ogshelly From United States of America, joined Feb 2005, 26 posts, RR: 0 Posted (6 months 2 weeks 1 day 11 hours ago) and read 1156 times:
The flight time IAH-VSA or IAH-CME is around 2:30 hrs, if we calculate 500 MPH, milage traveled is 1,250 miles. We are credited only 800 miles though (sometimes more, depending upon the Elite status). The straight line distance between IAH and VSA is 830 miles, and 799 to CME. Why if the Embraer 145, not certified to fly above the sea that force the A/C to follow the Gulf of Mexico's coastline, makes us flight one extra hour, whereas we are not credited those extra 500 miles? From IAH, a 737-300 can make the trip in just 1:30 hrs. Thanks in advance for your comments!
Cubsrule From United States of America, joined May 2004, 21242 posts, RR: 19 Reply 1, posted (6 months 2 weeks 1 day 11 hours ago) and read 1156 times:
Quoting ogshelly (Thread starter): The flight time IAH-VSA or IAH-CME is around 2:30 hrs, if we calculate 500 MPH, milage traveled is 1,250 miles.
No flight that length averages 500 miles per hour.
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Roseflyer From United States of America, joined Feb 2004, 8740 posts, RR: 52 Reply 3, posted (6 months 2 weeks 1 day 11 hours ago) and read 1156 times:
United gives you the miles of the direct route between two cities. You might be really mad to find out that if you fly a one-stop route with the same flight number, you get the miles for a nonstop flight between the origin and destination. For example, if you book SEA-IAD-FRA you'd expect 6386 miles (SEA-IAD is 2306 and IAD-FRA is 4080), however UA only gives you the nonstop distance of 5108 miles.
Quoting ogshelly (Thread starter): Why if the Embraer 145, not certified to fly above the sea that force the A/C to follow the Gulf of Mexico's coastline, makes us flight one extra hour, whereas we are not credited those extra 500 miles? From IAH, a 737-300 can make the trip in just 1:30 hrs.
The E145 is not overwater equipped. There aren't life jackets and rafts, which means it has to stay within a specific distance of land. A 737 that is overwater equipped can fly more direct. This is UA and their contract carrier saving money by not equipping their airplanes for overwater operations. In this case you fly about 250 more miles.
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Roseflyer From United States of America, joined Feb 2004, 8740 posts, RR: 52 Reply 4, posted (6 months 2 weeks 1 day 11 hours ago) and read 1156 times:
PHLapproach From Philippines, joined Mar 2004, 1181 posts, RR: 22 Reply 6, posted (6 months 2 weeks 1 day 9 hours ago) and read 1156 times:
As RoseFlyer pointed out if has to due to overwater equipment onboard the aircraft or rather lack of. Our aircraft follow the '50 mile rule'. We can never be from a suitable piece of land by more than 50 miles. Sometimes on the WOLDE arrival from the E/SE side of IAH coming over the MSY area. Houston Center controllers may try to take our flights 70 miles or so off the coast due to thunderstorms on the coast near the Gavleston area and down to Corpus and then up. So it's a concern in that area and across that stretch of Gulf you mentioned heading to any airport we serve south of VER on the coast.
neveragain From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 7, posted (6 months 2 weeks 1 day 8 hours ago) and read 1156 times:
Quoting ogshelly (Thread starter): Why if the Embraer 145, not certified to fly above the sea that force the A/C to follow the Gulf of Mexico's coastline, makes us flight one extra hour, whereas we are not credited those extra 500 miles?
Read the MileagePlus terms and conditions (or the terms and conditions of any mileage program).
What you're really arguing for (although you may not realize it) is that mileage credited to your account should be the actual miles flown, which will vary every day for every route for every flight. Are you suggesting that it makes financial sense (or, probably a bigger hurdle, administrative sense) to implement such a policy?
If you are, God help the FT crowd, as they'll waste a lot of time trying to be credited 4 miles per their GPS versus what MP credits them.
akelley728 From United States of America, joined Dec 1999, 2101 posts, RR: 6 Reply 8, posted (6 months 2 weeks 1 day 8 hours ago) and read 1158 times:
You realize that every airline does this, not just United? Mileage credited is a straight line between the two points, or as the saying goes, the distance "as the bird flys".
neveragain From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 10, posted (6 months 2 weeks 1 day 7 hours ago) and read 1156 times:
Quoting usxguy (Reply 9): I have flown JNU-ANC-ORD and earned the miles and bonus points for those actual legs. Same with JNU-SEA-FLL, JNU-SEA-LAX-ATL-SJU, etc.
(I think) the OP's point is that if the flight route diverges substantially from the great circle route than one should receive that benefit in additional miles. I doubt AS does this, as you seem to claim here. (And why would they, for the reasons I tried to explain above?)
My explanation for why OP would care about this:
(1) He has a philosophical disagreement with standard FFP terms and conditions
(2) He doesn't like flying on ERJs and paying really high fares (I don't blame him)
(3) He is on some threshold of EQMs and has realized, "Aw shucks, if only UA gave me miles for the inefficient routing they have to fly because of the fleet decisions they have made on the route"
RamblinMan From United States of America, joined Oct 2010, 1081 posts, RR: 1 Reply 11, posted (6 months 2 weeks 15 hours ago) and read 1156 times:
Once while flying BNA-ORD we took the scenic route and overflew TUL and OMA in order to avoid a storm. By your logic I should have gotten something like 1200 miles for that flight.
News Flash: You NEVER fly only the straight-line distance between two points.
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