Things in the Sky

First, have you voted yet?

Now, United has announced some changes to Mileage Plus. The biggest thing that I noticed is that the airline has decided to start charging for some upgrades. I believe American was the first to start this concept, back during the summer.

So let’s give a good example…a domestic upgrade. Until the changes take effect, an upgrade will cost 8,000 miles for more expensive fares, and 15,000 for the cheaper fares. Now, for the cheaper fares travelers will have to pay a $50 fee.

Another aspect that some travelers might dislike is Hawaii upgrades. Previously the same numbe of miles as a domestic upgrade was needed, but now that has increased, and the co-pay could be as high as $500.

To be completely honest, I’m not entirely pleased. I completely understand charging more miles for an upgrade depending on what fare a passenger books. The concept of charging for an upgrade just seems to dimish the qualiyt of the perk, in my opinon. I think it should be a complimentary upgrade, not a more expensive seat for a discount. I guess I would have preferred United increasing the milage requirement a bit more.

But, I’ve never flown United in my life, so why should I complain.

On the positive side, United is restoring the 500 mile minimum on miles earned for its elite members, and it is even restoring that perk retroactively, which impressed me to be completely honest.

You can see the current award chart here and the new one to take effect next year here for comparison purposes.

Ben over at One Mile at a Time has a couple of great posts on this as well – here and here.