United Airlines has added Qatar Airways to its online award search, making MileagePlus truly one of the most comprehensive and robust complimentary ways to check for award seats on nearly 30 airlines. Even better, Qatar Airways has made ample...
The Friendliest ex-Continental Flight Attendant of the Year on United Airlines
I do complain quite a bit on this blog, but want to take today’s post to praise Brenda, a wonderful ex-Continental flight attendant that served in first class on my Houston-San Jose United Airlines flight on Saturday morning. She...
Amazing Aer Lingus Award Availability on United and British Airways + No Fuel Surcharge
If you thought it was too late to book your summer travel to Europe using miles, you are wrong…thanks to Aer Lingus. The Irish carrier is not part of a major airline alliance but partners with both United Airlines...
Is the British Airways 100,000 Point Sign-Up Bonus from Chase Worthwhile?
Link: British Airways Visa Signature Card 100,000 Avios Offer (Offer Expired) The British Airways 100,000 sign-up bonus is back and like an annoying US Airways flight attendant, the blogosphere is avariciously hawking the card, as I shamelessly do here,...
A Taxi Trip Across LA + Unplanned Stop in Boston, Courtesy of United Airlines
Lately, it seems like I just cannot have a delay-free trip. Everything seemed to be working out so nicely yesterday: my flights showed on-time at united.com and my complimentary first class upgrade from San Francisco-Philadelphia had been confirmed. But...
Voluntary Downgrade from Tri-Cabin First Class
I fly on a weekly basis, usually in premium cabins, but it is not often that I find myself in tri-cabin first class. Thanks to a bump this morning in Philadelphia, I landed myself in first class on UA967,...
Captain Denny Flanagan, a Bump, and Tri-Cabin First Class
It’s Easter weekend and we are at the height of the spring travel season–and I’m loving it! This morning I show up at the gate for my Philadelphia-Los Angeles flight and lo behold, Captain Denny Flanagan is there doing...
The United Upgrade Gamble
Friday will be another travel day for me as I return to Los Angeles for the Easter holiday. My United flight back to LAX, operated by a 757-200 with 24 first class seats, has been zeroed out for about...
Rage Comic on United-Continental Integration
To be honest, I did not even know what a rage comic was until I looked it up this evening, but I sure got a kick out of this (click on it): The funny thing is, the comic is...
United Airlines Reflects on Progress
I received the following e-mail this afternoon from United Airlines reflecting on its progress since 03 March in making Continental and United a single airline: As a Premier 1K member, you have come to deserve and expect a dependable,...
Double Check Your United Award Itineraries Now…for Missing Segments!
I received an e-mail this evening from a client whom I had assisted with an award reservation to South Africa on Swiss (San Francisco- Zurich-Johannesburg) using United miles. Tickets had been issued last October and were in economy class....
Was it the Way I Looked? Part II
Read Part I here As I mentioned in Part I, when I reached SFO Saturday morning to check in for my trip to Philadelphia via Chicago, the agent could not find my ticket. I had been re-booked by a...
Phantom Lufthansa First Class Award Space on StarNet
I became excited today while working on a client award request when some first class availability popped up on Lufthansa–it has been very rare lately, especially more than a few days before travel. One client was using Air Canada...
Was it the Way I Looked? Part I
The rain and fog was bad in SFO yesterday, delaying my US Airways flight from Charlotte for over three hours and causing a misconnect on my way back to PHL. I knew I would miss my connecting flight while...
Picture: A Unique Moment in United Airlines History
As United Airlines works to repaint all of its aircraft with the Continental globe livery, there are still a number of variations out there. United never got around to updating its gray livery on many aircraft when it introduced...
One Upside to the United Merger: Elite-Only Saver Awards in Business and First Class
With the exception of the expanded route network and ability to search for Star Alliance partner awards online (which actually hurts my award consulting business), I cannot point to many changes I like in the new world of Continental...
Travel Vexations on United Airlines: Give Yourself Plenty of Time This Week
I had my first post-SHARES travel experience today on United, and it was not pretty—though it ended well. In what has become a routine for me of late, I was scheduled to fly from Columbia, SC to Philadelphia via...
How Did the United Airlines IT Transition Go For You?
I’ve been dealing with a number of family issues over the last week, so I apologize for the brevity of recent posts and the noticeable gaps between them. Just to warn my six readers, the next couple weeks don’t...
United is Dead, Long Live UNITED
United.com has just been switched off. Continental.com is now off as well. All phones lines this hour connect to a pre-recorded message welcoming customers to the “the new United” but stating that systems are down and agents are unable...
Armageddon for United/Continental Passengers on 03 March?
At 0100 Central Time on Saturday, 03 March, United Airlines will flip the switch, transitioning from its Apollo Reservation System it has used for the last four decades to Continental’s in-house SHARES system. Will the transition be smooth? History...
