United Offers Triple New York-Chicago Miles

In my recent coverage of Delta’s triple-mile bonus for Shuttle flights, I speculated that US Airways would be forced to match Delta’s offer, and that “United might feel compelled to counter with bonuses for New York-Chicago flights as well.”

We still haven’t seen any response from US Airways, but United has indeed launched a counter-offer for flights on its New York-Chicago routes.

Offer Details

First, let’s put the geographic requirement up front: “Offer valid only for Mileage Plus members residing in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, New York, Connecticut, or New Jersey. Residency will be determined by the primary address on the Mileage Plus account at the time the bonus is awarded.”

Mileage Plus members who meet the residency requirements will earn triple redeemable miles and triple elite-qualifying miles on non-stop United and United Express flights between Chicago O’Hare and New York LaGuardia completed between June 16 and August 31.

Registration is required before travel begins and must be completed before August 31.

Deal or No Deal

The math is pretty compelling: Six round-trips are worth 26,388 miles, enough for a free award ticket and entry-level elite status. And even if six flights aren’t on your travel agenda, triple elite-qualifying miles are always a plus.

Of course, you can earn the same bonus for Delta’s newly launched New York-Chicago Shuttle flights, and for American’s New York-Chicago flights as well.

With generous bonuses on offer from the three largest airlines, the question for flyers on the disputed routes isn’t whether they want bonus miles, it’s what kind of bonus miles they want.

Reader Reality Check

Triple miles, anyone?