Airlines strike again...this time United.

In the never ending quest to make your lives more miserable, United has just raised the bar a little more.

Want that free ticket to Cancun, or that upgrade to First Class? Well, now it doesn't matter how many miles you fly, only how much you spend!

United is changing their Mileage Plus program to a revenue based status, so now it doesn't matter if you fly once a month to Beijing, you could get a better status with 20 flights between Detroit and Chicago. All those stories up in the front of the bus are going to change from traveling the world to stories about selling 50 widgets last week to a guy in Omaha. That, or about the guy who just bought a new (to him) 2004 Dodge Durango using his UA Visa card.

Show me the money $$$

Even better, you can tell the stories about all those trips to exotic destinations to the guy wedged into the seat next to you while you enjoy the screaming baby bouncing up and down on the tray table behind you...and the $7 cardboard box of $ 2 worth of snacks. The only place with ample room is the inside of the snack box, because it sure as hell ain't the overhead bin!

LOL...what a joke!

I heard a rumor that they're going to pilot a new marketing idea. They're gonna reduce the seat pitch down to 8" for all Masons. They can pay a $200 up-charge for the "luxury" of a regular 'seat'. If it works, they're going to do away with First Class altogether and make the whole plane that way. Then they're just going to remove the seats completely in 2021. And, they're gonna' keep going until every plane looks like a Tokyo subway train at rush-hour.

I agree that customers should strike about the FF miles not being miles, thus devious advert

maybe class action?

Year ago or so we had a wedding to attend in Cali. We live in Mi.

We decided to drive rather than fly. Pretty sure it cost us a lot more,

Not that I am afraid to fly, just hate how you get treated like cattle being loaded onto a stock trailer.

Was well worth the money... The sights, the highway closing as we were crossing the Rockies,

a reply to: tinner07

If it's 500 miles or less, I drive anymore.

When you consider everything, it's actually faster for most people.

a reply to: tinner07
That's the spirit....flying is not inherently safe.....from a seasoned pilot

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk
Pretty much, by the time you factor in driving to the airport, finding parking in long term, arriving the standard 2 hrs early, checking bags, going through TSA like cattle, then wanting to board the flight, Then waiting for all the slow moving idiots to find their seat and figure out how to cram two carry-ones the bags that they were told to check, then taxing out to the runway. You could be almost half way to your destination and not have to worry about lost luggage and finding a car to rent.
Lines, waiting, more lines,and more waiting. Hate the airline traveling.

If it's 500 miles or less, I drive anymore. When you consider everything, it's actually faster for most people.

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk


I agree... crosss country trip was fantastic though. Everybody should do it. The like railroad crossing gates at highway entrances I did not understand at first. Now I know.

You probably knew this, some of those exits off the highway in the middle of nowhere, go nowhere...

idiots to find their seat and figure out how to cram two carry-ones the bags that they were told to check

a reply to: 38181

That is what pissed me off the last time I flew. I think to Vegas. I am anal about being late or having problems. I am in my seat and my 1 bag tucked overhead.

Last minute guy gets on with some bag... stewardess opens over head locker, pulls out my bag and asks "whose is this?"

I said its mine. she said I have to put it under the seat in front of me to make room for his bag... I said hell no... he can put it under his feet.

a reply to: 38181

Yep, between the airlines, the government and the airports, they've systematically made air travel the pretty much the most miserable experience imaginable.

I can remember as a kid I used to love to go to the airport. They had observation decks you could go outside and look at the planes from. They even had those binocular things you put a dime into and you could look around. TSA would have an aneurysm now if they ever saw one of those! Used to go out to the gate to meet grandma. Those days are gone like the Dodo bird now. The airlines gave away decks of playing cards and games.

Now, the airlines just sneer at you, the TSA prods you along, barking commands at you, and everyone just trudges along with their heads down, looking forward to their full-cavity search before being extorted by some airport concession for a bottle of water and then stuffed inside a metal tube to be harangued by some sour old middle-aged "stewardess" with kankles and sand in her vagina. What fun!

You're lucky in one respect that you could drive to you destination. I live in the UK, on an island and the airlines make us pay to get off it. Example (when I looked just though you might find a better price) New York to Chicago cost $88. The same distance from the UK is $258.
The experience is the same, cattle trucks, narrow seats, 28 inch seat throw. The only answer you get off them is take it or leave it. At one time we had a passengers Charter giving us certain rights, but that vanished years ago.

originally posted by: GBP/JPY
a reply to: tinner07
That's the spirit....flying is not inherently safe.....from a seasoned pilot

The last time I flew it was springtime bad time to fly weather wise, was flying from the great plains to New Orleans for a conference. Everything was fine until we hit turbulence over the south east. The plan began to drop and buck like a bronco, people were crying, praying, and generally freaking out. When we landed most of use kissed the ground and swore never to fly again. Have'nt flow since and that was over 20 years ago.

originally posted by: Flyingclaydisk
United is changing their Mileage Plus program to a revenue based status, so now it doesn't matter if you fly once a month to Beijing, you could get a better status with 20 flights between Detroit and Chicago. All those stories up in the front of the bus are going to change from traveling the world to stories about selling 50 widgets last week to a guy in Omaha. That, or about the guy who just bought a new (to him) 2004 Dodge Durango using his UA Visa card.

Delta has been doing that for a few years now. Used to be you only had to earn "qualifying miles" so international trips would get you into a higher status pretty quickly. Then came "qualifying dollars". You have to achieve certain amounts for both in order to get the next level.

Frequent Flyer programs are not what they used to be. Making things worse, the company I work for books the cheapest fare. I have no status on any carrier anymore.

If I have to fly in the CONUS I try hard to stick with Southwest, Ill still be treated like cattle but it is usually the cheapest in my limited experience with conus flights.