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Hi All

Wanting to fly one way from SFO to LAS in January. Have done a few
searches
(Expedia, Orbitz, etc) and the prices are very similar (if not the same)
between America West Airlines, US Airways and United Airlines. Which is
the
better airline out of the three to fly with? Do any include meals or do
you
have to pay on each airline? Any advise would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks

United only flies its "low cost" version, Ted, from SFO to LAS. Ted is an
all-coach airline with limited amenities, e.g. they'll give you a cup of
soda for free, but they won't give you the entire can. A major advantage of
United (and Ted) is the availability of Economy Plus seating, which adds an
extra 5 inches of legroom. However, Economy Plus, while free for UA (and
some Star Alliance) frequent fliers, carries a premium of, I think, $50 over
the standard coach fare. I have status with UA, so I'm always in Economy
Plus -- it's definitely more comfortable than any other carrier's coach
product.

I haven't flown America West much lately, and when I've flown it, it's
almost always sitting in F. I've like America West, but don't know their
coach product at all. As another poster noted, US Air and America West have
merged though, at least as of two months ago, they were still operating as
separate systems.

Two factors (which will take some research on your part) that may inform
your decision. Both are relevant only if you're in an airline's frequent
flyer program:

1. LAS is an awful airport to get in and out of on busy days, e.g. Friday
and Sunday. Lines at security can be very long. Last time I was there, UA
did not have an elite line for frequent fliers with status -- this may have
changed however. If you have access to an elite line, you can cut up to an
hour or more out of the check-in process.

2. I believe that you mentioned in another post that you're flying to the
US on Qantas. If you're not in a frequent flyer program now, you should
join Qantas' program -- round trip Australia to US will give you a healthy
amount of miles and probably bring you class to a status level. Qantas is
not a Star Alliance carrier (at least not yet), so you wouldn't get Qantas
frequent flier miles for a United flight. I'm not sure whether America
West/US Air partners with Qantas for miles but, if it does, you might want
to make your choice on that basis.

As far as I know, the only legacy carrier in the U.S. that offers free meals
in coach is Continental. Ted _sometimes_ has "buy on board" ("BOB") snack
boxes -- they're probably better than what passes for a meal on a U.S.
airline these days (even F meals are pretty dismal affairs), but I wouldn't
count on them for anything but allaying the worst of hunger pangs. You're
much better off buying sandwiches airside, i.e. _after_ security, and taking
them on board with you (and, please, as a matter of courtesy to other
passengers, don't buy anything with a strong smell.).