As a 20-plus year business professional and seasoned traveler, I’ve had my fair share of experiences with airline loyalty programs. These used to be the frequent flyer’s equivalent of gold; more flights meant more rewards and enhanced travel experiences. But lately, it seems like the luster is fading, particularly for United’s Mileage Plus which sees the greatest share of my travel dollars.
In days of old, airlines wooed us with promises of frequent flyer rewards based on miles flown and actual flying frequency, hence the name “frequent flyer program”. A long haul here, a cross-country trip there, or even every-other-week visits to another office and you could find yourself sipping a complimentary mimosa in first class. That was, until the Grinch stole airline loyalty.
These days, the game has changed. It’s less about the frequency of your travel, and more about how much cash you’re prepared to fork over to your airline of choice. With United, to move beyond the basic level, you’re expected to spend upwards of $8,000 annually on tickets to get beyond their basic “silver” tier. It’s enough to make your wallet weep! Of course if you don’t fly often but spend a lot you can qualify with $10,000 worth of points. Some people spend that on a single business class flight to Asia!
I’ve taken 25 flights on United alone so far in 2023, resulting in what they call 35 “PQFs” or “Premier Qualifying Flights”. My “PQP” level or “Premier Qualifying Points” is only 4,587 out of 8,000 needed to reach the next tier. Those PQPs are synonymous with how many dollars you’ve spent. So with 25 actual butt-in-seat-during-takeoff-and-landing flights in less than half the year, I’m barely halfway to reaching the next tier. Nothing guaranteed. If prices go down in H2 of the year (hahahahahaaaaa) I won’t make it. That could be 50 flights and only the most basic level of “loyalty”. WTF?????
Especially when there’s internal pressure to reduce costs on travel and increased investment in virtual meeting software such as Teams, Zoom, etc. (It’s never the same meeting virtually, but if an in-person meeting for 6-10 people over 2 days was going to cost $5,000 with everyone’s flights, hotels, Ubers, meals, etc. it makes sense in some companies to do it via Teams. Anyway… I digress.
When I don the hat of a humble MileagePlus member, it’s as if I’m cast into the airplane version of the Hunger Games. I find myself wrestling for overhead space as if it’s the last loaf of bread in a post-apocalyptic world. Boarding has become an elaborate dance of priority tiers, where I inevitably end up in “Group 2” – a polite euphemism for “We’ll get to you after a procession of VIPs, families with children under 2, the disabled (I think some people are faking it!!), active military members, anyone who might need extra time, people with pets, and people whose name is John or anything that vaguely rhymes with John.”
Even the tantalizing lure of upgrades to first-class feels like a cruel joke. I can see on the app that I’m ranked Number 20-something on the list of “free upgrades”, yet I stand a better chance of being invited to lunch with the Dalai Lama than getting bumped up to first class. Often times I’m ranked a higher number than there are first-class seats on the flight.
Perhaps the most irksome aspect of this commitment to one airline is the tyranny of the connecting flight. It seems the reward for loyalty is a tour of America’s finest airports, as I bounce from Boston’s Logan to far-flung destinations via scenic routes through half a dozen states. Newark… Washington DC… Chicago… Houston… Denver… well I actually needed to get to Pittsburgh, Detroit, Minneapolis, Dallas, Las Vegas. Direct flights from other airlines beckon, promising a more efficient, cost-effective way to travel, and it’s getting harder to resist their call.
So, why, you may ask, do I cling to my United MileagePlus membership? Well, it’s a question I’ve been asking myself too. It began15 or so years ago when I started taking regular flights from Boston to Chicago. There were several direct flights each day back and forth, and multiple choices in the early morning and late afternoon, evening, and later at night. Today there are fewer options as United has cut back the direct flights from Boston to Chicago over the years.
The last five years I’ve also had a membership at the United Club Lounge – a nice perk I’m truly grateful for, but it’s also something that saves the company money in the long run. Rather than spending cash on meals and a beer or two while waiting for flights, I now eat and drink for free at the United Club. I’ve also had to quickly dash in there before and after flights to use the WiFi connection and to find a quiet place to take a call. It’s a nice-to-have, no question. Most airlines offer something similar. In fact, there are even lounges for those who have an American Express card. Maybe I could just use those instead. Yet I digress, again.
One of the United Club Lounges at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. Not gonna lie… it’s a nice perk. But it doesn’t require MileagePlus membership. In fact, I think you can just pay $50 to get a day pass.
I have memberships to all the other major airline rewards program, whether from long-ago itineraries or just trying to be proactive once I became a “professional business traveler”. Delta Sky Miles, American Advantage, and Jet Blue True Blue have their own structures and benefits – some that that make United’s program appear like the Ebenezer Scrooge of airline reward schemes – though admittedly they’re all trending in the wrong direction. Most if not all now factor in how much money you’ve spent with them over how frequently you fly with them.
Loyalty programs in general seem to be playing hard to get. And I’m starting to question whether it’s worth the chase. It’s like being in a dysfunctional relationship where you put in all the effort, and all you get in return is the occasional, reluctant “you’re up next” from the boarding gate.
So, I leave you with this. If you’re like me, navigating the choppy skies of business travel on a tight budget, you might find yourself questioning the value of loyalty. To United’s MileagePlus, I say this: It’s not me, it’s definitely you.
In an era when we’re spoiled for choice with airlines vying for our business, perhaps it’s time to stop playing hard to get and start offering genuine value to your loyal customers. Business travel is no longer glamorous, if it ever was. At the end of the day, all we want is a little respect, a dash of convenience, and space in the overhead bin for our carry-on. Is that too much to ask?