United extends MileagePlus

Airline loyalty programmes were thrown a new challenge last week after United announced it was removing expiration dates from its MileagePlus scheme, giving members permission to access and use their awards years in the future.

The decision, certain to spark reaction from rivals, replaces a system where a holder of award miles typically has 18 months to spend them without the carrier taking them away, although the expiration date could be extended by further activity on the account such as another flight.

MileagePlus president Luc Bondar said: "We want to demonstrate to our members that we are committing to them for the long haul and that giving passengers a lifetime to use miles is an exceptionally meaningful benefit."

"Our MileagePlus programme provides more ways to earn and use miles than any other US airline. More customers used miles to book award trips in 2018 than in any year before, and we expect even more will now use them in the years to come."

United has also unveiled an expanded international schedule from its hubs in Chicago, Denver, New York/Newark and San Francisco, with new services to Nice, Palermo and Curaçao and extra flights to Amsterdam, London, Frankfurt and Zurich.

www.united.com

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