Letter from a former US Customer
- Thread starter DrBeth
- Start date
That's always me because I usually book my flights the day before...Tadjr,
As a full fare CP, (former) I agree with you. In 2007 I sat in the back more than I did in the previous 10 years combined. CCY held seats open for CPs like me who purchased (at high fares) up to minutes before the flight.
Tempe does not do that,rades hold seats for day of purchase up-g An agent in DEN told me, they go through the list first thing in the morning and up-grade silvers so they can enjoy a bit of their status.
Really dumb, with that comment and RES migration I cut back my flying in April, and the last move I have stoppes all flying on US
As a full fare CP, (former) I agree with you. In 2007 I sat in the back more than I did in the previous 10 years combined. CCY held seats open for CPs like me who purchased (at high fares) up to minutes before the flight.
Tempe does not do that,rades hold seats for day of purchase up-g An agent in DEN told me, they go through the list first thing in the morning and up-grade silvers so they can enjoy a bit of their status.
Really dumb, with that comment and RES migration I cut back my flying in April, and the last move I have stoppes all flying on US
Boeing Boy,
I find your comment about the cost of an award ticket on US vs another star carrier interesting.
Last spring I booked four first class tickets MHT-HNL using US miles.
US wanted 80,000 per ticket (first class) to fly through PHX on an old 757 to HNL
I could also book on UA via ORD, for 50,000 (first class) miles and fly on a 777
Needless to say I choose the UA option that used 40% less miles to have a better product.
I find it interesting that even with award tickets US charges more for an inferior product.
If their product was the same, and charged the same miles I would have gone with US. However the high cost of being cheap it cost them (per your #s) $3,200.00 for me to fly on UA rather than $200.00 if I booked on US.
Something is wrong with their system, and they choose the wrong way to fix it by hurting the high yield flier.
I find your comment about the cost of an award ticket on US vs another star carrier interesting.
Last spring I booked four first class tickets MHT-HNL using US miles.
US wanted 80,000 per ticket (first class) to fly through PHX on an old 757 to HNL
I could also book on UA via ORD, for 50,000 (first class) miles and fly on a 777
Needless to say I choose the UA option that used 40% less miles to have a better product.
I find it interesting that even with award tickets US charges more for an inferior product.
If their product was the same, and charged the same miles I would have gone with US. However the high cost of being cheap it cost them (per your #s) $3,200.00 for me to fly on UA rather than $200.00 if I booked on US.
Something is wrong with their system, and they choose the wrong way to fix it by hurting the high yield flier.
Excellent points. Perhaps they need reminded that there's more to short-haul than PHX-LAS or PHX-ABQ; I haven't checked, but I suspect that WN's walkup fares are about $100 or so on each. Compare to the east coast routes of similar distance where the fares may run 3-5 times as much.
Try more like 8 - 10 times on the PHL -BOS route which is now anywhere from $800 - $1000 during the week. It just isn't worth it to pay that kind of a fare for that short of a trip and only get 250 miles each way. I can fly Delta for about $350 round trip now - or Amtrak for for about $250 round trip. So I don't get miles on either one that are important to me - but at least I'm saving several hundreds of dollars - and it isn't like the measly 250 miles US is going to give me makes a difference anyway.
BoeingBoy
Veteran
- Nov 9, 2003
- 16,512
- 5,865
By way of explanation, here's the starting point from the annual report....
They review the DM program, looking at breakage (miles that expire without being used) and redemption patterns, then use that data to estimate future liability for miles outstanding. Based on that info, the current estimate is that 10% of redemptions going forward will be on partner airlines. Each point that changes (10% to either 11% or 9%), the liability will change by $8 million. In 2007, there were 900,000 award redemptions.
Using that info, I assumed that 10% of 2007 redemptions were on partner carriers - that's 90,000 redemptions. A 1 point change would increase/decrease the OAL redemptions by 9,000 and increase/decrease liability by $8 million - an average of $888.89/other airline redemption.
Jim
You're a little low, but not too far off. PHX-LAS: $131; PHX-ABQ: $134. That's what it shows on southwest.com for tomorrow's flights.
I do a lot of last minute WN flights, and they don't price gouge ever. I believe I read somewhere in their literature that they will never do last minute price hikes. They reach their highest price about 7 days before the flight, and they will not raise it anymore. Their pricing is probably the most fair in the industry. Short flights cost less than long flights, virtually anywhere in the US. Also, almost all of their tickets are cash refundable (I think only the fun fares arent), and if you change a flight, they charge you $5 bucks yes $5 bucks not $100, or whatever the US Airways Fu*k Fee is... (that's what I paid last year, it may have changed). They give refunds if you ask before, or after the flight, even if you forget to cancel... They are in it for the long haul, they really don't abuse their customers...
Ok, so one of the days when I said I'd never fly US Airways again... This is a true story. I had a flight cancelled from BOS to AVP. I had to connect in PHL. Last minute in BOS, they had a seat for me on another flight, I had to run to the gate. At the gate, they never gave me my connecting boarding pass when they changed my flight. I paid no attention to it. I got on the plane. When I got to PHL, I didnt have a boarding pass for my AVP flight. I went to the "Customer Services" desk. The lady honestly argued with me for 20 minutes to the point where I just lost it. She kept telling me that I never had a connection to AVP and my original reservation was BOS to PHL and I'd have to pay $1900 to take my 20 minute flight to AVP. I was like, think about what you are saying... Why would I choose PHL as my final destination when I started at AVP? I really started to get nasty and I demanded the supervisor. About 10 minutes later, someone came over, punched a few buttons and said, "Yeah look here, here's his original reservation".
Well needless to say, I got home. The letter I wrote to "the sandcastle" as you guys call it - got me a $500 credit, but honestly, I am one of the most calm and patient people you'll ever meet, and for them to put me through that was insane... THAT is an example of someting that would never happen at WN.
vantheman63
Senior
Not only "fair," but "transparent as well. Back in the day when they could run roughshot around the legacies, they were brazen enough to discuss their pricing strategies in the press. In fact, the "transparency" of their pricing strategy has been written about in several books, including some used in acedemia.
I personally believe one thing that just pi$$es consumers and especially VFFers off to no end is that "the price changes and they don't know what they are buying." With WN, its a formula...apply it no matter where you go or how far you go.
On a "per mile basis," this isn't exactly true....PVD-PHL is about $0.47 a mile....I can get from PVD to SAN for $0.15 a mile, on a walk up. I don't do it 'cause I can't do that kind of flight jammed up like that...but I've done it before and if needed, would do it again.
Heck, I didn't know they even charged $5.00. Only the "Business Select" and "Full Y" Fares are fully refundable as far as I know...but with the others, even the cheapest of fares, you never lose you money, it just goes into their "ticketless fund" storage....and you use it again.
Great product....I use them frequently for short(er) hops. Just one more reason to avoid US like the plague. Little (if any wonder) why I know LOTS of PHX residents who claim to prefer WN over HP....er, US.
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