Last Day to Upgrade for Free with Miles on US Airways as an Elite

Jeanne Marie Hoffman April 22, 2014 US Airways 1 Comment

Today is the last day to upgrade your trips with miles as a US Airways Elite for free. Starting tomorrow, all elites will be required to pay the hefty co-pay.

I mentioned, I’m bummed out by this because I mostly used it to upgrade people as a surprise, and to confirm seats in first when traveling with a companion.

I think it is bad business to take this benefit away from Chairmen at the very least. I’ve confirmed myself and Keri into first on flights we’d probably clear, but I just wanted to make sure. I essentially gave them back 20,000 miles for peace of mind.

A reminder that you can upgrade future flights–so if you were thinking about it, do it now!

US Airway’s co-pay for upgrading with miles is especially harsh:

A flight from PHL – SFO would cost $600 to upgrade me and Keri—as opposed to $0 in the past. Oh, and 40,000 miles of course.

Compare this to American’s award chart:

More miles, but much less in the way of copay.

I loved that benefit on US Airways. The chart was simple and fair for distance based awards (especially since the first class experience is so different depending on the length of the flight).

But the co-pays are just crazy! I might pay $75 per person to upgrade me and Keri to Cali. I’m not laying out $150.