Earlier today I wrote about my flight from Hong Kong to Los Angeles on Hong Kong Airlines. One conversation I had onboard was quite revealing.
The only way I am ever able to get unobstructed cabin pictures is to be the first to board. That often requires a bit of luck, but at the very least requires lining up early to board. Thus, I am always first in line and line up 15-20 minutes before scheduled boarding. We call these people gate lice. That means I also wind up in line with the non-disabled senior citizens and businessmen who always seem to board early for the sake of boarding early…
Anyway, I found myself standing in front of Bill. Bill lives in San Francisco and was on the phone with his partner. I could not help but to overhear the conversation. He heaped great praises on Hong Kong Airlines and said that he was “making the switch” from United after being unable to burn any of his 18 systemwide upgrades this year! He added that Hong Kong Airlines was half the cost of United for a business class ticket. I looked down and noticed a United 1K luggage tag on his carry-on bag.
Since there was still plenty of time before boarding, I started chatting with him. With 18 systemwide upgrades in the bank, that means he earned over 250,000 United elite qualifying miles last year. I was curious if he was Global Services (the invite-only top tier for high rollers on United) but SFO is a tough station and he did not spend enough to qualify. He “only” spent about $30,000 on airfare…
The Argument
Rather than flying on the nonstop to SFO, he was flying to LAX for business and made the following argument:
Why should I be loyal to an airline that is not loyal back? I buy a lot of business class tickets, but whenever I fly economy I never get upgraded. Not domestically and especially not internationally. All these systemwide upgrades are just going to expire. I have no use for them because they never clear. Hong Kong Airlines has great fares, great food, and great service.
Bill comes to Hong Kong often and has been a United 1K for many years. He’s lifetime Platinum as well by virtue of his 2,000,000 miles flown with United.
But he claims he is making the switch because he gets the same product for half the price. I poked around at fares and found that Hong Kong Airlines really isn’t any cheaper than United. In fact, the only cheap option is Singapore Airlines.
Maybe he has access to cheaper corporate rates; I wish I would have asked him that. As for upgrades on United, I can only speak from my own experience, but there are very few flights this year that I have attempted to upgrade and failed to clear. That includes several international flights. I have the flexibility in my case to schedule times/dates that work best, but the idea that Global Premier Upgrades (GPUs) are worthless has not been my experience.
Why not just fly Singapore? Like many, Bill claimed Singapore is fine but the flight times were not ideal and the Singapore business class seat not as comfortable.
CONCLUSION
A lot of people talk the talk but don’t walk the walk. I don’t know if Bill is going to really leave United, but I think his argument resonates with many. Those not fortunate to have flexibility in their travel schedules often find their GPUs unusable.
Making GPUs easier to use or clear would go a long way toward ensuring that high-value travelers like Bill remain loyal.
I apply RPUs and GPUs on every flight and they never clear. Next year I have a few flights on United but I’ll be moving over to Alaska.
@ Matthew — Why are you defending United? I’m sorry, but they are totally uninspiring. I am 1MM, and I rarely fly them anymore. When I do, it’s a “meh” experience. Maybe that is what Bill is actually noticing, but projects that on to upgrades, etc.
I don’t think he was explicitly defending United so much as stating Bill’s experience and his own experience. If he were really defending United, he probably wouldn’t publish an article about why a 1K wants to jump ship.
Correct. I’m truly not defending 1K. But it is also true I have no trouble using GPUs. Put another way, you can (almost) always find a use for them when your plans are flexible. But when not, they become much more difficult to use.
If you’re on a flight thru the middle east or to India, most of those “disabled” persons are just lazy people that want a wheelchair so they can board first. I remember taking an Etihad A380 to Mumbai, after coming out of the apartments,, there were about a line of 50-70 wheelchairs. However, I remembered when I boarded, most people where walking on their own before the gate
Agree most of the people are abled. But they don’t take wheel chair for boarding first. Most take them because they are senior citizens who don’t know English. With these big airports, they get lost and it is hard for them to walk a mile to the gate. Before 9-11 their relatives used to accompany them all the way to the gate. Now they rely on wheelchair helpers. I believe they pay extra for these services.
It’s called the “Jetway Jesus”. When it comes to boarding there are many “disabled” passengers who need to board early with wheelchairs, but by disembarkation there are none! They were somehow “cured” during the flight and were able to walk off the plane just fine!
I’ve noticed GPUs don’t nearly clear as often as they used to. I mostly use them for upgrades many months in advance now.
He is flying out of SFO as well. I’d love to see data points on upgrade clearances per hub at the different tiers.
I think being stuck with an airline based upon your geography is frustrating as well. I have a buddy who lives in the Bay area who is a 1K and would fly an airline other than United if it had the routes that he wanted. He’d prefer to fly Delta, but his flights either take him international out of SFO or he can go direct domestically instead of flying through Salt Lake or Atlanta via Delta.
Personally, I fly United out of LAX and am happier with them than I was with American. Plus their alliance partners are more convenient for me as well.
What’s your point with this post? Unclear to me, or at least, unclear to me any point that I wouldn’t have gathered through regular reading of your blog or with my own fathers’ experience as a 1K. Just trying to understand if there’s something that’s actually interesting that I’m missing.
It was just a conversation I had that I wanted to share.
Same situation for me. Home base SFO 1K for 14 years, 200,000 miles last year and close to that this year; all economy. I have 18 basically unusable upgrades. To make it worse, you go online to book a ticket to Mumbai in economy but booked to qualify for business wait list with 2 GPU’s. It gets booked and THEN after you’ve paid they tell you it’s the wrong fare class to upgrade. Now that’s United being deceitful. And BTW UA does not understand loyalty … It is not who spent the most money last year.
Bill could also just be a bullshitter, trying to make himself sound important….I’ve met a few of those folk in my nearly 30 years of travelling to and fro across the Atlantic ocean and around the US.
I agree! GPU’s have limited to no value as they rarely clear. At some point in time you have to wonder why you are loyal to an airline that really has limited loyalty to you. Always hear thank you for being a 1k, but rarely do I see it in action from an upgrade point of view.
Can you please write a guide to GPUs and RPUs? First time 1K here.
“Those not fortunate to have flexibility in their travel schedules often find their GPUs unusable.”
And I think this gets at the gist of the problem, though in fairness this isn’t just limited to UA. The bottom line is, most people don’t have the kind of flexibility you do, or the ability or desire to work out an exotic routing to use one. That significantly reduces the value of upgrades to the average flyer. I think it’s also important to point out that UA requires you to spend more just to upgrade because of their fare class limitations, AND makes them difficult to use. If you’re spending more on purpose just to apply a GPU/RPU, and then you’re stuck in deep coach anyway because you can’t clear it, I bet that leaves a really bad taste in people’s mouths.
The fact that I always pay for fisrt / business class removes Untied from a chooseble airline. I do not like being seated next to some millennial who billed the system. Hong Kong air as well as Singapore will never stick me next to “players” who think they are the shit.
I hate it when kids get on my lawn, too.
You should learn to game the system too, Grandpa, instead of paying out the nose.
I’m 33 and I am often uncomfortable getting upgraded because I know people like you exist. Heaven forbid I leave my suit at home and board in a…*gag sound* polo shirt.
So…I guess you win?!
You have mentioned “I was curious if he was Global Services (the invite-only top tier for high rollers on United) “. This is not true…all the high end companies that spend a lot of money on United tickets nominate their employees who are going to travel the most on United to get the GS status.
I have met so many wealthy people on the first cabins on United who were disappointed not to have the GS status indeed always travel international on United- they may get lucky if they flew from a small city than a big United hub.
Only one person who has her own company who flies between DBX and DEN as a GS told me that she had to keep calling premier line everyday for months to beg and get the GS status- to bring loyay to United she had to fly from EWR to MUMBAI the Emirates to DBX-She said Emirates business service and quality is miles above United, which I believe after flying business/first on Turkish, EVA, Singapore and Lufthansa.
So in general GS members you see everyday are not high rollers but less than average wealthy people get lucky to travel because of their employers negotiate the deal. Most of the big chemical/biotech company employees get this chance too.
There are GS nominees, yes, but UA also hands it out directly to fliers who meet internal spending criteria. I know one independent consultant who ‘gamed’ it by buying round the world J tickets from a Japan point of sale, and using those to qualify.
On the one hand, GS is useful for travel, on the other hand, earning it implies so much travel that you want to share some condolences to the GS member.
But I guess the real condolences should be for the 250k+ mile flier who sits in economy 90% of the time.
I am 1k on united but this year I started purchasing my international business class tickets based on whatever airline is giving me best price to convenience ratio. There is nothing to write about when it comes to service on united. In 99% of the time it is not better than any other international carrier. And with their recent cost cutting measures I just don’t care about having 1k status any more.
United needs to remove the fare requirement for GPUs. Period. It’s a ridiculous tax on their most loyal and highest spending customers.
Agree – the airlines does not repay your loyalty – been a 1k for over 13 years and so far United has treated me well – now it seems a lot harder to use any certificates only domestic works ! I am thinking about just buying the best fare and not worry about these loyalty program anymore
I feel the same as Bill. I still travel United to maintain some status but I also now have status on Delta. They are a better airline nationally from my 24 yrs of flying with United. GPUs and RPUs are absolutely worthless and I travel 250k miles a year.
It’s no better at Delta where I have been a Diamond since the beginning. Global Upgrade Certificates pretty much only clear at the gate…if at all. The last few years I have unused Regional Upgrade Certificates as they often don”t clear for domestic flights. I have requalified for next year which will be my last. Too many hoops to jump through to sit in First 40-50% of the time.
Seems like there is no emotional hook left…where you can feel like there is great value in loyalty. Why bother?
I flew on Hong Kong airlines from Hong Kong to Tianjin and was not impressed. It was an Asian version of Southwest Airlines
I don’t doubt what Bill is saying about GPUs. I was based in SFO and flights to HKG are near impossible to upgrade: I was Global Service and was 8th on the upgrade list for that route…
Ever since cash & points upgrades rank above GPU regardless of elite levels, they’ve lost their value…
I now buy the best schedule/value business class ticket I can find and it’s not been UA once…
I’m as critical of UA as anyone but mileage upgrade awards (cash and points as you call them) are the exact same priority as GPUs…both come out of the R (now PZ) bucket.
If you buy a sub-W fare with a mileage upgrade, you’d actually be behind someone in the same status level using GPUs.
This is fascinating. I fly every week on UA, but mostly the same route over and over again (DEN to SAT). How can I learn more about the fare classes of UA tickets?
Thanks!
They believe they are maximizing revenue by selling $59 upgrades rather than upgrading 1K’s who spend $30K annually for free. Until 1K’s start behaving differently as a group they are probably right.
Very interesting conversation. I fly mostly j for work, and for pleasure using points to fly in j or f (earnt points or bought points from Alaska or lifemiles). Therefore status doesn’t do much for me. Other than getting the whole family in the main cabin plus/comfort or whatever American calls it. That’s basically the only reason why I push to stay platinum at aa. Mind you I have 3 kids so the benefit is pretty good. I often clear 500 mile upgrades.
All I can say is that i am in Hong Kong right now. Flew in last Wednesday with my husband. We both used a GPU and got a confirmed upgrade on United.
So the statement that GPUs never clear are not accurate.
Agree. Long haul they’re hard to use. However, I get upgraded all the time on domestic flights whilst being merely Platinum usually. Usually complimentary. Depends very much on route.
If you are spending more to fly internatonal business class with United, you are doing it wrong (and I say that as a 1K). UA competes on price and routes, not quality.
I must be pretty lucky because as a United 1K for 10 years in a row (yes, I’m a Million Miler), I have never had a GPU turned down. I have had many RPU’s that didn’t go through but never a GPU. Never. As a matter of fact, my biggest frustration is not having enough GPU’s at the end of the year and I usually have to fly coach on a couple of flights due to not having more GPU’s. (Ugh). On flights to Asia it’s pretty long. I know many people sell their GPU’s, but if you get caught buying them you risk losing your status. Ain’t no way I would take that risk. It’s my biggest pet peeve with United. I’ll see many seats available in the First/Business Class cabins and because I used all my GPU’s I can’t upgrade. It’s so frustrating.
I’ve been noticing more GPU availability than before. Seems the new rev mgmt system is getting fine tuned.
100% agree. I’ve redeemed 7 GPUs this year, 3 of those times with a companion in tow who does not have the same status. If you book early enough, and know how to properly book your airfare, you can see whether or not you’ll clear at time of booking without having to be overly flexible (most of the time it’s an 1-2 hours of difference). I rarely don’t clear an RPU either so long as i’m not booking very last minute. I find it interesting that non of you mention the overwhelming amount of CPUs you likely receive a year.
I’ve always been able to use all my GPUs and RPUs, though I admit I have used a couple of GPUs for domestic flights of over 3 hours or so. I wish I had those back right now, as I need to book a TATL flight, and there is some PZ availability (with connections) that I would do right now, but will just hope are still there in a week or so when I requalify as 1K.
I’m a MM and 1k for many years. My GPUs on flights to Asia often get cleared but rarely domestic RPUs. I’m sticking to UA for the time being as I wanted to see how 1Ks are treated with regard to the upcoming premiere economy class.
It’s amazing to me how much 1ks complain… I am ep on aa as well, and have a coworker who is diamond on dl, and UA treats elites best by FAR. Try to get a hotel when weather causes irrops on either other carrier… Try to get rebooked to another carrier when a delay causes a misconnect… UA does it while smiling (usually), and neither other major will even consider it. Also, GS and CK SHOULD be hard. If they aren’t, then they would be worthless.
Just to add my (late) two cents:. I’m a 1k flyer but left United this year for precisely this reason. I have never had a GPU clear flying out of Washington Dulles. Never. These were worthless in my book and United isn’t exactly know for top service in any case.
GPUs are absolutely worthless. I’ve never had one clear. Maybe that’s because I don’t have flexible on personal travel (can only fly on Fridays, Weekends), and my family is in UK, Australia and Hong Kong. But United are a bunch of damned scam artists. Sadly I live in San Francisco and have no other option…
I am a United 1K member and my home airport is SFO. On any given United flight out of SFO, half of the plane appears to be 1K. I never get upgraded on domestic flights if I am using an RPU. I have had more luck with GPUs, and I greatly appreciate them. But overall, 1K status is disappointing. The only real status on United is Global Services.