ryan182

Actually since they couldn't get me and my bags their until way way after my dive boat was to depart I told them it would be a trip in vain and I went home. Spending the weekend in at home in newport now so kinda a bummer but its not Fargo

why fly

WO glad this does not happen that often.

TT-Jones

United messed up in several ways, no doubt.

But taking a flight with three(!) connections with one of the three being very tight and then wanting to make the departure time of a diving boat is not the most clever approach that I have ever seen.

Again: This is not meant as an excuse for the poor service United provided, but by picking that very routing you were literally asking for trouble. Big time.

Being a 1K, you should know and do better - for your own benefit.

TA

Yes, not to pile on the OP's woes, but why did you choose this convoluted routing? SNA-SFO-IAD-MIA is not even listed in the timetable as a regular routing -- they have a single stop ORD connection that would have been much more reliable, statistically.

And I don't understand the return -- MIA-MCO-ORD-SNA. How is MIA-MCO accomplished?

mre5765

When I am flying discounted (loss leader) coach, I appreciate all the goodies I get: upgrades, 100% RDMs, and even odd the 50% EQM bonus that I didn't pay for.

But when I'm flying paid C or F (whether it is cash or miles), UA does seem to often produce service below expectations. It is very strange.

I think you mean by discounted F, expect to fly coach.

Leaving aside the MIA/MCO issue, OP was flying on an A fare. It could be that's all he could get without paying full fare. And he does get a 50% EQS bonus on those segments.

el_tigre

Continental Connection

TA

I sympathize with the OP's difficulties and encountering the uninformed agents, and I would hope that UA can typically do better when the itinerary is simple. (and perhaps the OP will see this and give UA another chance on another occasion)

Aside from the A fare issue, it sounds like this itinerary was in for a lot of trouble -- not constructed with good options to recover from typical airline delays... I jump to think that it must have been some kind of mileage run, to involve this many odd segments? Continental Connection??

If it was a mileage run, sometimes it's not worth that much trouble.

RickFuller

I would assume the large number of connections was a mileage run type of thing, to take advantage of the 50% EQM kicker associated with an A fare.

I truely don't understand how there can be any confusion what so-ever on if an A fare is a paid first class fare or a paid economy fare. I'm still unclear on this point.

Since the OP declared a trip-in-vain, did he get a full refund?

JBLUA320

The fact of the matter is when you search for F fares on .bomb it gives you HUAUPs, which ARE paid first class for all intents and purposes. UA really neds to fix it's training for these premium customers.

goldfishman

I think the OP will find it difficult to "be nothing but a cost center to UA," since the day that cheap fares don't even cover the marginal costs of an additional passenger, I suspect UA would simply refuse to sell those seats for those fares and fly them empty.

You're hurting UA relative to your previous purchases, sure, but I don't think you're hurting them in absolute terms. Or is UA really so suicidal as to price flights below marginal cost?

fnothaft

No offense, but it seems you're mostly sticking it to yourself. But thats just how I'm reading your post. I mean, lets look at it this way:

- You booked a 2 connection itinerary to get to something where being on-time was important
- You're going to stop flying United on A fares even though it's more convenient for your choice airport

I can understand your issue with the A fares, but otherwise, I don't know. It just doesn't seem like you really benefit from your decision. Yeah, you're sticking it to United too, but this decision seems sort of short sighted.

fastair

If he buys cheap tickets, UA must forecast no high yield demand, so he will just lower UA's loss, in effect, helping UA. How is that sticking it to them, or becoming a cost center for them by paying some money for an otherwise unsold seat?

cepheid

It's not, except insofar as he used to buy premium-fare tickets, and now will no longer do so. It's not that he'll end up costing UA any more money... it's that he'll give them less revenue by not buying premium fares anymore. Someone else might very well buy that premium fare that the OP now leaves free, so it could end up a wash, but at least the OP will have paid less and therefore won't feel quite as shafted upon potentially receiving poor service for his money.

Trvlr

I've had tons of problems with A fares (and even Y / B) in the past. When I book A some agents will think it was never ever for a premium cabin, when I book Y/B the complimentary upgrade never existed, etc etc.

Given these experiences, and just in general, I find the 1K / GS desks far more helpful than talking to anyone at the airport during IRROPs. Especially since the phone agents are only dealing with one customer at a time--you can imagine how performance suffers at a customer service counter when five people are shouting at the agent all at once.

ryan182

Thats the routing that .bomb came up with, the more direct one stop flight doesnt get in until about midnight (1140 i think) given had an early morning didn't want to arrive that late, the routing through SFO arrived 2 hours earlier.

MIA-MCO is continental connection but sold as UA flight number, there's a few threads about it, it doesn't earn miles from my understanding.


Not a mileage run, one of my buddies was going out there cause he had to be there Tuesday for work and since I will be spending 3 weeks on Koh Phi-Phi and the Maldives diving later this month this was more of a check dive to make sure all my gear was in order, and I figured MIA would be a good party for the weekend. I have to call refunds on Tuesday, but yes I will be getting a refund.

Exactly.
UA had a CASM of 0.1574 in 2008, so in a probably over simplistic way of looking at it if your paying less than that, you're paying less than its costing UA to move you. As to there marginal cost, well no real way to determine that, but yes many airlines price flights below marginal cost, heck some UK airlines sell some seats for a pound.

yes its more convenient for many of the places I fly, which is why I will still fly, just on the cheapest fare possible and upgrade. As I said if its going to be a gamble whether or not I get to fly in F I will gamble with certs not money.
In this case AA probably had better options but I figured since most my flying is on UA I'd use UA to keep all my miles together.