Related Posts
Travel question - has anyone been to Riga?
More Posts
Freakin @NonEquityPartner on IG 😂
Would kill for a day like this
Additional Posts in Consulting
Anyone in eyp restructuring willing to refer?
I just want to say this, “Hakuna Matata”
Recruiters are Darwin’s missing link
Taking it to the next level. 🎂😅
New to Fishbowl?
unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.
Move to atlanta and go delta.
United has larger presence and historically better award availability (aka their miles are worth more) though WSJ just did an article this week that AA is stepping up their game. Star Alliance is much better than OneWorld. Tough choice but you live at a hub so it will make it easy whichever way you go. Disclosure I am a United Premier 1K and have been for years.
OP, based out of Chicago as well. Was American for a long time but switched over to United, would recommend ypu go with UA.
They're both pretty comparable on most aspects - the differentiator for me is from an awards redemption perspective. Since AA overhauled their award availability, United has been far superior in this aspect
I’d say they’re both strong in Chicago, but I would give the edge to AA coz terminal 3 is sooo much better managed than the other ones.
Forgot...a main reason I’m with UAL is Economy Plus seats with extra leg room are free for elites on all flights at booking and if your 6-2 and do transcons all the time it makes a big difference. Delta sucks in that regard, I don’t know what AA offers.
SWA
Either - hub city for both. Maybe survey coworkers in locations they go to most often and pick based on that.
I’m with AA but it’s because I was based in a different city before and now too many miles to switch.
Personally I think United is a little better plane wise and have more direct flights to Europe, but it’s purely anecdotal.
This really will depend more on your client location and what the flight schedule looks like for each airline to your destination. I’d also lean United for Econ Plus and point value, but very negligible
United
K1, just an FYI - AA is gaming surveys such as the one discussed in the WSJ article. They've opened up a great deal of cheaper award availability on routes, but only with multiple connections - pretty infuriating to those of us who have flown with them for a long time, if the only availability you're going to show has 2 connections for many routes
Yes, SWA is worth a look as well with MDW hub. Depends on if you live closer to MDW or ORD. No good leg room, no upgrades, not international vacations for free (unless you only want to go to limited places in the Caribbean). But super flexible policies and best points + Companion Pass which is can be super valuable. Personally I don’t like the SWA crowd however. It’s more like Walmart vs. Target shoppers. (Can’t wait to get attacked for that)
American
Agree. SWA is my backup carrier and I’m A List there. Flights at good times sell out the business select tickets so status is irrelevant. But my biggest irritation is their point to point flying model means sometimes your plane is half full of people when you board and you won’t get a good seat even if you are biz select. Plus they sell no food which is irritating because sometimes I don’t have time to grab dinner and other pax bring on stinky burritos and Kung pao chicken
I have status on both UA network is about 15% bigger, but for any given destination either one might be much stronger. So if you know where you will go, use that to decide. A few other pints: Both have extra legroom economy seats, but UA planes generally have more rows of it. AA staff is generally nicer than UA, but not by a huge margin. AA clubs are *much* nicer than UA if you have access.
K1, totally agree on all points expect for the leg room. If you have any status you can almost always score front row (which has more leg room than FC on other carriers) or an exit row.
P1, if you're not A-list Preferred usually the only thing left in the front row are middle seats, plus you can't keep your laptop bag with you in that front row.
Flying SWA right now as an A-List though and it's a good experience, if you don't mind the free seating and that the demographics tend to include less frequent travellers and more kids/babies
I fly out of ORD every week and stick to United. Recently, I’ve been on a client where AA was a better option from a convenience stand point. Those few weeks on AA have taken me back to UA. AAs boarding process is terrible, and the service seems worse. UA planes are (in my experience), cleaner, fresher and the economy plus option is great if you have status
Southwest is awful I flew it for a year and just left for United. Much better experience and they matched my status
P3, United matched southwest status? What were you and what did you get?
This is gold. Many thanks all. Safe flight back everyone