To all:   Feb 1, 2010 I have received the following from many of our UAL retirees and I can not confirm that it is a fact or just another rumor. Some have said that it is coming from "A Reliable Source", but won't name the source. For those who say that I shouldn't be passing this on - I say "I'm just trying to stop it from coming into my mail box". So, I'll take it as a rumor until I get it from UAL offices. If you have received a copy, don't send it to me - I've seen it m,any times. Dale T Have you heard anything like this? Rumor: Heard from a CSR that starting second quarter 2010, all domestic Global Services, 1K's, and Premier Execswill be upgraded to First/Business Class free of charge. If true, it seems this policy will seriously affectpilots/employees/family members’ ability to upgrade, not only when traveling SA, but also on PS deadheads. This is once again, another example, of our hard-earned benefits being taken away outside the negotiation forum. Rumor: An agent told me that beginning in January, United will give customers free upgrades to first class. She indicated that this means that our pass travel will now be generally worthless, since United will upgrade coach passengers to first class at no charge rather than allow United employees into those seats. Is this true? On what basis will free upgrades be handed out? And will people in non-economy plus be given free upgrades to economy plus? Answer: According to UAL-MEC Pass Travel Coordinator Captain Pat Palazzolo, this is correct. Pat writes, "Beginning in the spring, on all domestic, Canada and Caribbean flights, the higher grade mileage plus members will be able to upgrade free to any empty first class seat. Yes, this will eliminate first class as an option for pass travel in the more heavily traveled domestic markets. Because of the deteriorating ability of United employees to pass ride, ALPA has been doing a number of things to mitigate the obvious impact. Our objective is to expand the number of off line seats available to travel as cheaply and easily as possible. To accomplish this objective ALPA has proposed and the company has already agreed to the following: 1) In all future interline agreements United will seek to make ID95s/ZED Low fares the standard interline benefit as opposed to ID90s/ ZED Medium fares that have been the traditional interline standard fare. Since undertaking this change about half of the carriers United has approached have agreed to ZED Low/ID95s and about half have declined and remained at ID90 or ZED medium. Some of the carriers who have recently agreed to lower the fares to ZED Low are Continental, Hawaiian, Alaska and Turkish. ALPA has asked the company to make it a priority to seek ZED Low fares on American and Delta. 2) ALPA proposed last summer the concept of having all interline travel done online with e-tickets that can be accessed from any computer. A charge to an employee's credit card would occur only if the person or his eligible is actually boarded on an off-line flight. The company is actively exploring this concept. By expanding interline travel, and at the same time making it cheap and easy to get tickets (electronically), we hope to increase the travel opportunities across the industry even though the travel opportunities here at United are diminishing. Would we prefer that United not make the changes they're doing that has impacted one of the few benefits we have left? Of course. But if they are going to do it, we're not going to just sit around. We're going to do our best to ensure that we can expand our travel benefits on other carriers in a way that ensures cheap and hassle-free transportation as much as we possibly can." No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com <http://www.avg.com> Version: 8.5.432 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/2659 - Release Date: 01/31/10 06:39:00 __________________________________________________ September 19, 2009                              To: United Pilots From: Captain Pat Palazzolo, MEC Pass Travel Coordinator Re: September 2009 Update Since my update last month a number of pilots have written to ask questions or express concerns. I’d like to address some of the more common emails I’ve received in this update. I welcome your comments and questions at passriding@gmail.com Flyzed.com Many people tried the flyzed.com web site for checking loads and listing on offline travel. The web site requires a sign on and password. The sign on and password for UAL employees are found in the travel section of SkyNet. They are UAL and 016. BP-7 - BP-8 and BP-6  Travel and Retiree Pass Travel A number of employees wrote to express concern about the inability to travel space available due to the current heavy loads and their relative lack of seniority. Some suggested restricting retiree pass travel and some suggested giving employees a higher priority for vacation travel. The reality of employee pass travel at United is that it is a seniority based benefit. Those who have put in the years of service to the company are rewarded for that service. And those who are new to the company are at a disadvantage for pass travel by the very nature of the benefit. In the past the company had wanted to offer higher boarding priority BP-7 travel as rewards for performance. ALPA (as well as the AFA) has strongly opposed this type of travel because it abrogates our seniority. The pilot group at United tends to be more senior and work longer for United than most other employees. As a result pilots generally tend to benefit from seniority based pass travel benefits more than other employee groups. ALPA felt it was unfair to allow junior employees to bump senior employees for pass travel, even if it was for just a few passes a year. An unintended consequence of the now defunct BP-7 program was that employees tended to save their BP-7 passes for the most popular and most impacted routes. As a result, it was difficult for even senior employees on BP-8s to be boarded on certain routes as it was often that only those with BP-7s were able to be boarded. As a result, those who used BP-7s on those impacted routes often saw little benefit because in many cases everyone used BP-7s on those flights and the S/As ended up being boarded in the same order as if everyone on the flight had used BP-8s. As I replied to one junior employee, I remember how it felt to be junior and trying to pass ride. Once, when I was furloughed, I checked in at HNL to be told the CSR that I didn’t stand a chance and should go buy a ticket. I was unemployed, it was expensive and it stung. But I hadn’t yet paid my dues like the others waiting in line. In a related complaint, some employees felt it was unfair for retired employees to board ahead of active employees. It has been a long standing tradition at United that all employees – retired or active – will be recognized for their years of service in pass travel. Generally speaking, if an active employee has 8 years of service and a retired employee has 7 years of service, the active employee will be boarded first, and vice versa if the retired employee has more years of service. At United this is the gold watch given to our employees – the ability to continue to travel in retirement using their hard earned years of service. In fact, it’s the only thing left for us at retirement. For as long as I’ve been on the pass travel committee (1994) the unions have unanimously and consistently opposed any change to this benefit. And the reason has always been the same and very simple: We all hope to be retired some day and want to protect this benefit for all of us. As a result, the ability of all employees – retired and active – to use years of service for pass travel, continues to be jealously guarded by all the employee groups. Additionally, the ability of retirees to continue to use their years of service for pass travel benefits pilots more than most other employees because pilots tend to work longer at this company. The Standby List United says they are working to enable employees, retirees and their eligibles to view the stand by lists on any United flight in SkyNet. I don’t know when this will become available, but when it is, it should be viewable on home computers as well as portable devices that can now access SkyNet such as iPhones and Blackberries. Baggage and Other Fees for S/A Travel There were a lot of complaints about various fees charged S/As for travel. The most common complaints involved oversized or overweight checked baggage. To be clear, United does not charge S/As the checked bag fees charged to revenue customers. (Exception: United used to charge all customers for a third bag. That charge still applies to non-revenue customers). Additionally, they should not charge fees for unaccompanied minors. However they have been charging fees for pets. The company is currently reviewing the pet policy and I am hopeful that the pet fees will be a thing of the past. United does charge S/As and revenue customers alike for baggage types they want to discourage such as overweight and oversized checked baggage, and checking more than two bags. If these fees were to be eliminated, United is concerned that it would encourage something they are trying to eliminate as much as possible as these types of checked bags are labor intensive and/or more prone to damage. (Guitars anyone?) Enrolled Friend issues A common question emailed to me was when enrolled friends would be able to travel off line. The company would like to expand it to other airlines and they say they’re working on it. Pass Travel Tips Checking loads: If you want to know the number of seats still available for sale on any United flight, check the loads in the “Positive Space” section of Web List. In the “Space Available” section the airplane capacity and the number of seats booked is displayed, but not the number of seats remaining for sale. This is especially useful when the company overbooks. For example, let’s say there’s a 100 seat aircraft, and the company has already sold 115 seats. That may look pretty bleak for S/A travel. But if you check under Positive Space, you may notice that United is still selling 10 more seats on that flight. This reflects the number of no-shows they expect. So in this example if no more seats are sold, the flight will theoretically depart with 10 empty seats even though it shows oversold by 15. Note: Under the Positive Space section, if there are 25 or more seats remaining for sale, it will be displayed as 25+. Notice Effective October 1st Southwest Airlines will no longer accept checks for payment of NRSA tickets.    Sorry, cash only          August 27, 2009 To: All Pilots From: UAL-MEC Pass Travel Coordinator Re: Pass Travel Update There has been a lot of activity with regard to pass travel lately and I'd like to update you. ALPA has been working with the company to remedy problems in two big areas within employee pass travel, companion passes and interline travel. Additionally, we have discussed with the company a number of improvements we would like to see with United pass travel. Companion passes The two big problems in this area are the volatility of companion fares which makes them difficult to budget for, and the outrageous increases in fares when they do occur, exceeding 80% in some cases. The company argues that the tax laws require the companion fare to be based on a percentage of the full Y fare to avoid personal income taxes. The Y fare is not attached to the normal market for air travel so wild and unrealistic companion fares often result in some markets. The problem is that many companion fares now approximate or exceed the revenue fares, defeating the purpose of the companion fare. Sydney is just one example. It costs more to fly to Sydney on a companion fare than on a revenue ticket. ALPA has been pushing for some time to peg the companion fare to a percentage of the ZED fare in such a way that it would be revenue neutral and not require taxation. This would give companion fares the stability and predictability of the ZED fares. This mechanism would also eliminate the outrageous companion fares, such as to Sydney and other routes. I'm pleased to report that the company is now exploring this solution and I am hopeful that these two issues will be solved relatively soon. Interline travel: Are the days of purchasing paper interline tickets and requesting refunds gone? I hope so. ALPA recently proposed to the company that we consider making all interline ticketing electronic. This would do away with the need to purchase paper tickets (made even more difficult by some stations' local procedures) and eliminate the hoops we all have to go through to get refunds. We proposed a number of ideas that could make such a change practical. Under the electronic process, employees would log on to a website (similar to flyzed.com) where we could check loads and availability on any other carrier between any two points. The traveler would then list himself on any flight. The traveler would have his credit card on file like you might already have on file with amazon.com or other retail sites. Once you are listed for a flight, you would be given a confirmation number. You could print off a security card to get you through security, or you might be able to use the other carriers' automated check in machines. If you are boarded on the flight, your credit card would be charged. If you are not boarded, there would be no need to get a refund because your credit card would not be charged. The company appears to be intrigued by this concept because of the obvious benefits for all concerned. But right now it's still in the discussion and exploration stage. So far, much to my surprise, there has been no push back to this idea. I'll keep you posted. ID 95s -- the new ID90s. At ALPA's urging, the company is now planning to request ID95 or ZED Low interline ticketing in all future non-rev interline agreements. These would gradually replace ID90s for those carriers who agree to the change and would result in a significant reduction (about 50%) in interline travel costs on those airlines. Other interline issues: In decades past United had non-rev interline agreements with most of the world's large carriers. These agreements were sufficient to not only get us to most continents but also to allow us to travel within those regions. Not so today. Over the years most of the world's major carriers have abandoned many regional flights. As a result a number of code share "Express-type" carriers have emerged, or independent low-cost regional carriers have emerged. Most of these new carriers can be found in Europe, Southeast Asia, Australia and India. We don't have interline agreements with most of them. And as a result United employees are forced to pay full fare when travelling within these regions overseas. The short answer to this long story is that United is able to enter into interline non-rev agreements only with carriers they have revenue ticketing agreements with. (When United negotiates a revenue passenger interline agreement with another carrier, they normally tack on a non-rev interline agreement as part of the deal.) And many of these carriers don't have revenue passenger ticketing agreements with United for a variety of reasons. It's important to understand this because one of the most frequent questions I get is "Why can't we have ID90s with XXX airline?" The answer is usually that United doesn't even have a revenue passenger ticketing agreement with them. Before United enters into a revenue passenger ticketing agreement with another carrier, they review the following: 1. Financial health of the carrier. 2. Regional stability (in some regions, carriers have short lives) 3. Membership in IATA Clearing House 4. Connectivity to UA services 5. Schedule and fares available in GDS systems 6. Revenue passenger interline agreements they may already have with other carriers United is currently unable to pursue non-rev interline agreements with the following carriers because United does not presently have revenue ticketing agreements with them: Air Asia Tiger Airways Go Air Atlas Jet Cebu Pacific Aviacsa Aero California Ryan Air (ceased revenue interline agreement) Condor (has ignored our request for a revenue agreement) Additionally, ticketless carriers present challenges for interlining either revenue or non-revenue passengers. As a result, we are unable to obtain revenue or non-revenue interline agreements at this time with: JetStar Asia Valuair Jazeera Airways Virgin Blue Pacific Blue Other carriers often mentioned by employees: Czech: They cancelled their interline agreement in 2004, and restoring it is not a priority for UAL at this time. Philippine Airlines: United submitted a ZED proposal, but they have shown very little interest in having a non-rev agreement with United. Vietnam Airlines: They have no real travel benefits for their own employees. They are not allowed by government regulation to sign any reduced rate agreements with any airlines. The reason is they are a State Owned Enterprise (SOE) and their own personnel are quasi-government employees and as such are only allowed extremely limited personnel travel themselves. As a result, they cannot allow benefits for other airlines' employees. They do not expect their situation to change, but if it does, United said they will pursue an agreement at that time. Suggestion: Purchase your tickets on Vietnam Airlines when inside Vietnam. The cost is about half compared to purchasing your ticket outside Vietnam. Code Share and Subsidiaries Another frequent complaint I get is "When I fly on XXX Airline between Point A and Point B, I couldn't use my ZED/ID ticket because it was actually on a code share airline or a subsidiary." Interline agreements are normally entered with an airline which also includes their wholly-owned airline subsidiaries. In most cases, when a carrier obtains a new airline subsidiary, they contact us to see if we will include them in our revenue and non-revenue agreements. As long as they are 100% owned by that carrier and will offer reciprocal travel privileges to our employees, United will usually include them. However, when flights are operated by a code share partner, United needs to have a separate agreement with that code share carrier . There are various reasons for this: (i) the original carrier cannot legally negotiate agreements for another carrier's employees, (ii) carriers have different policies that may differ from the original carrier's policies which could prevent them from honoring the original terms of the agreement, (iii) there needs to be revenue ticketing agreement in place with the code share partner, (iv) we need to insure a ticketing settlement process exists. ZED agreements United is working as quickly as they can to convert current interline ID agreements to ZED agreements. The process usually occurs rapidly if the carrier permits United to file their ZED fares for them in the industry-wide data base. If they prefer to do it themselves, then it usually takes much longer. That is the main reason converting to ZED takes such a long time, as most prefer to do it themselves. United said today that they are now going to focus on ZED agreements in the Pacific since we seem to be well covered in Europe. The following carriers are now priorities for converting to ZED fares: Thai Eva Turkish Cathay Pacific Air France Alaska Alaska Airlines is the most ticketed airline for offline travel by United employees. As a result, obtaining a ZED agreement with them is a priority. Alaska has been slow in undertaking the process, but United is aware how important this is to our employees and is trying to obtain an agreement as quickly as Alaska will permit. United is also trying to obtain ZED agreements with Mexicana and Emirates but is not finding a lot of interest in accelerating the process with these two companies. There are a number of interline problems that are solved simply by converting to ZED fares instead of ID tickets. Currently some airlines prohibit travel by parents, retirees, or children over the age of 21 or restrict them to ID75s. Many of these problems are solved as soon as the interline agreements are converted to ZED because ZED agreements are fairly well standardized and normally have uniform benefits for all carriers. So as more ZED agreements are reached, you will see fewer restrictions on some categories of eligibles, such as retirees, parents and children. The same goes for those carriers who restrict us to one or two ID tickets per year. Converting to ZED eliminates that restriction. Eva Air of Taiwan currently restricts us to two per year. United and Eva are currently in discussions to convert to a ZED agreement. Don't forget the benefits of ZED ticketing: The best features of ZED ticketing are: 1) ZED fares are normally significantly cheaper than the equivalent ID fare it replaces. ZED Low (or ZL) replaces ID95s, ZM (Medium) replaces ID90s and ZH (High) replaces ID75s. 2) Each ZED ticket can be used on any ZED carrier for that zone (distance category). 3) Many ZED agreements allow ZED tickets in either Economy or Business classes. If that is the case with the airline you're traveling on, it's a good idea to purchase both Business class and Economy ZED tickets so you can be accommodated in either class of service. Remember if you surrender a Business class ZED ticket for Economy class travel, you won't be reimbursed the difference. Bag check fees for non-revenue travel United does not charge baggage fees for non revenue travel. But a few airlines do: USAir to name one. United has contacted USAir and they have agreed to discontinue bag fees for Star Alliance member travelers. Right now we know of no other airline that presently charges non-rev travelers for checking baggage. If you encounter this, please let me know so we can have United contact that carrier. Improvements we are seeking with United pass travel The MEC has recently directed that we discuss with the company establishing reciprocal BP-8 type pass benefits with Continental. Pass benefits at Continental are contractual, and they are presently in contract talks. Their negotiating committee has been discussing this issue with us while we have been talking with our own company. We have also proposed to the company that we would like employees to have the option in the A:14 reward program of having the cash payout or receiving service charge waived passes for First Class and Business Classes, as we used to have. Finally, we have been talking with the company about our desire to expand the enrolled friend benefit to married employees as well as single employees. Please keep in mind that pass benefits at United are not contractual. As such we cannot negotiate these benefits, we can only attempt to persuade on issues that are important to us. For those who have questions or suggestions feel free to contact me at passriding@gmail. com Please keep in mind that I am in a position to help resolve systemic problems rather than individual pass riding problems. Captain Pat Palazzolo MEC Pass Travel Coordinator AT&T Mobile Phone Discount! ************** . Note from Moderator, Pete Sofman: . FAN (Foundation Account Number) is 00029284 (see below) . The following is directly from the Skynet home page, left-hand column, under Employee Discounts, and then under Mobile Services: . U.S.-based United employees, their family members (on the employee’s account) and United retirees are all eligible for discounts with AT&T Mobility: . * 22% discount off of base rate Monthly Recurring Voice Plans of $39.99 or higher (individual or family) for voice services and unlimited Data Plans (current exceptions are Go-Phone plans, Unity plans and Unlimited Voice Plan). See web site for full details. * 22% discount off of base rate Monthly Recurring Voice Plans (individual and family) and Data Plans for the New 3G iPhone as of July 11, 2008! (2G iPhone rate plans are not eligible for a discount).Unlimited voice plan and Unity plans are not eligible. * $25.00 off a phone with on-line Premier orders when choosing a rate plan of $39.99 or higher (check with Premier on-line for details). * Free Shipping on all orders placed through Premier on-line. * Special “Premier On-Line Only” equipment discounts on Premier orders and more… . You can also port your number from another wireless carrier to AT&T Mobility through the Premier Web Site or at any AT&T Mobility store. . NOTE on iPhone 3G: If you purchase an iPhone 3G from an Apple store, you can get the monthly service discount applied to your account by following the instructions below. The Apple stores cannot associate the discount with your account, but please be sure to have it added that you can take advanatage of the savings. . If you already have AT&T Mobility Service but are not currently receiving the United discount, please go to http://www.att.com/wireless/ual (paste the link into your browser) and: . 1. Click on the Support tab 2. Click on the Discount Registration link 3. Click on the On-line Validation Process link New Door-to-Door Baggage Service Takes the 'Lug' Out of Luggage ------------ --------- --------- --------- --------- ---- On Wednesday we became the first U.S. airline to offer overnight baggage shipping service via FedEx Express (R) that will provide our customers with a more convenient and easy way to travel -- without their luggage. . Our new service, Door-to-Door Baggage, enables customers to ship suitcases and other travel items, such as skis or golf clubs, overnight from a home or office directly to their destination in the continental United States. At 149 dollars one way for flights less than 1,000 miles or 179 dollars for longer flights, our prices are simple and more economical than similar overnight services offered by other shippers. Door-to-Door Baggage may only be purchased on united.com, and shipments can be easily tracked online. . "Door-to-Door Baggage is another new service from our Travel Options portfolio that puts more choices into the hands of our customers and provides them with the flexibility to customize their own travel experiences, " says SVP and Chief Marketing and Customer Officer Dennis Cary. "While offering customers a new benefit, it also provides us with a new revenue stream that, when combined with our other ancillary revenue and fee initiatives, is expected to generate more than 1 billion dollars in 2009." . Up to 10 days prior to travel, a customer visits My Itineraries on united.com, where he or she selects the appropriate trip, then schedules and pays for the shipment. Next, customers print their FedEx shipping documents, which will be attached to the bags by FedEx personnel. On the scheduled pickup day, the bags are picked up at a home or office -- generally between noon and 6 p.m. -- or dropped off at any FedEx authorized shipping center, Monday through Saturday at most locations. By 4:30 p.m. the next day, the bags are delivered to the customer's final destination. . Door-to-Door Baggage joins other offerings in our Travel Options portfolio, such as Economy Plus, Award Accelerator. More information about Travel Options by United(sm) is available at united.com/travelop tions. *** You Can Now Reset Your Own SkyNet Password  *** . Posted April 28, 2008 Starting on Monday, April 28, you will be able to reset or change your SkyNet password without having to call the Service Desk. . The new password management tool gives you more control over your password, while adding security to SkyNet's important applications and information. To use the password tool, follow these four steps: . 1. Log into SkyNet. Go to the password management tool through the Change Password link under Quick Hits on the homepage. 2. Click on the link for "Change Answers to Authentication Questions." This opens a list of 20 security questions - choose four of them as your "challenge" questions. 3. Type in the answers to your four challenge questions and click on the "Save" button at the bottom of the screen. Once registered, you will be taken to a separate screen to validate your questions and click on "OK." 4. Next, you'll be asked to change your password. Type in your new password and confirm it by retyping the new password. Click on the "Change Password" button. This will now be your SkyNet password for the next 90 days. If You Forget Your Password Once you have completed these steps, you can choose to reset your password or change answers to your challenge questions at any time by using the Change Password link on SkyNet. If you forget your password: * Enter your user ID on the SkyNet log-in page and click on the "Forgot Your Password?" link. * You will be asked to answer the four challenge questions that you selected in the password management tool. If you answer all four questions correctly, your password will be reset. If you have forgotten your SkyNet password and have not yet answered your four challenge questions, you will need to call the Service Desk to reset your password. * You cannot use the password tool to reset a forgotten password until you answer at least four challenge questions. * When you log in with your new temporary password from the Service Desk, you will automatically be redirected to the password management tool to answer your challenge questions and reset your password. If you have any questions about the password management tool, please call the Service Desk at Unitel 700-5800 or 1-800-255-5801. DTW advised me that when sending back interline tickets for a refund that it is a good idea to remove the passenger receipt page located in the back in case they get lost etc. Also, they recommend that you send them by a trackable carrier such as FEDEX or UPS. Also, FEDEX will not deliver to P.O. Boxes or P.O. ZIP codes so you must send them to: UAL Psgr. Refund Dept. WHQAK 1501 Mittel Blvd. Wooddale, IL 60191       More Info: IMPORTANT ---------------------------------------------------- * EasyCheck-in services are fast, easy and convenient -- however, only 50 percent of employees, travel eligibles and companions who travel use them. * Using alternate methods of check-in enables customer service representatives to spend more time helping revenue customers who require extra assistance. * To improve the check-in process, new features will be added to EasyCheck-in kiosks at all 138 United and United Express airport locations beginning Dec. 7. The enhancements will enable: * travel eligibles to change their listing to a different flight on the same day of travel if they have not checked in for their original flight; * companions traveling alone to change their flight -- though not the airport -- to an earlier or later time on the same day of travel; and * other airline employees and United job applicants to check in for a United flight, but they will not be able to change their itinerary on the kiosks. (VRU) at 1-800-UAL-LIST (1-800-825- 5478), prior to calling Reservations to check space availability, book company business and list for pleasure travel. * Look under the Travel section of SkyNet on Dec. 15, for a demonstration of the new screens and functions that employees will see when they use an EasyCheck-in kiosk. * It's also important to share your file number or record locator with your travel eligibles and companions to access EasyCheck-in. * If the check-in process cannot be completed on the kiosk, a card will print out for you to take to a customer service representative, who will complete the check-in process for you. * In addition and as a reminder, non-revenue travelers should first utilize the automated Voice Recognition Unit BOARDING PRIORITY: --- In retup@yahoogroups. com, "bbeavis" <bbeavis@...> wrote: Question about Boarding Priority: I recall that if one is on a thru-flight with a stopover, the boarding priority at that stop is secondary to thru SA passengers, regardless of seniority. I plan to fly LAX/ORD/FRA. There is a plane change in ORD but the flight number remains the to FRA. Do I have priority departing ORD to those senior to me? Who do I contact to get this information? Thank you. Cynthia Simmons (ret LAXSW) Cinnysim@... ============ ========= ========= ==== Sorry for the lapse of almost a month, but I just remembered downloading this information from Skynet last January. ORDER OF ACCOMMODATION AND REMOVAL "Within each boarding priority group, the employee's/retiree' s date of employment establishes the order of accommodation for the following: employees, retirees with 25 or more years of continuous service, the employee's or retiree's travel eligibles/surviving spouse/surviving domestic partner/dependents/ parents of employees killed on duty or when traveling on a UA/UAX aircraft and employees'/retirees companions. Date of employment is the sole determinant of boarding priority within each boarding priority group. Retirees with less than 25 years of continuous service and surviving spouse/surviving domestic partners/dependents /parents of deceased employees are boarded based on years and months of service. Since date of employment establishes the order of accommodation, the Departure Management list will assign a pseudo employment date based on those years and months of service. "THIRTY-MINUTE- BEFORE-DEPARTURE " BOARDING AREA ARRIVAL RULE A NRSA or reduced-fare passenger who arrives at the boarding area less than 30 minutes before scheduled departure will be accommodated after those passengers who presented themselves more than scheduled departure, provided accommodations for all NRSA and reduced fare passengers are already comlete. This 30-minute policy shall not be contstrued to mean that an emloyee automaticlly forfeits his/her seniority rights if arriving at the domestic departure gate for check-in less than 30 minutes before to departure. It applies only if accommodation of other NRSA or reduced-fare passengers has already been completed. In the event of late check-in, the employee is to be placed on the Departure Management list using his/her company seniority. If the list is being worked, seniority will determine the order of accommodation on the remainder of the list. This does not affect those who have already been given a seat assignment. A NRSA or reduced-fare passenger who has already been accommodated on the flight in seniority order may not be removed to accommodate a late-arriving NRSA or reduced-fare passenger with higher seniority, regardless of reason for late arrival. THROUGH AND CONNECTING PASSENGERS Date of employment cannot be used to displace through NRSA passengers with lower seniority at an enroute stop. Any NRSA through passenger regardless of boarding priority has priority over local boarding NRSA passengers. However, through NRSA passengers can be removed for revenue passengers, operational reasons, or for an employee on Company business or personal emergency travel and are displaced in reverse order of date of employment and accommodated with local employees according to seniority on subsequent flights. Temporarily removed through-flight NRSA or reduced-fare employee passengers. regardless of date of employment, are accommodated first on the same flight."If it is necessary to remove a through NRSA passenger in order to accomodate a revenue passenger or employee on Company business or Emergency travel at a down-line stop, such passengers will be accommodated according on a subsequent flight.  A connecting NRSA or reduced fare employee passenger is boarded based on date of employment with local NRSA and reduced fare employees . This INCLUDES employee passengers who make a plane change even if the flight number stays the same. So what I learned from this is that all is not based on hire date if you retire with less than 25 years of service. For those retirees with less than 25 years of service, our "seniority" is frozen at our years of active service and as active employees hired after us attain more years of service they are accommodated on the Departure Management list ahead of us regardless of the reason for not completing 25 years of continuous service. Regards, Tom Couden

United plans new service to Africa United in May of next year plans to introduce its first service to the African continent with the launch of flights from its Washington Dulles hub to Accra, Ghana and Lagos, Nigeria. The carrier plans to offer once-daily, same plane service from Washington with a Boeing 767 to each city beginning 2 May. Additionally, United plans to extend its daily Washington-Kuwait flight operated with a Boeing 777 to include Bahrain beginning 18 April. From its Chicago hub United on 28 March aims to introduce new service to Brussels operated by 767s. The new flight will allow United's passengers to connect on flights offered by future fellow Star Alliance member Brussels Airlines, who is scheduled to officially join the group on 9 December. In a statement United explains the new routes are consistent with the 2010 capacity outlook United supplied at the release of its third quarter earnings and "reflect the continuing optimization of United's international network". For the full year 2010 United estimates mainline capacity to fall 0.5% to 1.5% while consolidated capacity could be down 0.5% to up 0.5%. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Dear James Morehead, You're about to receive the Star treatment. Continental is excited to announce that we're the newest member of the Star Alliance network, the largest airline alliance in the world. You can now enjoy a smooth journey on 25 member airlines with more than 19,000 daily flights serving some 1,071 airports in 171 countries across the globe— as well as earn and redeem OnePass® miles across the network. Better just got bigger. The Star Alliance lounge network is the largest in the world. Star Alliance Gold Elite members and customers traveling in First Class and Business Class on international itineraries on any Star Alliance member airline will have access to over 900 network lounge locations.   Sincerely, Mark Bergsrud Sr. Vice President, Marketing Programs and Distribution   United Interline Pleasure Travel Program adds KLM, LIAT, Hawaian and Swiss International Airlines UAL NewsReal September 10, 2009 Swiss International and Hawaiian Airlines Now Offering ZED Fares to United Employees and Retirees Effective September 10, United employees, travel eligibles and retirees will have access to Zonal Employee Discount (ZED) fares for pleasure travel in business and economy on Star Alliance partner Swiss International Air Lines. This agreement for ZED low fares with the Basel, Switzerland- based carrier -- which serves 90 destinations in 42 countries -- significantly expands the number of destinations available for pleasure travel. Swiss International is now our first 100 percent e-ticket partner, eliminating all paper ticketing methods with the carrier for both customers and non-revenue, space-available (NRSA) travelers. The partnership also allows for groups of nine or more customers -- including infants, groups and NRSA ID/ZED travelers -- to be ticketed electronically across any United/Swiss International itineraries. We also recently launched a ZED medium-fare agreement for pleasure travel in business and economy with Hawaiian Airlines, which serves destinations within the Hawaiian Islands as well as to the Western United States and the South Pacific. Over the past year, our pleasure travel program for employees has more than doubled in size. ZED pricing is designed to simplify and significantly reduce the cost of NRSA interline pleasure travel. ZED fares are offered through an interline fare program used by many carriers worldwide for space-available travel, replacing industry discount (ID) 90/95 fares for interline travel on specific carriers. For more information about all elements of United's travel privilege program, including new and existing agreements with other worldwide carriers, visit the Interline Travel Privilege page in SkyNet's Travel Section and click Individual Carrier Agreements. ============ KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and LIAT are being added to the portfolio of airlines available for employee interline pleasure travel privileges. Medium Zonal Employee Discount (ZED) fares for KLM take effect on July 1 for all employees while medium ZED fares for LIAT took effect June 22. KLM serves cities across the United States as well as destinations in Canada, Africa, Asia, Europe, Mexico, Latin America, Middle East and the Caribbean. With hubs in Antigua, Barbados and Trinidad, LIAT offers service to 21 destinations within the Caribbean. Program Adds Delta and Jet Airways ------------ --------- --------- --------- Delta Air Lines and Jet Airways are being added to the portfolio of airlines available for employee interline pleasure travel privileges. Medium Zonal Employee Discount (ZED) fares for Delta took effect on October 27 for all employees while ZED fares for Jet Airways take effect November 1. Jet Airways offers service to a number of destinations within India and beyond, including New York, San Francisco, Toronto, Brussels, London (Heathrow), Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai, Kuala Lumpur, Colombo, Bangkok, Katmandu, Dhaka, Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Doha, Abu Dhabi and Dubai. For more information on United's employee interline travel privilege program, visit the interline travel page in SkyNet's travel section.   United Announces New ZED Agreement with Qantas Posted July 7, 2008 United employees and retirees can now take advantage of expanded interline travel privileges with Qantas. Qantas is Australia's largest airline, operating throughout Australia, New Zealand, Asia, North and South America and Europe. Our new ZED agreement also includes travel on Qantas' subsidiary Jetstar. For more information about the new and existing fare agreements between United and other worldwide carriers, visit SkyNet's Travel section and link to Interline Travel Privilege, Individual Carrier Agreements. Carrier eligibility requirements and restrictions are updated regularly. Note: It's helpful for employees to purchase tickets for interline space-available travel as far in advance as possible. Also, be sure to review each airline's policies regarding dress code, minimum check-in time and baggage limits before traveling. Contact: Karen Maxwell - HDQPR - Unitel 997-8629 ============ =======   More Zed Agreements: Beginning Aug. 27, United employees and retirees can take advantage of expanded interline travel privileges with US Airways and with Air Canada, Program. Effective 7/31/2007 Check below ============ ==== Zonal Employee Discount (ZED) Fares Program Overview http://tinyurl. com/5gaeps Zonal Employee Discount (ZED) is an interline fare program used by many carriers worldwide for space-available travel. The program applies when two carriers each agree to offer ZED fares to the other's employees. ZED fares replace industry discount ID90/95 fares for interline travel on specific carriers. These fares simplify and significantly reduce pricing for non-revenue space-available interline pleasure travel. The ZED program fares do not affect eligibility for interline travel. This program only addresses the fare paid, once eligibility is determined. In addition, ZED tickets are purchased and refunded in exactly the same manner as interline tickets are currently handled. ZED-eligible Carriers United currently has ZED agreements with the following carriers. Other airlines will be added to the program in the future. Aer Lingus Air Canada Air Jamaica All Nippon American Asiana BMI Cirrus Frontier ERA Aviation Great Lakes Kuwait LOT Lufthansa Pluna Qatar Qantas SAS US Airways Virgin Atlantic   Purchasing ZED Tickets: Eligible employees and retirees can purchase ZED tickets and request refunds the same way they currently do for ID90/95s, and current interline policies remain the same. Please see Obtaining Interline Tickets page for details. ZED tickets are valid for three months from date of issue. ZED Pricing ZED pricing is based on the mileage between a point-to-point origin and destination, rather than a percentage of the market fare. ZED fares also offer a larger discount compared to ID fares because surcharges on interline pleasure travel are eliminated, except for government-mandated fees. For example, the ZED fare for travel from New York to Frankfurt is $59.90 compared to the current ID90 fare of $341.40 – that's an 82% savings. Fares for children under the age of 12 are 67% of the adult ZED fare. Infants under the age of 2, not occupying a seat, pay no fare and will travel with a no fare ZED ticket. Below are the complete ZED Fare Zone Mileage Charts for both Economy and Business Class space available interline travel. As with current Industry Discount (ID) fares, the fare each eligible traveler qualifies for depends on the individual agreement United has with the other carrier. Each eligible traveler qualifies for either a Low, Medium or High fare within each mileage zone. Eligibility charts are available on the Individual Carrier Agreement page on SkyNet... Mileage is calculated using Ticketed Point Mileage (TPM). SkyNet users can calculate the base fare using the ZED Fares Calculator found in the Travel Tools section... Fares are per segment, one-way and not inclusive of taxes. To calculate the applicable base fare: * determine the applicable Fare Zone based on the segment mileage, * go to the Individual Carrier Agreement of the operating carrier to see which ZED Fare Level applies (Low, Medium, High) for your eligibility, * refer to the chart (below) for the applicable class of service, and the applicable Zone row and Fare Level column. Example: An employee is traveling from Chicago to St. Maarten, via Miami, in Economy class on American Airlines. The ZED medium fare level applies for United employees flying on American Airlines. Segment 1: Chicago to Miami Miles – 1190, equates to Zone 3 Base fare is US$36 Segment 2: Miami to St. Maarten Miles – 1223, equates to Zone 3 Base fare is US$36 Total Base Fare (before taxes) for Chicago – St. Maarten US$72 Applicable taxes will vary depending on itinerary. Zone Mileage Chart - Economy Class ZED Fares (USD) Rate change effective October 1, 2007 (chart not shown here; go to the website) Other requirements while traveling on ZEDtickets: * Employees/retirees and their eligibles traveling under the terms of our interline agreements must present proper identification upon check-in whenever requested by the other airlines. Official proof of identity shall bear the photograph and signature of the individual. Employees must carry their company ID card. * Employees/retirees must ensure that their appearance and behavior, and those of their eligibles, are in line with the Transporting Airline's policy. Employees/retirees/ eligibles are expected to contact the other carrier for their policies. * Employees/retirees/ eligibles are expected to hold all pertinent travel documents such as passport, visa and health certificates required by the country of destination and points en route, in case offloading should become necessary. * Children under 16 years of age must be accompanied by an adult holding a similar discount ticket. ============ ========= == ZED Questions & Answers What is ZED? ZED stands for Zonal Employee Discount and offers United employees and eligible travelers reduced-rate interlinepleasure travel fares. ZED fares are calculated based on mileage between the point-to-point origin and destination, rather than a percentage of a market fare, which is how Industry Discount (ID) fares are calculated. ZED fare  are more affordable than Industry Discount (ID) fares in many markets and offer a better value in part because surcharges for ZED fares are eliminated, except for government-mandated fees and taxes. For details on how to determine ZED fare levels, refer to the ZED fare charts above, or visit the Apollo profile S*UPE/INTERLINE- ZED. Since agreements vary among carriers, always check the Individual Carrier Agreement page on SkyNet or each carrier's Apollo profile S*UPE/INTERLINE- XYXY (where XY is the carrier's two-letter code) for updated information on which fares apply to you and your eligible travelers.Does implementing this program cost the company money? Offering ZED fares on other airlines enhances employee travel benefits at no incremental cost to the company, and in fact, will make the interline program more efficient to manage in the long run. Does this affect our interline travel policies? No. All of United's policies related to interline travel remain the same, including the ticketing process and eligibility. ZED tickets will be purchased and refunded in the same way that Industry Discount (ID) tickets currently are handled. For specific details on each carrier's interline travel agreements, see SkyNet or Apollo. Are ZED tickets transferable to other airlines that accept ZED? ZED tickets are transferable to other carriers with whom United has ZED agreements—currently those included in the ZED-eligible carriers chart listed above. However, participating ZED carriers will only accept tickets at or above the rate specified in our agreement with them. For example, American will only accept Medium or higher priced tickets for United employee travel, so for a ticket to be valid on both American and Lufthansa, it would have to be issued at the Medium price level. When will other carriers be added to the program? We now have industry-standard pricing mechanisms in place for ZED fares, which will facilitate the implementation of new agreements with additional airlines. We are continuing to work with a number of carriers to implement ZED agreements, and will announce new carriers as soon as we have contracts and fares in place. We are focusing our efforts on implementing ZED agreements with carriers that our employees currently use most often for Industry Discount (ID) travel. Why does it take so long to add new carriers? United uses an automated system to issue non-revenue tickets. To support this automation, United requires filed fares. Filing fares is the procedure of loading a carrier's fares into the system to be made available for sale. Each carrier is responsible for maintaining their own fare rules and granting access to those fare levels based on individual bilateral agreements. We are dependent on the other carriers to complete their filings for us. This can take time due to the detailed nature of the work. However, we are continuously working with the other carriers to move the process along as quickly as possible. Why does it seem to take longer to implement new ZED agreements in 2008? The Industry is trying to meet the IATA 100% Interline E-ticket requirements due to be completed by early summer. Many other carriers consolidate all interline-related functions into one organization and, given the 2008 priority, have redirected their resources to meet this priority. Although some work continues toward additional ZED agreements throughout this process, we expect carriers to fully recommit to completing ZED implementation later this year. How come we do not have ZED agreements with all ZED qualifying Star Alliance Partner Airlines? Having ZED travel privileges with each eligible Star Partner is one of our top priorities. However, due to the fare filing requirements and their own legal requirements and internal policies, not all carriers are able to implement a ZED agreement as quickly as we would like them to. For new partners, most of their resources are committed to completing items necessary for joining Star. In most cases, only after those items are completed can they pursue interline pleasure travel agreements. Please note, not all Star Partners are ZED members due to different legal reasons and OA internal policies. Will we eventually have ZED fares with all airlines? To implement ZED fares with a particular airline, it must be a member of the industry ZED group. While many airlines participate in ZED, there are notable exceptions, like Singapore Airlines. For exceptions, we plan to maintain our current Industry Discount (ID) fare agreements. How much will ZED fares cost, and how do they compare to ID fares? ZED fares are based on mileage between the point-to-point origin and destination rather than a percentage of the market fare. Also, ZED pricing eliminates surcharges on interline pleasure travel, except for government-mandated fees. ZED fares significantly less than the industry discount fares. For example: to fly Economy between Munich and Chicago, the ID95 fare, including taxes is $387.23. The ZED fare on Lufthansa is $109.23 – a 72% savings. What can employees do to help implement ZED agreements? As we continuously assess our implementation priorities, we rely on feedback from our employees regarding the carriers of specific interest to them. To better help us understand which carriers are of greatest importance to employees, we ask that you please submit requests by e-mail to InterlinePassBureau @united.com. This will ensure that all requests receive proper attention. SouthWest Airlines Retirees have to call the United retiree center and get a letter which authorizes you , your wife and any dependants to receive SWA passes. I believe that SWA will only accept that letter for a finite period of time. You take that letter to a SWA ticket counter and they will write you a ticket between A and B regardless of how many stops or plane changes are involved. Most agents require you to surrender the letter but I have made copies of the letter which have been accepted. I have not done this since I reached senior citizen status because SWA's senior rates are so cheap that it is not worth fooling with space available travel. On top of that they give you a free ticket for every ten or so tickets you buy. Normally SWA requires that you check in for each flight with proof of age. But once you do that ask the agent to enter your name into the computer as a senior. From then on you can get your senior boarding pass online AND it is positive space. Jim Jim is right about the cheap senior rates. If you need to fly on short notice the standby can work if you check loads. The letter is good for 1 year and you go to the ticket counter and buy the ticket when you are ready to fly. SB Tickets are basically non refundable.  Call the retiree service center and they will mail you a letter (ask for several if you plan to travel more than once during the year as they will keep the letter). First check flight schedules on the SW web site and pick your flights. If they are still selling tickets at reduced rates the flight is likely not full. Then call emp. list - 866-792-7529 and you can talk to the computer to check loads (looks good bad, etc) and list with the flight numbers you have picked from the web site. The handy thing is if you are bumped somewhere on another airline and have a SW letter you can go to the SW counter and buy a ticket. Cost is about $30 each way to go most places. BTW cash or check - no credit cards. good luck. Eric Malm

EasyCheck-in Online Now Available Worldwide ------------ --------- --------- --------- Here are some of your comment concerning the DM listing @ the gate and more. Dale T Jim cites some of the rules for NRSA listing. Please note that multiple listings for the same city destination on the same day is not permitted. NRSA listings must be cancelled if you or your traveler will not be able to travel on the listed flight for any reason. >>> This rule simply does not work. And there is no reason for it today. Long ago, we were lead to believe United actually made plans based upon NRSA listings -- more meals and provisions would be boarded, we were told. We all know that never happens today. Meals are non-existent on domestic flights for the most part these days, and nothing special is done just because there is an NRSA listing for a flight. Back when I had Apollo and VB2000 software working, for commuting to work, I would always list for my primary and two back up (follow-on) flights on United. Apollo didn't care. Those backup listings came in handy many times when I did not get on the first flight. If you DON'T list for a 2nd flight, I can guarantee you will NOT be on the "DM" list, you will NOT have a "DM" card available for you in the kiosk (and how do you find one once you're past the TSA checkpoint anyway?) and no gate agent is going to take the time to process you (make a listing, and then spit out a DM card) in the gate area, much less the ticket counter, should you be able or willing to depart the secure area to go back down there! I have asked gate agents if they will 'roll' the DM list to the next flight and the answer since about 1999 has always been 'NO. I have no time for that, and who knows if these SA's still want to go or haven't already gone to other flights or other airlines?" Rolling a DM list to the next flight is NOT a priority with any CSR's today. You cannot count on it, you'd be hard pressed to FIND a CSR at a gate after a flight departs for more than a few seconds, and if you did, they'd be busy 'closing out' the flight, and the answer would be 'if we have time' which means 'no'. And, what about the situation (typical for flights to Hawaii) where there are two flights within 20 minutes to the same destination (if you're lucky, they put them at adjoining gates, but zone control could care less about 'dashing SA's') and you might be able to dash to the other flight if the first one fills up? There is NO TIME to call '800'UAL-LIST (or whatever it is) and fight with the computer when you say 'Omaha' and it says "I think you said Osaka?". And besides, its too late to list for that back-up flight at that time -- isn't there a 45 minute cut-off? You MUST list for multiple flights if you want to have any chance of getting to your intended destination. Its no 'skin off their back' if you do, nothing is done, it cost the airline nothing. They don't hold any seats for you, they sell them anyway, and if you do get on an earlier flight, you simply don't show up for the later listings, your name is NOT called because you don't show as a 'check-in' for the DM list (you've got a listing, but with no DM card in your hand, your name does NOT appear on the DM list for a chance at a boarding pass), the gate agent could care less about you anyway (even if you ARE on the DM list!), and your listing simply expires as the plane pushes back from the gate. No harm done. ** Comment from personal experiences: All above is true but if you need to re-arrange your itinerary the Customer Desks are quite helpful in re-listing you. Alternately, you whip out your laptop and re-list yourself then go to the Customer Counter and pull out a new DM card from the kiosks there. Have not had good luck with "1 800 UAL LIST"   ed. *   *   *   *   *   * Comments about Gate Screens The "screen" is at IAD too. It is helpful, it lists all standby and upgrades, regular passengers too. They are helpful. I worked in Res. but I don't understand why, if a gate agent sees a error in boarding priority they can't correct it. Maybe not in the system but manually. Sharlene The screen at the gate is for the day of departure. The fast air is if you have listed for a future flight and want to know how many standbys and how you rate in order of all those listed. It is a good tool. This is different than the day of departure screen.  I know fast air may now be too familiar to a lot of us but it is the system CS using in place of apollo Jo When in Chicago and soon in the four other Hubs, you can see a lighted board with the (first three letters/A.) name of the standby order, both revenue and NRSA. You will also see from time to time, counts of how many seats are still open plus other information; look around, these boards are off to the side of the gate podium. Remember the Gate Agent is KING so DO NOT hassle the Agent - you may have further to walk to the back seats. The Gate Agent is working to accommodate everyone in the best arrangement and following BP integrity. Robert The screen is not in all airports yet. It is great for taking the stress out of flying. The boards show how many seats are available and how many people are standing by. It does list everyone by name who is on the DM list. Revs and Nonrevs. It does not show what type of standby you are, but we all know that the revs are the first to get available seats. Only all the people on the list for standby. It does not show seniority for nonrevs. The only people who know the revs from the nonrevs plus their seniority is the gate agent. Hope this helps. Jodi Dale, the screen is available at "MAJOR" stations only as far as I know. In October at ORD our abbreviated name was on it and you could see exactly where you stand. It has names of both revenue standbys as well as the SA's. It does not tell you which is which. We did not see a similar screen in SEA but were told they were getting them. Jerry While helpful to let you know where you are on the list, it doesn't ( unless changes have been made recently) give you seniority etc. It also includes all other standbys - ie. BP 5's. So you don't know where you stand against other NRSA's. Hayden Dale, The screen seems to be at major terminals only. Maybe some day everywhere. It does list non-revs along with standbys and the order that you'll be called, however, there is no seniority dates tied to it. Thom Dale, Most of the airport gates have the screens, not all, generally the names are abbreviated and grouped even when you have a companion flying with you. Not only are the screens for NRSA's but also full paying SA's and others. If you check the screen and you know that you listed but don't see your name, I would approach the ticket counter and inquire. It's really a nice addition. Frank LAX and SFO also have the screens and it really helps, but it doesn't show seniority. Yes, everyone can see the screen............it hangs near the podium....it has all the standbys and upgrades on it............. I’ve seen these screens at IAD, ORD and SFO. They Post standby list of revenue and non-revenues at the gate. They are constantly updated. The list tells you where you are and when and if you have been assigned a seat. I’m sure most large stations have these screens. It is very helpful. PAT Hi Dale…. The screens that are at the gate areas give all sorts of info on them……one is the DM list which shows who is on the list waiting for an upgrade (REV) and the status of any possible upgrade seats. Also on the list is the list of passengers on standby (both rev and NRSA). The names are truncated so the entire name is not visible (I believe this is to save space and also addresses some privacy issues since anyone can see the screen—located prominently in the gate areas). The seniority list is NOT listed (or at least not on any of the flights that I took last fall in SFO ORD SEA) but the list IS in the order on the DM list (REV/NRPS standing by and BP6/ BP8 A/B/C and BP9 and BP10). So on this list one can see where they stand “relatively” but they type of standby and/or seniority dates are not shown. Bill "I believe at some airports, but probably not all there are screens now in the gate area that show the standby lists. I know it includes part of the name and I believe it may also contain the seniority." Dale, the "list" doesn't show the senority date but the list is in senority order. Bill Dale Fast Air (which is function key driven) is the program that UA transitioned to (from Apollo) in 1998. Only active CSRs with Agent Sine and while at work can access the DM List. They'll be able to see who's been boarded, and "No Show" or "Unticketed" revenue passengers. Julie Dale, Dulles also has the system referred to in this message that provides NRSA listings at each departure gate area. It does relieve a lot of anxiety knowing where you are in the boarding priority. Jerry Dale, I just flew out of JFK. There is info posted on a screen that shows those psgrs standing by for upgrades (full fare pax) and a standby list. Show first initial last name and where you stand on the "standby" list. No seniority is posted. It also shows how many seats remaining on that particular flt. Leslie Dale The display of the standby passengers at ORD and SFO is a big TV display hung from the ceiling. It shows all standby, BP-5, as well as NRSAs. The display shows the first three letters of the last name and the first initial. It also shows cleared passengers, the seats still open in each cabin and how to stow the roll-aboard bags. I am sure was created for the paying passengers wanting upgrades and standing by for the flights, but we also benefit. James The monitor at the gate in SFO shows the standbys but doesn't show seniority and doesn't even show if the standby is an employee or a full fare passenger who was bumped from a previous flight. Interestingly, my name was moving down the list while people were boarding! I have no idea why other names were popping up at the last minute. The "Screen" shows everyone who is standing by for the flight........those passengers for upgrades, passengers standing by for the flight from another flight, and NRSAs. What is the procedure? The screen states what each group is.....it works VERY well and it does take the stress out of standby because you know exactly where you are on the list. It has worked out very well for us and we travel alot. Mary The "screen" takes the place of what was called the podium backdrop where the CSR posted the flight number, destination and departure time. This "screen" contains all that information plus other programmed info such as weather at the detination, departure time, estimated tiome of arrival and the stand-by list. It is an audio visual screen It's purpose is to keep customers from standing in line to ask questions so answers to the most frequently asked questions are shown on the "screen" It is visible from most vantage points in the boarding area. Ray Let me add some info. I recently noticed while standing by that my name kept falling when others where being added. I have 50 years seniority which makes we wonder when that happens. This was a small UA X plane and when boarding, I was first boarded in first class section and those others where boarded in back. I believe the listing reflected other paying customers on standby and some NRSA that were standing by for space. It all worked out and I am very happy with the system now in place. It even shows passengers that are on buddy passes. I believe this is a very good addition to the stand by list process. Bob Is the DM list available viewing by the NRSA? That's a Yes or no question!!! You have to assume that the computer and the entries are correct and the seniority is figured out correctly and the priorities are right. The priorities differ and are human inputs because a retiree with 25+ years would have BP-6b priority domestically and BP-8 priority internationally. If one has a companion, that changes the priority. I think it downgrades to BP-8 A or B with a companion and a companion unaccompanied would become a BP8c if I recall. Retirees have a different form or Apollo I am told and I can only do the basic functions, but enough to do what it takes to list and check loads. Active people have a different part of Apollo. Some employees have an Apollo sign that is worldwide and others have it location specific. Computers are programmed that way. The other answer is that there is a privately purchased programmed that a friend of mine had when active that did not work as a retiree that put everybody into the proper order on a flight just like the company does. He said it didn't work after retirement when his Apollo changed. And as some pointed out, there are sign boards at the airport that are supposed to put the NRSAs of all types in a proper order and should be visible. If I thought I was in the wrong order, I would inquire. A full fare open ticket is a BP-2 and so they are ahead of us and anybody on standby should appear here. JIM   International online check-in now enables all of the following: * seat selection for customers and employees traveling non-revenue positive-space (NRPS) * Economy Plus upsell * premium cabin upsell * passenger information collection (e.g., passport number) for customers and employees * upgrade awards * flight changes * alternate flight selection during irregular operations * round-trip check-in if the return trip is within 24 hours for customers and employees * voluntary denied boarding * collection of service charges due * standby for alternate flights between the United States and Canada * group check-in * for employees, non-revenue space-available and non-revenue positive-space check-in * for employees and customers, the ability to advise number of bags that will be checked Some international airport authorities in locations where we fly will not accept an ECO boarding pass as a travel document for access through the security checkpoint. In those cases, ECO will still check in customers and employees and will direct them to reprint their boarding passes at the airport. In those cases, there is still a benefit to using ECO, including the ability to upgrade, purchase Economy Plus and pay service fees online, allowing more time at the airport to clear security. ------------ --------- --------- --------- --------- -- http://www.virginbl ue.com.au/ AboutUs/Media/ NewsandPressRele ases/P_003795. htm V AUSTRALIA FROM THE HARBOUR TO HOLLYWOOD - SYD-LAX, OUR LAUNCH ROUTE! The Virgin Blue Group introduces V Australia, its new premium three class international airline Sydney-Los Angeles daily to be V Australia Airlines launch route….more to come! V Australia to launch flights from 15 December 2008 - $999* return economy fares on sale at www.vaustralia. com.au or via www.virginblue. com.au SYDNEY announced as V Australia’s operational base DOT Proposes United Airlines for Los Angeles-Mexico Flights The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today proposed to allow United Air Lines to begin new flights between Los Angeles and San Jose del Cabo, Mexico. The service was made available when Frontier Airlines notified the Department that it would cease flying that route after April 13. Frontier was one of three U.S. carriers, along with American Airlines and Alaska Airlines, serving the market. Under the U.S.-Mexico aviation agreement, three U.S. airlines may fly between Los Angeles and San Jose del Cabo. In addition to United, Delta Air Lines and Virgin America applied for the right to serve the route. In its show-cause order, the Department tentatively found that United's proposal would provide the best service to air travelers. The Department noted that while all the applicants proposed to operate a single daily year-round flight, only United proposed to operate two daily flights during the heavily traveled summer months. The Department noted that United's proposal also would provide valuable connecting benefits that could promote sustained competition and service on the route. United would be required to begin service 90 days following a final decision. If made final, United's authority will be effective for two years. Delta was tentatively selected as backup carrier in case United is either unable to begin service or, at a minimum, sustain the service it proposed. Objections to the Department's order are due in seven days, with answers to objections from interested parties due five days afterward. ---------------------------------------------------- To the group: Through the Corporate headquarters Morehead Travel ( my house) of www.moreheadtravel. com ,I met a good guy with Carnival Cruise lines. Carnival has an interline department that a lot of people are not aware of. My contact is a guy named Brian Jacoby and he can be reached at : Brian Jacoby 1-800-819-3902 ext.85772 Email: bjacoby@carnivalpvp .com He is a good guy (tell him I referred you). If you get on his mailing list, it is different than the MAIN Carnival Mailing list for past guests, etc. He comes up with specials from time to time. Obviously he can discount cruises and ALWAYS can beat the WEBSITE which is good in itself. Unless a cruise if FULL, He has ALWAYS discounted the cruise between 10% and 50%. But the IMPORTANT thing you asked about was his ability to NOT charge a single supplement for those people going solo. I have no exact numbers (please don't hold me to this) but when a cruise is only at the 75%-95% range which is most common when schools are in session, some stay-home holidays, and in hurricane season in the Caribbean, it is considered "fairly light". So the sales people have the ability to "deal". My last two cruises were $99 for 4 days and $350 for 7. One was MIA and the other FLL. He has flexibility to NOT charge a single supplement EXTRA and the price for one is the price for the cabin! If I am going to take someone with me to my room, I want to choose who it is!!!!! You can play with Carnival's website and plan to book the cruise and see the list price and then enter your numbers like ONE (1). You will see instantly if the 1 price is much different than the TWO (2) price divided by 2. Often there IS a substantial ( 50% ish) charge for the single supplement ONLINE. Then call Brian and ask him what he can do when you have a certain ship/cruise/ date in mind. You often get a day or so to think it over with no guarantees. I don't know if you know that airlines and cruise lines can and do change their fares some 4 times per day! You have to act and be ready to go if you want the good deals. Both cruises in the last 6 months have been set up with less than 30 days notice. On one, I had 12 hours to make a commitment and the other about 48 hours. In my own situation, I can't plan more than 30 days out and so this works for me. I know that they want people to fill up cruises,because they know that you will spend money on pictures, drinks, and shore excursions so they want a warm body in every cabin. The staff needs people to tip very honestly and your goal is to have a good time, be with your friends, or meet somebody. It would be fun to put something together for people interested. The RUPA cruises have been good in the past and they are more high (er) end. I was on the first 5 or so and hope to go again. As a retiree, you can only reserve one cabin, I recall. If someone is active, I think they can do three at the price that you can negotiate. But active or retired, Carnival's interline department will work with you. Brian has been good for me. I just need to win the lottery. Another point is South Florida is the hub for a lot of cruises and this time of year is the unpredictable hurricane season (none yet) and that's why some people don't want to take cruise because sometimes it is unpredictable. I doubt you will get a discount on a cruise at peak season with anyone. Those people that have flexibility can do well and Brian is the guy who can make sure no Single supplement is charged. I'm 2 for 2 and he keeps begging me to go more often. I told him about the pension and he can't fix that either <bfg>! JIM MOREHEAD From: JIM MOREHEAD We had a chat about The New Jet Blue Ticketing Procedure some two weeks ago. I am back from the sojourn to San Juan from Fort Lauderdale on a new route flown by Jet Blue. When American pulled out of FLL-SJU, Spirit increased Service and Jet Blue Added Service on December 18th. The each run about three flights per day in mid cabin airplanes. AA had one Big Airbus and two 757s. The United benefits Center Provides letters to be Used for SWA, Spirit, and Jet Blue. (888 825 0188). Southwest will now take a letter within a year. Spirit and Jet Blue supposedly want letters within 90 days and that's what Apollo says. I rode down on Jet Blue and the confusion on Apollo with what they want is now answered. Jet Blue is the only carrier that wants a letter. You take it to THEIR ticket Counter. In the meantime when you make the listing the RES agent computes the ZED price and in my case it was $36 times 2 or $72. They take cash or a credit card. They give you a small piece of paper like you get in a grocery store for a receipt. I just kept it handy in the passport because it is easy to lose. Jet Blue's Airplanes were clean and they have satellite TV and many shows. On my flights there were more stewards than females. I like 'em all and it was the airplane ride I wanted <bg>. In fact it was 100% guys back and forth. The airplane was about half full each way and not only on time, but 10-15 minutes early on departure and arrival. They just seemed like they have their act together. They give free drinks..... Wow. They give free snacks... Unhealthy chips, nuts, but free! I recall they are the ones with the $7/blankets and pillows. I am not sure if that is a rent or buy! But overall, if you want to get to San Juan, I highly recommend Jet Blue and I wish them success in their new route. They start some other new routes next June in Florida, so they must know something others don't as starting a route in the off season is rarely done. More power to 'em in this economy. For those that don't know, a lot of cruises leave from SJU and it is $16 cab ride from Airport to dock. Going over I shared with others. Coming back, the cab dispatcher was very rude about WE DON'T SHARE. Make your arrangements before you get to the front of the line. I toyed with the idea of coming back on Spirit as they had an early departure from SJU. JB says they would have let me go anywhere within a year with my money, but the answer didn't seem like they were sure, so I waited it out. Spirit would have done it for about the same price as they are a flat $25 plus tax, except they charge for ALL checked bags where JB gives you the first one free and you can carry one on. Spirit allows a carry on, of course. So that is what the recent change on Jet Blue is about. The are the only Letter taking ZED carrier and RES computes the price and their ticket counter issues. Not a bad way to go, but I know no other carrier offering offline benefits in this combination. SEE ALSO ITEMS BELOW. 1. to order reduced fare tickets on other airlines that United has reciprocal agreements you first need to find out what airline flies between the destinations and then call UAL at 888-874-1581 . This info is hidden somewhere on skynet. If you do not need the ticket in the next day or two they will take your credit card info and send you the tickets. If you need to go now then ask to have a locator number put into the system and pick up your ticket at a United passenger agent served airport. 2. to get a letter of introduction to use for reduced hotel rates, cruise and for Spirit, Southwest and Jet Blue call: UAL benefits at: 888 825-0188 and push the selection for the agent. Tell them your file number and request letter naming you and your spouse. They will send 5 copies to your address that is stored. You can ask to have them sent to another address that you will then give them. 3. We ride Continental back and forth to Florida and pick up tickets from UAL and list ourselves with CAL as non rev. You can check their normal passenger website to check seats avail on individual flights to give you a look. CAL # for non rev is: 866 359-3727 then select 1 and then 4. (EWR-FLL cost is about 37.00/person/ each way) Check First Paragraph Above.  4. Jet Blue and Spirit: we call and list ourselves first. Then we show up to the ticket counter passenger agent with our letter of introduction (must be dated within 90 days of the flight) and pay for the non rev fare which is reasonable. (cost is about 34.00/person/ each way) Everyone treats us better than we get treated on United. Good luck.