• Home
  • Reviews
    • Flight Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
    • Trip Reports
  • About
    • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Award Expert
Live and Let's Fly
  • Home
  • Reviews
    • Flight Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
    • Trip Reports
  • About
    • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Award Expert
Home » United Airlines » Big Problems Booking Lufthansa First Class Awards With United Airlines
United Airlines

Big Problems Booking Lufthansa First Class Awards With United Airlines

Matthew Klint Posted onMay 14, 2019November 14, 2023 7 Comments

a plane with seats and monitors


15 May 2019 UPDATE: United has resolved this issue.


The United Airlines award search tool is currently broken when it comes to first class awards on Lufthansa. At the moment, there is not a fix for it. See below for details.

Perhaps foreshadowing what is to come in the new era of MileagePlus, it appears that Lufthansa first and business class awards have been merged into the business class column on united.com. That creates a problem because if both business and first class awards are available, only business class will show. If first class is available, but not business class, the first class award (at the higher first class pricing) will show in the business class column.

Take a look:

a screenshot of a flight

In this example, Lufthansa has made both business and first class award space available for redemption with partners (the screenshot is from Aeroplan, but the space also shows up with ANA and Singapore Airlines as well) from Frankfurt to Chicago.

But on United, only business is available:

a screenshot of a computer screen

“First Saver Award” shows as “not available”.

In cases where only first class is available, like Munich to Boston, the first class (O-class) award shows up in the business column:

a screenshot of a computer screen

I figured this was a united.com error and I would still be able to book the space over the phone, but telephone agents were not able to see the missing first class space above (nor long sell it in).

Thus, there is no current workaround to the problem.

United’s Response: We Are Working On it

I reached out to United for comment and received the following response:

Our team is aware of the issue you described and we are are working urgently to resolve it.

You can bet I will be keeping the pressure on United.

CONCLUSION

For now, based on United’s response, let’s call this a temporary glitch. I think if United intended to remove first class awards on Lufthansa, it simply would have done so. That said, the doubt raised over this issue and the fact that Singapore Airlines space is still not bookable underscores what a credibility problem United IT has surrounding its website.

Get Daily Updates

Join our mailing list for a daily summary of posts! We never sell your info.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Previous Article Introduction: India And Maldives In Etihad First Class
Next Article Fascinating: How Aerial Plane Shots Are Captured

About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

Related Posts

  • JetBlue Madrid

    United-JetBlue Tie Up Leaves American Airlines Bloodied

    June 1, 2025
  • Airline Stocks

    Mixed Financial Results Paint Murky Travel Picture In 2025

    May 4, 2025
  • United Airlines Polaris Lounge Chicago Review

    Review: United Polaris Lounge Chicago (ORD)

    May 1, 2025

7 Comments

  1. Chris Reply
    May 14, 2019 at 4:37 pm

    F***! I noticed this last week and tweeted them. I’m really hoping to fly LH in first back from Europe to JFK or EWR in early July. Yesterday Avianca was actually showing award space consistent with Aeroplan.

  2. Jack Reply
    May 14, 2019 at 4:51 pm

    United is ruining their program. I saw longhaul SQ flights available via Aeroplan but not on the UA website. The agents couldn’t see it either when I called. It just seems United is being cheap and doesn’t want to pay up.

    After the devaluation I stopped booking UA and have drained 270K miles.

    • Chiguy1979 Reply
      May 14, 2019 at 9:46 pm

      I completely agree with your thoughts and frustrations. I recently paid the fee to unwind an AA/Iberia award ticket with a less-than-ideal connection and instead burned UA miles flights on SWISS to get a perfect 1:45 connection in Zurich. UA miles used to seem like a solid travel investment (well, we know they are never an investment… but better than the competition) but no longer. AMEX and Chase Sapphire are getting my spend and I’m doing everything I can to burn through MileagePlus while I can. Due to flight schedules, etc I never flew enough on any airline in a year to get better than the lowest level of elite status. 100% free agent moving forward.

  3. John Yung Reply
    May 14, 2019 at 5:11 pm

    It shows for booking ANA first class. My example is Feb 4, 2020. From SFO to NRT. It shows saver awards for business at 80k miles and first class saver for 110k miles.

    • Matthew Reply
      May 14, 2019 at 5:15 pm

      Interesting data point. Thanks.

  4. Boourns Reply
    May 14, 2019 at 8:32 pm

    I was just looking far and wide for close-in LH F space on the MileagePlus tool and couldn’t find a thing, even ex-Germany. Was wondering what was up. Thanks for the post. I find your blog to be head and shoulders above the competition these days.

  5. Mick Reply
    May 14, 2019 at 8:37 pm

    I spent a lot of the weekend looking at and finding LH award space a day out. And in the first saver column. As a point of reference.

    Unfort avianca showed about 20% of it 🙁

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Search

Hot Deals for July

Note: Please see my Advertiser Disclosure

Capital One Venture X Business Card
Earn 150,000 Miles Sign Up Bonus
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Earn 100,000 Points
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Earn 75,000 Miles!
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Earn 75,000 Miles
Chase Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card
Earn $750 Cash Back
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
Earn 120,000 Membership Reward® Points

Recent Posts

  • Bedford FAA Kirby
    Bryan Bedford Confirmed As FAA Administrator, Praised By United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby July 10, 2025
  • Trump Cuba travel ban
    Trump Administration Cracks Down On Cuba Travel With $250,000 Fines For Tourists July 10, 2025
  • TGV Review Mulhouse Paris
    Review: TGV Train Mulhouse – Paris July 10, 2025
  • TSA Shoe Requirement
    Official: TSA Ends Shoe Removal Requirement At Airport Checkpoints July 9, 2025

Categories

Popular Posts

  • Favorite Airline Commercials
    My 10 Favorite Airline Commercials June 15, 2025
  • a blue passport on a black surface
    All The Patriotic Quotes In Your U.S. Passport July 4, 2025
  • Qantas Lounge Review Hong Kong
    Review: Qantas Lounge Hong Kong (HKG) June 14, 2025
  • a row of seats in an airplane
    If You Abuse Company Travel Policy, Expect To Be Fired! June 16, 2025

Archives

July 2025
M T W T F S S
 123456
78910111213
14151617181920
21222324252627
28293031  
« Jun    

As seen on:

facebook twitter instagram rss
Privacy Policy © Live and Let's Fly All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Live and Let's Fly with appropriate and specific directions to the original content.