 1, 2007)

2007 International Zone Fares (for travel starting April 1, 2007)

Koala

Good to read your posts again, Rudi. You were one of the most active members when I first stumbled upon this forum back in 1997.

Lifetime members outside North America seem to have been excluded from any mailings for some time now. My own address could not be entered by their staff or by myself, as only Canada and the US were included as address options. Have only ever used the international zone flight once due to the condition that it must originate from America. If only that condition was changed, then these W or V class flights would be very good value, by far the cheapest that are upgradeable with an SWU.

Had faxed, and telephoned, last year angry that life members had to pay again before they had access to the double miles and travel credits, but that will shortly be history. Would be happy if we had an assurance that the international zone fares for lifers would be continued beyond March 2008.

If anyone has info on whether that is the case, I would be very interested. If there was any chance that the international zone fares could start from outside north america, wouldn't that be wonderful.

Koala

Rudi

when I first stumbled upon this forum back in 1997

That entry date beats everybody else - congratulations

Thank you for your post Koala, I myself was only able to be reckognized again by SilverWings (when trying to get online) 3 years ago, when I changed my home-adress to a friend's adress in NY.

And yes, the changement that only flights originating in North America, made the program rather uninteresting for me at that time.

The changements of the program in general 3 years ago made me jumping ships of my prefereed FrequentFlier program to miles&more, crediting only a hotel stay to MileagePlus from time to time now (to not lose my actual balance of miles with them).

I probably still have the original terms of the program somewhere printed out in a file and might check what their rights of completly abandoning the perks for paid lifelong members they have or don't have.