CHICAGO, Jan. 10, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Today, United Airlines is introducing the relaunch of the United MileagePlus X app, which offers United MileagePlus® members a unique opportunity to earn award miles for everyday purchases. The app has been refreshed to integrate additional programs to make it even easier for members to accumulate miles. Additionally, the app features the launch of United Visa Rewards with offers from merchants like Sam’s Club®, Wayfair®, and StubHub^TM, offering United^SM Chase Visa Cardmembers even more ways to earn miles.

App enhancements

• MileagePlus Dining^SM: The existing MileagePlus Dining program has been integrated into the MileagePlus X app. With seamless enrollment and showcasing nearby restaurants, members’ ability to choose where to dine and earn miles is now in the palm of their hand.
• MileagePlus Shopping: The longstanding shopping program is now available through the MileagePlus X app, and offers members the ability to shop and earn miles on the go at more than 900 retailers.
• United Visa Rewards: This new program is powered by Visa Commerce Network, which allows enrolled individuals to receive valuable offers within MileagePlus X thanks to the power of the Visa payments network. United Visa Rewards is available exclusively to United Chase Visa Cardmembers in the U.S. who are now able to enroll their eligible card into the program via the app. From there, they can view active enhanced mileage earning offers from participating merchants. Once program participants make a qualifying purchase with a participating merchant, they will receive a near real-time reward notification within the app. As a special launch offer, from now until March 31, 2019, United Chase Visa Cardmembers can earn 1,000 bonus award miles by simply enrolling their eligible credit card for the first time into the program.¹

“We are excited to launch the new MileagePlus X app, which allows MileagePlus members to earn and redeem award miles in real time for their everyday purchases at hundreds of merchants across the U.S, matching the increased benefits our United^SM Explorer Cardmembers received with the new credit card last summer,” said Luc Bondar, president of MileagePlus Holdings and vice president of loyalty at United Airlines. “As mobile payments become more commonplace, it was a natural tie for United to update the features, enable members to make purchases and earn and use miles on the go.”

“Visa and United have been working together for over 20 years,” said Terry Angelos, SVP, loyalty offers, Visa. “As digitally-savvy individuals continue to help shape the future of digital commerce, Visa continues to work with United and Chase to bring new ways to reward consumers for their loyalty. At the same time, participating merchants will benefit from Visa Commerce Network’s ability to deliver custom solutions that will help increase their customer base and loyalty, ultimately helping them continue to grow their business.”

Through the MileagePlus X app, members can purchase eGift Cards from hundreds of restaurants and retailers. One of the savviest ways to take advantage of this feature is to buy an eGift Card in the amount of the purchase price while at checkout at a participating merchant. In addition, primary United Chase Cardmembers earn a 25% bonus on miles earned from MileagePlus on eGift Card purchases made through the app. Customers can find eGift Cards from a variety of categories such as shopping, dining, transportation, lodging, music, and more.

About MileagePlus®

MileagePlus® is United’s industry-leading loyalty program. With a wide network of partners through which members may earn and redeem miles. MileagePlus members earn award miles by flying United, United Express, Star Alliance airlines or other airline partners, and by purchasing products or services from partners around the globe. Members enjoy a host of options for using those award miles, including award travel, hotel stays, car rentals and merchandise. For the 15th consecutive year, Global Traveler voted United’s MileagePlus® loyalty program the best overall frequent-flyer program in the world.

About United

United Airlines and United Express operate approximately 4,800 flights a day to 353 airports across five continents. In 2018, United and United Express operated more than 1.7 million flights carrying more than 158 million customers. United is proud to have the world’s most comprehensive route network, including U.S. mainland hubs in Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Newark/New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. United operates 770 mainline aircraft and the airline’s United Express carriers operate 559 regional aircraft. The airline is a founding member of Star Alliance, which provides service to 193 countries via 28 member airlines. For more information, visit united.com, follow @United on Twitter or connect on Facebook. The common stock of United’s parent, United Continental Holdings, Inc., is traded on the Nasdaq under the symbol “UAL”.

¹ Available to first time enrollees only

SOURCE United Airlines

Related Links

http://www.united.com

Schilhabel, a football coach, is paraplegic. As he told ABC7 in Chicago, he had already encountered problems when he and his wife were trying to make a connection at Chicago’s O’Hare airport, on their way to the Dominican Republic from Los Angeles.

United Continental Holdings’ (UAL – Free Report) wholly owned subsidiary, United Airlines, has yet again reported strong traffic figures. For December 2018, consolidated traffic — measured in revenue passenger miles (RPMs) — was 19.33 billion, up 6.9% from the year-ago figure.

Consolidated capacity (or available seat miles/ASMs) rose 6.4% on a year-over-year basis to 23.37 billion. Also, load factor (percentage of seats occupied by passengers) expanded 40 basis points (bps) to 82.7% as traffic growth outpaced capacity expansion. Notably, this is the carrier’s eighth consecutive month of load factor increase. The successive rise in load factor indicates the carrier’s efficiency and is a key catalyst for its profitability position.

Moreover, load factor climbed 120 bps at the end of 2018 with the carrier registering a 6.4% and 4.9% expansion in RPMS and ASMs, respectively.

Apart from solid traffic figures, the carrier’s expansion initiatives are encouraging. Last month, this Chicago, IL-based airline announced 11 new services from its hubs in Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles and Washington, DC. The carrier will begin weekend operations to Colorado, Florida and Oregon. Additionally, it will introduce daily flights to Nova Scotia effective Jun 6. (Read more: United Airlines to Offer Extra Services From Key Hubs)

United Continental Holdings, Inc. Price

United Continental Holdings, Inc. Price | United Continental Holdings, Inc. Quote

Zacks Rank Other Key Picks

United Continental holds a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Some other top-ranked stocks in the same space are Azul SA (AZUL – Free Report) , Allegiant Travel Company (ALGT – Free Report) and Spirit Airlines, Inc. (SAVE – Free Report) , each flaunting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Shares of Azul and Spirit Airlines have rallied more than 13% and 32%, respectively, in a year’s time. Meanwhile, Allegiant boasts an impressive earnings surprise history, having trumped the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters, the average beat being 18.7%.

Looking for Stocks with Skyrocketing Upside?

Zacks has just released a Special Report on the booming investment opportunities of legal marijuana.

Ignited by new referendums and legislation, this industry is expected to blast from an already robust $6.7 billion to $20.2 billion in 2021. Early investors stand to make a killing, but you have to be ready to act and know just where to look.

See the pot trades we’re targeting

Ticker Ten Tuesday

Ten years ago today (January 8), we had a theory — that local news could be delivered with integrity and timeliness — and free of charge to …

“Support animals” will no longer be allowed on United Airlines flights longer than eight hours.

United officials say they are seeing more on-board animal-related incidents, adding many are not used to spending so much time on a plane.

In addition, United won’t allow kittens or puppies less than four months old as support animals, in-cabin pets, or service animals. The airline says animals that young typically haven’t had all necessary vaccinations.

United joins Delta Airlines in changing polices on emotional support animals.

A paraplegic passenger is calling out United Airlines for its lack of equipment at two different airports.
(iStock)

A paraplegic customer is claiming he was forced to scoot down the aisle of a plane multiple times because of a lack of proper equipment.

Tyler Schilhabel was traveling on United Airlines from Los Angeles to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, with his wife for their honeymoon, WLS reported.

AIR NEW ZEALAND PASSENGERS GROUNDED FOR TWO HOURS WITH DEAD BODY ON BOARD

When Shilhabel landed in Chicago’s O’Hare airport to make his quick connecting flight, he was not given an aisle chair, a type of wheelchair  used by passengers getting in and off the plane. Instead, a United Airlines flight attendant physically carried him out to his wheelchair, which was waiting in the terminal.

“One of the flight attendants, who knew that I was in a rush and the aisle chair wasn’t there, he actually picked me up, lifted me and put me into my normal chair so that I could make my connecting flight,” Schilhabel said to WLS.

PILOT CLAIMS JETSTAR FLIGHT ATTENDANT REMOVED HIM FROM SEAT BECAUSE OF ‘SLIGHTLY CROOKED RIGHT THUMB’

Though the airport allegedly had an aisle chair, airline staff reportedly decided carrying Shilhabel would be faster.

The traveler’s problems with proper equipment did not end there, however.

Once the couple landed in Punta Cana, Schilhabel allegedly had to scoot his way down the plane aisle on his bottom since the airport did not have an aisle chair. Once off the plane, Schilhabel had to slide down the stairs with the help of his wife as the airport’s accesible lift was broken, Schilhabel tweeted out.

FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE FOX LIFESTYLE NEWS

“I had to scoot on my bottom all the way to the front of the plane, and when we realized there wasn’t a ramp or anything else, my wife and I just decided, no, it’s not safe. We don’t trust them to carry me down the flight of stairs, so we just hopped down. She grabbed my legs, and I hopped down step by step on my bottom,” he said to WLS.

On the way back, Schilhabel said he suffered more problems. This time when landing at O’Hare, an aisle chair was not available at all and the passenger claims he had to scoot out of the plane once again.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

United Airlines said in a statement to Fox News that they have apologized to Schilhabel and are actively looking into this matter and working to ensure it does not happen again.

“We are proud to operate an airline that doesn’t just include people with disabilities but welcomes them as customers.  In fact, thousands of people with disabilities fly United every day.  That said, this incident falls far short of our own high standard of caring for our customers.  We have been in touch with the customer to apologize and assure him that the errors that led to this situation are extremely rare.”

United Airlines confirmed to Fox News that the company has ordered a new lift for the airport at Punta Cana to avoid situations like this in the future.

A paraplegic passenger who relies on a wheelchair said he was forced, on multiple occasions, to scoot down his plane’s aisle while traveling on United Airlines with his wife for their honeymoon because of a lack of proper equipment.

High school football coach Tyler Schilhabel said the problems began when he landed at O’Hare for a layover between Los Angeles and the Dominican Republic. He said he almost missed his connection because he was late getting off the plane.

United Airlines, he said, did not immediately have available an aisle chair which helps passengers with disabilities navigate a plane’s narrow aisles.

“One of the flight attendants, who knew that I was in a rush and the aisle chair wasn’t there, he actually picked me up, lifted me and put me into my normal chair so that I could make my connecting flight,” Schilhabel said.

RELATED: Paraplegic football coach claims to have been forced to scoot down aisle, off of United flight

When Schilhabel and his wife landed in the Caribbean there were more problems deplaning.

“I had to scoot on my bottom all the way to the front of the plane, and when we realized there wasn’t a ramp or anything else, my wife and I just decided, no, it’s not safe. We don’t trust them to carry me down the flight of stairs, so we just hopped down. She grabbed my legs, and I hopped down step by step on my bottom,” he said.

Getting home from the honeymoon was also an ordeal. When the couple landed in O’Hare for their connection there was once again no aisle chair.

“We had a connecting flight, still had to get through customs, so I scooted on my bottom all 31 rows to the front of the plane, got on my chair, got through customs,” said Schilhabel.

United released a statement Monday, saying in part, “We are proud to operate an airline that doesn’t just include people with disabilities but welcomes them as customers … That said, this incident falls far short of our own high standard.”

United said it is in contact with Schilhabel to apologize, and called these types of incidents extremely rare.

Schilhabel said he went public with his experience in an effort to fix the problem. He said he notified the airline well in advance about the accommodations he needed.

United Airlines’ newest aircraft type – the Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner – is now in service at the carrier.

United Flight 2418 marked United’s official debut of its “Dash 10,” departing from Los Angeles at 8:49 a.m. local time (11:49 a.m. ET) on Monday morning en route to Newark, New Jersey. Though United touted the flight as the 787-10’s “entry into scheduled service,” the airline has quietly subbed the 787-10 onto some flights in recent weeks ahead of the formal debut. 

Now, United will roll the 787-10 onto more of its existing flights that already connect the carrier’s hubs at Newark Liberty and Los Angeles. In addition to the LAX-Newark flights that begin today, United’s 787-10s will begin to pick up some of its Newark-San Francisco flights starting in February.

The 787-10s expand to international service in March, when United adds the jet to routes from Newark to the European cities of Frankfurt, Germany; Paris Charles de Gaulle; Barcelona, Spain; Brussels and Dublin. United also will fly the jet between Newark and Tel Aviv, Israel.  

PHOTOS: WestJet’s first Boeing 787 Dreamliner takes flight from Everett, Washington

TODAY IN THE SKY: First look: United shows off its first Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner

(WILX) — There are new rules for emotional support animals at United Airlines.

Starting Monday, United Airlines will only allow dogs and cats to fly with passengers as emotional support animals.

The new rule also bans all support animals from flights longer than eight hours, although service animals with specialized training can still travel on long haul flights.

All dogs and cats traveling on board flights must be at least four months old.

Additionally, only dogs, cats and miniature horses will be allowed to fly as service animals.

Although the changes take effect Monday, United says it will honor reservations made by January 3rd under the old rules.

Turns out airline food doesn’t have to come in a snack-sized bag and doesn’t have to stay on the plane.

Now folks can recreate some business-class meals with the new United “Polaris” cookbook, The Daily Meal reports.

But this isn’t the peanuts and pretzels served in coach —United Airlines shared an image of the cookbook featuring a recipe for “coconut soup with sambal oelek chicken” with the Free Press.

According to the United Airlines shop, its $29.99 cookbook features over 40 recipes from United’s executive chefs and chefs from The Trotter Project —which works to provide education and mentorship to benefit young chefs in the culinary and hospitality fields.

On its website, United has said that it is “excited to be the official airline of The Trotter Project” and partners with the nonprofit to bring gourmet options for the United Polaris business class passengers and premium transcontinental service flyers, plus new dishes for those enjoying international economy dining.

“A portion of proceeds (for the cookbook) will be donated to The Trotter Project to continue its mission of inspiring the next generation of culinary professionals,” a United spokesperson said in an email.

According to Travel + Leisure, other airlines have previously ventured into cookbooks: Southwest Airlines published “Feel the Spirit, Savor the Fare” in 2006 and Delta put out a book of recipes compiled by its flight attendants called, “First-Class Meals” back in 1987.

___

(c)2019 Detroit Free Press

Visit the Detroit Free Press at www.freep.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

_____

PHOTO (for help with images, contact 312-222-4194):