travelsg

I'm getting a trial Platinum from AA. In order to extend the status after the trial, I need 12k EQM on AA. So I'm seriously considering jumping.. will you?

ou81two

Well it really depends on what you fly . If it's mostly AS metal, it's a no brainer. If you mostly fly AA, then that's a different story. Should you mix both, AS at 50K gives you more flexibility in changing flights. AA's platinum (ie gold as they should call it) gives you actual upgrades which AA only does if you purchase full fare tickets. Few people do that.

AS gives you the Gold benefits at 40K unlike other airlines at 50k. They also take care of you well if you hit 75k.

It really depends on how you fly. AS is likely a better program though. That's not even considering that they partner with Delta as well and you can redeem miles on so many partners.

IceTrojan

If you plan on flying internationally, then AA PLT is worth its weight in... platinum. If doing domestic travel, then it depends on where you fly. Seeing that you are CLD/SAN and MIA based, then what metal do you usually fly?

If you go after AA PLT, would you lose status with AS or still fly enough to keep it?

beckoa

Nope.

Eastbay1K

Until I have a better idea of what the new AA program will look like, I'm staying parked here. I have already and will be flying enough AA and LA miles this year to get well into AA Plat (but not quite close enough to EXP) that a match seemed to make a lot of sense for me. But
(1) I can make 75K fairly easily this year (maybe I'll need an extra short hop later this year) which gives me 50K bonus plus a nice MVP gift;
(2) I have no idea what I'm getting into as an AA flyer with a merging program;
(3) My AA travels are in paid premium cabins so not having OW status doesn't matter much; and
(4) Crediting these trips to a program other than AS would interrupt the feng shui of my life and probably cause some sort of rash to occur.

Jimgotkp

I'm currently an EXP with AA and don't plan on requalifying. Instead, I'm thinking about status matching with AS and/or DL. Being SEA-based, I've been flying AS and DL quite often, so I feel AS' program will work better for me. I'm also uncomfortable about the "new American" and the changes they might bring next year. The reason I'm interested with DL is they've been offering some really good Asia/Europe fares ex-SEA and SFO.

Why do you want to switch to AA anyway? You might as well fly 40K EQM with AA while crediting to your AS account so you get MVP Gold. 40K isn't enough for AA Plat the following year.

Eastbay1K

40K AA miles doesn't get you MVPG, either.

777 global mile hound

I'm a lifetime elite at American and I like Alaska a lot
The flying experience from Seattle to San Diego is wonderful
Brand new 737 900s all leather seats/roomy enough, friendly flight attendant's and nice passenger's. Some a little too friendly

Alaska's program is pretty good but the online international partner fees are absurd and the availability on all awards not as good as years ago
If they don't mess up the program and add partners (ways to earn) I will continue flyting them especially if they keep adding cities
I've booked San- Boston with them and look forward to expanding the relationship. If American keeps its downward spiral with anytime awards (already acting like United)
Ill be gone even if I have to fly through Seattle
On rare occasions' I fly Virgin and once in a blue moon even Southwest for something very short and non stop

travelsg

My most frequent routes are SAN - SEA (on AS), and 2nd most SAN - MIA (on AA). I used to credit AA miles to AS program as well.

I can comfortably make MVP on AS every year, but nowhere close to MVPG. That's why this trial offer is probably the best I would be getting.. But yes, I do agree AS has been treating me well..

2TallSeaFlyer

I have AA elite status and live in Seattle, and I fly a bunch on AS. My take on your situation is this:

As an AS MVP, you are not likely to get that many upgrades on the SAN-SEA run. You're definitely not getting any on AA. With AA Plat, you have a decent chance at an upgrade (depending on day of flight) on the much longer SAN-MIA flight. As an AA Plat, you will still get access to AS preferred seating (Row 6 and exit row in particular).

International lounge access has also been mentioned. I think the other thing to consider is that AA Plat's get 100% mileage bonus per flight (I believe MVP's get 25%). So, if you're flying 25k miles a year, you're talking an extra 18,750 miles for a year.

That being said, AA miles are a bit less useful than AS miles (depending on where you want to go - availability on can be big). And certainly, after the big devalue a month ago of AA miles, there is lots of speculation that it will continue to deteriorate as the merger takes place.

Basically, if you MVP Gold, I'd say stick with AS. AS is the best domestic airline out there. As an MVP, you do have some incentive to change to get higher status for a year.

Good luck!

wind6765

Even being based in RDU and with DL starting to squeeze harder, I'm sticking with AS, at least until the AA/US merger is done with. Hard to see it not getting tougher over there. So long as I can get to Australia in CX FC for 160,000 miles, I'm staying...I waver sometimes, but AS, IMO, still has the best program out there.

Plus...one day, AS will fly to RDU. I just know it

IceTrojan

Here's a thought... why not get AA PLT, then next year have AS match your status to MVPG?

beckoa

Wirelessly posted (beckoa's BB: Mozilla/5.0 (BlackBerry; U; BlackBerry 9810; en-US) AppleWebKit/534.11+ (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/7.1.0.694 Mobile Safari/534.11+)

MVP's get a 50% bonus on EQM's ^

I'd say take an extra trip or two to achieve MVPG on AS ^

And check out SAN-MCO

mikelat

20-25k EQM would be very long Could do it with 2 Europe or Asia trips, but not likely on 2 domestic trips

gaiusbaltar

What MVP gift do you get for 75K? I didn't get anything last year!