United's stopping 'surprise-and-delight' upgrades on the Boeing 767
If you're looking for a fancier seat on your next United Airlines flight, you'll need to pay up.
Starting in August, the Chicago-based carrier will no longer offer "surprise-and-delight" upgrades from extra-legroom Economy Plus to premium economy aboard the Boeing 767-300ERs and 767-400ERs.
From now on, you'll need to pay for the cabin experience that you're looking to fly — whether you pay cash, redeem miles or apply PlusPoints, United's upgrade currency.
Until then, lucky flyers can still select seats in the premium economy section for the same cost as Economy Plus within a few days of the flight. That's because only a subset of United 767s features these "purple seats." Until the retrofits are completed across the fleet, United is marketing this upgraded cabin as Economy Plus.
Over the past few months, United has been busy retrofitting its Boeing 767s with the addition of a Premium Plus cabin.
When first retrofitting its fleet of 37 Boeing 767-300ERs a few years ago, United split these planes into two batches: 24 of them are now "high J" versions (featuring 46 Polaris business-class seats, 22 Premium Plus recliners, 43 Economy Plus seats and 56 economy seats) and 14 of them are in a less premium "standard" configuration that features 30 Polaris pods, 46 Economy Plus seats and 138 economy seats.
Notably missing from the latter batch was a Premium Plus cabin. While United originally planned for this to be a more leisure-focused configuration, there's recently been an appreciable uptick in demand for these upgraded seats.
Instead of letting competitors pick up that demand, United decided last summer to add a Premium Plus cabin to these 14 jets.
This retrofit project has been in the works for the past few months, and now, the airline estimates completion in August.
With the updated timeline, it makes sense for the airline to start charging for the Premium Plus seats, especially given the recent focus on capturing the growing market of premium revenue that's flourished among high-end leisure travelers during the pandemic.
The fate of United's 16 Boeing 767-400ERs was uncertain in 2020. The pandemic initially sent this fleet into long-term storage. However, the robust demand recovery, coupled with aircraft delivery delays from Boeing, meant that United didn't have much of a choice in bringing these roughly 22-year-old jets back from the desert.
When the planes reentered service, they brought with them the legacy United cabins that didn't feature a premium economy section or the latest Polaris business-class pods.
However, now that the carrier plans to keep these jets in its fleet for the foreseeable future, it is breathing new life into its 767-400ERs with the installation of these cabins, among other nose-to-tail improvements.
Just like the 767-300ER, United hasn't been assigning the newly retrofitted 767-400ERs to specific routes, so flyers sitting in Economy Plus could select a Premium Plus seat for free within a few days of departure.
While this "surprise-and-delight" solution was always designed to be temporary, it does affect top-tier elite members the most.
Fare class is one of the big determining factors in United's upgrade priority, and those ticketed in Premium Plus will be higher on the list than customers booked in economy — no matter the Premier level.
As such, if elite members want to maximize their upgrade odds, they'll now need to purchase a Premium Plus seat, which often sells for at least a few hundred dollars more than those in coach.
United's take on premium economy, dubbed Premium Plus, first started rolling out in 2019. Since then, the carrier has installed the "purple seats," as loyalists affectionately call them, on its entire long-haul wide-body fleet, with completion now expected in August.
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| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
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Why We Chose It
There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits. (Partner offer)Pros
- 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
- 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
- Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
- Solid welcome bonus
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
- Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.