United Airlines is making big changes to the MileagePlus program this November.
I just got off the phone with Luc Bondar, United’s Vice President of Loyalty and head of the MileagePlus program: we spoke for 35 minutes.
I’ll have a much more detailed post on everything discussed later, but here is what is changing:
- Starting today, award charts will no longer be published for travel on or after November 15, 2019
- There will no longer be a minimum or maximum mileage price for United flights
- Mileage pricing will not be tied to a specific dollar amount
- Partner award pricing will remain unchanged for now, but there will be no separate award chart for partner flights
- Close-in award fees will not be charged on or after November 15, 2019
- Mileage credit on United will post nearly instantly
No More Award Charts
United defended its removal of award charts and more dynamic pricing in this way:
- This change allows us to match award pricing to customer demand. Where there is more availability, we will be able to offer lower prices than what we offer today. This means there will be tickets significantly lower than the previous floor.
- Customers who can be flexible with their travel day and/or time will benefit significantly from this move to lower prices.
- For the busiest travel times of the year when demand is highest, there will be higher award prices than what people see today.
- We are not increasing any award prices for travel prior to November 15. In fact, for several weeks now and continuing for travel going forward, we are excited to offer lower fares than what we previously had in the market.
CONCLUSION
I will have much more to say on this topic, including my commentary on it, but wanted to get the news out right away.
so what is surprising here, nothing. Having flown for a very long time and gotten real lifetime top tier status I am off that merry go round. It’s surprising now that I book a ticket of my choice not my mileage plan airline. Frankly I said it before do away with the programs reduce the fares, up the service like the old days when everything was invitation only. Or as the old EF Hutton ad went “Earn it”
FML – this is very disappointing
I have some of their points was hoping to use for partners flights!!
The biggest hit for me will be when partner redemptions go variable. After all the devaluations I still find the biggest utility for United miles to be one-way TATL flights when cash fares are expensive, and often that’s on partner metal.
If not sure partner awards will go variable. No other program has yet been able to implement this (at least that I’m aware of). DL, for example, still has fixed partner pricing, even though they do not publish that price in advance, and seem to increase it periodically without notice. I’m just not sure any airline has figured out the back-end agreements and IT to support dynamically pricing partners. That said, you know partner award cost is only going to go in one direction…
I’m going to start burning through my miles on partner international flights. No sense in saving them now.
I’ve never seen one of these changes where the amount of miles needed for any award flight I was interested in went down.
Well it’s truly the end of an era. UA was my go-to for so long. I loathed DL for their dynamic pricing and left them. UA has gutted the last decent program in the US. I hope they’re happy because I am going to burn the last 350k UA miles and cancel my UA credit card. They have no one to blame but themselves.
Just called and canceled my mileage plus explorer
Scott Kirby and more “service enhancements”?
The sky IS falling. #BurnBabyBurn #DingDongMPisDead
@ Matthew — How does this impact the availabiloty of Umited award seats when booking through Star Alliance partners? May that actually improve? As it stood already, there was effectively zeeo premium cabin availability for United domestic flights.
I asked Luc that question and will address in a follow-up post.
@ Matthew — Anxiously awaiting, as I was sucker I bought MORE LifeMiles this week!
@Gene: He claimed that nothing would change.
The one thing DL hasn’t done IIRC is jack up partner flights. IF UA finds a way to do that for the *A partners (that actually have much better availability than UA), then the program truly took a death blow.
do you know if excursionist perk will survive?
It will.
This is United Minus. Basically UA is screwing you when you actually plan to use your award miles.
“Mileage credit on United will post nearly instantly”
I got off a flight in BOS the other day and when I pulled up my connecting flight boarding pass to YYZ I noticed my mileage had already been credited. They must be testing this out on some itineraries (though I was always unsure why the 48 hour delay was necessary?)
They are just like drug pushers/dealers: offer cheap deals to get consumers hooked /locked-in and then screw them for all they’re worth.
So the customer is getting Bonvoyed. I didn’t expect much from United, but I did expect better than this. Chase must be apoplectic, since United miles are about to become worth a whole lot less, devaluing not only for the customer but Chase as well. United might or might not win, everyone else certainly loses.
UA = DL
Within the next 10 years we’ll all look back on this day as the turning point. The start of the end of frequent flyer programs and the like.
I have been with Mileageplus since 1987. Have been a 1K member since 2001. I must confess that it is time for me to switch my loyalty because there is no way for me to understand my benefits now. The newest changes today about PQD+PQF qualification requirement is also another push. I used to choose Staralliance even for higher price. Won’t do so in the future. Fortunately, I will be a life time mileage plus platinum soon. There is no need to earn those qualifications.
Thanks United, perfect reason to stop flying with you and switch to your competitors asap!
After 25 years, Delta here I come.
My 100 staff members will be following me.
Just another airline trying to spin cost and service reduction as good for the customer. Pathetic.