V-Flyer

Just recieved notice from UA that they are reinstating the 500 mile Elite Qualifying Mile per sector minimum for UA elites, which was withdrawn (and reduced to actual miles flown) earlier this year.

For the uninitated, EQMs are the UA Mileage Plus equivalent of VS Flying Club Tier Points.

Also, for sectors flown this year since the policy change, UA will retroactively credit all sub-500 mile sectors to be worth 500 EQMs for all UA elites.

Obviously, it seems they made a very unpopular policy change, and UA have listened to their Frequent Fliers. Maybe so many of them found themselves coming up just short of requalifying their status due to the new policy, and with the whole threat of recession, UA sensibly decided that it should try hanging on to these pax.

A further change proposed from mid-Summer next year relates to UA upgrade awards. The amount of miles used per upgrade will be reduced overall, but there will be an additional collection (UA call it a 'co-pay') made at the point of upgrade.

For a Y or B fare domestically, there is no co-pay. For a Y or B fare from say UK to US, the miles required will drop from 15k to 10k per leg (but still only 10k per multi-sector leg), but there will be an additional collection of up to $200 per leg (but it could also be nothing, depending on the sector and fare purchased).

The key change here is that previously non-upgradeable International fare buckets (e.g. Q) will become upgradeable, but at a higher mileage value (e.g. 20K miles) and a larger amount of co-pay.

I guess by announcing this now, but not planning on deploying it until July 2009, this gives UA plenty of time to gauge frequent flyer feedback and modify the proposal in case it is unpopular as the removal of the 500 EQM glass floor was earlier this year.

Mike

When I read this in the morning, I thought it was on the whole sensible. Upgrades on >2hr internal flights are routinely hugely oversubscribed, so charging 50 bucks for 'em makes a lot of sense - it will now be 'is a so-so onboard meal, drinks and a bigger seat worth $50 to you?'.

As for international flights, the reality is that in the new configuration you lose seats anyway, so fewer will be available for upgrade. This approach of charging simply builds pre-selection upfront, again.

The 500 mile thing was always silly, you've got folks doing up-n-down along the west coast who have plenty of choice with other carriers these days, completely agree that it made little sense to risk losing them to VX, Alaska, Southwest, American, for the sake of this.