Weenie

Inspired by a thread over the BA forums, I decided to investigate prefix options for Aadvantage members and these are the options when you sign up:

Mr., Mrs., Ms., Miss, Dr., A.V.M., AB, Adm., Amb, AMN, Archbishop, Baron, Baroness, Bishop, Brig. Gen., Brigadier, Bro., Cantor, Capt., Cardinal, Chaplain, Cmdr., CMSGT, Col., Consul, Count, Countess, Cpl., CPO, CWO, Dean, Duchess, Duke, Earl, Ens., Eur Eng, Father, Fr., Gen., Gov., H. E., Herr, Hon., HRH, Lady, Lord, Lt., Lt. Cmdr., Lt. Col., Lt. Gen., M., Maj., Maj. Gen., Master, Mlle., Mme., Mother, MSGT, Pastor, PFC, Pres., Prince, Princess, Prof., Rabbi, Radm., Rev., Rt. Hon., Senator, Sgt., Sgt. Maj., Sir, Sister, SMSGT, Speaker, Squad.Ldr., Sr., SrA, Sra., Srta., SSGT, Swami, TSGT, Vadm.

Impressive indeed! According to: http://www.aa.com/namechange you are allowed to modify your prefix providing it does not alter your gender. Naturally, I think I would like to be addressed as "Squad. Ldr." when checking in. In fine print on aa.com they say they may require written legal documentation for name changes. Has anyone ever tried to add one of the more unusual prefixes above?

joe_s

Very cool, thanks for posting the list. I recall the (somewhat longer) list BA had when I signed up for them some time ago. When I signed up for AA (a long time ago), I don't recall such choices.

I suspect 'letterhead' showing your title would be all you need.

I like "Herr"...

DillMan

I think there are plenty of fellow EXPs that pretty much expect to be treated like "King", "HM", or "HE" so why not officially apply the title.

oldpenny16

I have a friend who actual first name is 'Lady' then her middle name and last name. AA put 'Lady' as this Texan's title with her middle name as her first name. Took a while to fix this.

I gave up using all name prefixes in the '80s but am thinking of choosing one again.

Grasshopper

I'll be impressed when they add "Darth" to the list.


actually, what I SHOULD to is talk them into changing my dad's prefix from "Doctor" to "Swami". hee hee!!!

vsevolod4

This is the BA post. No Darth, but there's a Datuk ...

That BA has the most makes sense. Ditto for BD being flush with titles. But outside of the UK, AA and QF have the most titles ... OneWorld and SkyTeam are much more egalitarian.

Rear Admiral Viscount van vsevolod4, Esq.

----------------------

This might be a total waste of space, and since it compares BA to others, it might belong in a different forum, but it was quite amusing to some FT friends of mine.

I was editing my profile with British Airways, and took a look at the drop-down list for Title, and was amused by the expansive list of over 200 titles: Mr, Mrs, Ms, Miss, Dr, Herr, Monsieur, Hr, Frau, A V M, Admiraal, Admiral, Air Cdre, Air Commodore, Air Marshal, Air Vice Marshal, Alderman, Alhaji, Ambassador, Baron, Baroness, Brig, Brig Gen, Brig General, Brigadier, Brigadier General, Brother, Canon, Capt, Captain, Cardinal, Cdr, Chief, Cik, Cmdr, Col, Col Dr, Colonel, Commandant, Commander, Commissioner, Commodore, Comte, Comtessa, Congressman, Conseiller, Consul, Conte, Contessa, Corporal, Councillor, Count, Countess, Crown Prince, Crown Princess, Dame, Datin, Dato, Datuk, Datuk Seri, Deacon, Deaconess, Dean, Dhr, Dipl Ing, Doctor, Dott, Dott sa, Dr, Dr Ing, Dra, Drs, Embajador, Embajadora, En, Encik, Eng, Eur Ing, Exma Sra, Exmo Sr, F O, Father, First Lieutient, First Officer, Flt Lieut, Flying Officer, Fr, Frau, Fraulein, Fru, Gen, Generaal, General, Governor, Graaf, Gravin, Group Captain, Grp Capt, H E Dr, H H, H M, H R H, Hajah, Haji, Hajim, Her Highness, Her Majesty, Herr, High Chief, His Highness, His Holiness, His Majesty, Hon, Hr, Hra, Ing, Ir, Jonkheer, Judge, Justice, Khun Ying, Kolonel, Lady, Lcda, Lic, Lieut, Lieut Cdr, Lieut Col, Lieut Gen, Lord, M, M L, M R, Madame, Mademoiselle, Maj Gen, Major, Master, Mevrouw, Miss, Mlle, Mme, Monsieur, Monsignor, Mr, Mrs, Ms, Mstr, Nti, Pastor, President, Prince, Princess, Princesse, Prinses, Prof, Prof Dr, Prof Sir, Professor, Puan, Puan Sri, Rabbi, Rear Admiral, Rev, Rev Canon, Rev Dr, Rev Mother, Reverend, Rva, Senator, Sergeant, Sheikh, Sheikha, Sig, Sig na, Sig ra, Sir, Sister, Sqn Ldr, Sr, Sr D, Sra, Srta, Sultan, Tan Sri, Tan Sri Dato, Tengku, Teuku, Than Puying, The Hon Dr, The Hon Justice, T, The Hon Miss, The Hon Mr, The Hon Mrs, The Hon Ms, The Hon Sir, The Very Rev, Toh Puan, Tun, Vice Admiral, Viscount, Viscountess, Wg Cdr.

British Midland on the other hand has only 52 titles (which places it third in the world, read on). On BD, you can be a Viscount but not a Graaf!: Ambassador, Baron, Baroness, Brigadier, Captain, Cdr, Cllr, Colonel, Commissioner, Countess, Dame, DC, Dhr, Dr, Earl of, Esq, Father, First Officer, Flt Lt, Frau, Herr, Hon, Judge, Justice, Lady, Lord, Lt, Lt Cdr, Lt Col, Lt Gov, Major, Miss, Mlle, Monsieur, Mr, Mrs, Ms, Prince, Prof, Prof, Rabbi, Rev, Rt Hon, Rt Hon, Sir, Sister, The, The Duchess, The Duke of, The Hon, The Lady, The Rt Hon, Viscount, Viscountess

Perhaps today is one of those lazy days one just can’t get one’s mind focused on work, but I thought that there must be some link to British Class-consciousness. So I poked around other sites, trying to see if I could sign up and get a card with an exalted title. I think they would probably balk at “H.R.H” or “His Holiness” but maybe if I can’t qualify for a BA Premier Card, I can become a President, Ambassador, Sheikh or Vice-Admiral.

So, I checked out other programs to see what other titles I could collect. In comparison, most US carriers offer Mr/Mrs/Ms/Miss, with only minor additional options:
- UA adds Dr. and Prof. and Hon.
- CO adds Dr/Mstr/Prof/Rev/Sister (CO)
- DL is more politically-correct and drops Miss but adds Dr and Rev
- NW adds no other choices
- US adds Dr, Hon, Master(!) and Prof
- SW, despite its Greyhound Bus mentality when it comes to seating and preferred levels, is military-friendly: Col, Cpt, Dr, Fr, Lt, Maj., Prof, Rev, Sgt, Sis, Sen, Rep. and Bro. No Miss however.
- Alaska Air has a fair list of clerical and military titles: Mr., Ms., Mrs., Miss, Master, Dr., Rev., Sister, Capt., Hon., Adm., Father, Rabbi, Rep., Maj.Gen., Sen., Lt., Comm., Col., Gov., Gen., Pres.
- AA is the only one that has an extensive list of titles, but only about half the list that BA offers. Mr., Mrs., Ms, Miss, Dr., A.V.M., ABE, Adm, Amb, AMN, Archbishop, Baron, Baroness, Bishop, Brig. Gen., Brigadier, Bro., Cantor, Capt., Cardinal, Chaplain, Cmdr., CMSGT, Col., Consul, Count, Countess, Cpl., CPO, CWO, Dean, Duchess, Duke, Earl, Ens., Eur Eng, Father, Fr., Gen., Gov., H. E., Herr, Hon., HRH, Lady, Lord, Lt., Lt. Cmdr., Lt. Col., Lt. Gen., M., Maj., Maj. Gen., Master, Mlle., Mme., Mother, MSGT, Pastor, PFC, Pres., Prince, Princess, Prof., Rabbi, Radm., Rev., Rt. Hon., Senator, Sgt., Sgt. Maj., Sir, Sister, SMSGT, Speaker, Squad.Ldr., Sr., SrA, Sra., Srta., SSGT, Swami, TSGT, Vadm.
… I guess this fits American egalitarianism, eh?

Elsewhere in the Americas, a similar story:
- On AC (English), your choices are Mr., Mrs., Ms., (no Miss), Dr., Father, Hon, Judge, Prof, Rabbi, Rev, Sen, Sir and Sister.
- On Mexicana, you are Male or Female … that is all.
- LAN Chile, same as Mexicana
- Varig, just Mr. or Mrs. I don’t know what you do if you’re an unmarried or I’m-not-telling-you woman.

On the Continent, European carriers seem to have abolished the class system. Vive la Revolution!
- On AF/KL, just Mr, Mrs and Miss (God bless the French lack of political correctness …no ‘Ms.)
- On Alitalia, you can only choose Male or Female.
- Czech Air has Mr, Mrs and Ms.
- Finnair allows only van and af and der and esq and similar constructions.
- Malev has Mr, Mrs, Ms and Dr.
- Iberia allows Mr., Ms. and Mrs. only
- On LH/Miles and More, they only add Prof, Dr and Prof. Dr. … i.e. only academic titles.
- SAS offers Mr, Mrs, Ms and Miss only

South African Air has Mr, Mrs, Ms, Adv, Col, Dr, Fr, Prof, Rev, Sgt, Sir

On Asian Airlines, similar short lists:
- Air India has Mr, Mrs, Ms, Miss and Dr. But only the US program; not the Indian program.
- Cathay Pacific: Mr, Mrs, Miss, Ms, Dr. and Professor
- JL: Mr., Mrs., Dr., Rev, Prof.
- Korean Airlines: Just choose Male or Female
- NH: Just choose Male or Female
- SQ: Singapore Air you have Mr., Ms., Mrs., Miss, Master, Madam, Dr., and can select Other” and fill in anything. But the choices are basically Mr/Mrs/Miss
- TG Ditto for Thai Air, short list + Other
- Gulf Air is like TG and SQ, short list + Other
- Emirates/Sri Lankan has Mr, Mrs, Ms, Miss and Master
- Qatar Air has a better list: Capt, Dr, Father, HE, HH, Lady, Lord, Miss, Mr, Mrs, Ms, Mstr, Prof, Rev, Shk, Skha, Sir, Sister,

Which leaves QF. I think it must be the BA legacy, but they have 150 choices. I have no idea what a “Sapper” is (is it like a “Gaffer?”) but I think being an Archbishop, Monk, Fraulein , Swami or His Excellency might be fun. The short list is: MR, MRS, MISS, MS, MASTER, DOCTOR, OTHER … and if you select OTHER you get: ABLE SEAMAN, ADMIRAL, ADVOCATE, AIR CHIEF MARSHALL, AIR COMMODORE, AIRCRAFTSMAN, AIRCRAFTSMAN RECRUIT, AIRCRAFTSWOMAN, AIR MARSHAL, AIR VICE MARSHAL, ALDERMAN, AMBASSADOR, APPRENTICE, ARCHBISHOP, ARCHDEACON, ACTING SUB LIEUTENANT, BARON, BARONESS, BISHOP, BRIGADIER, BROTHER, CADET, CANON, CAPTAIN, CARDINAL, CHAPLAIN, CHIEF COMMISSIONER, CHIEF INSPECTOR, CHIEF PETTY OFFICER, COLONEL, COMMANDANT, COMMANDER, COMMISSIONER, COMMODORE, CONSTABLE, CONSUL GENERAL, CORPORAL, COUNCILLOR, COUNT, COUNTESS, CRAFTSMAN, DAME, DATIN, DATO, DETECTIVE, DETECTIVE SERGEANT, DUCHESS, DUKE, FATHER, FLIGHT LIEUTENANT, FLIGHT SERGEANT, FLYING OFFICER, FRAULEIN, GENERAL, GOVERNOR, GROUP CAPTAIN, HERR, HIS EXCELLENCY, HONOURABLE, HONOURABLE JUSTICE, YOUR HONOUR, INSPECTOR, JUDGE, JUNIOR, JUSTICE, KINGS COUNSEL, LADY, LANCE CORPORAL, LEADING AIRCRAFTSMAN, LEADING AIRCRAFTSWOMAN, LEADING SEAMAN, LIEUTENANT, LIEUTENANT COMMANDER, LIEUTENANT COLONEL, LIEUTENANT GENERAL, LORD, MADAM, MAJOR, MAJOR GENERAL, MARSHAL, MAYOR, MIDSHIPMAN, MINISTER, MONK, MONSIGNOR, OFFICER CADET, ORDINARY SEAMAN, PASTOR, PETTY OFFICER, PILOT OFFICER, PRINCE, PRINCESS, PRIVATE, PROFESSOR, QUEENS COUNSEL, RABBI, REAR ADMIRAL, RECRUIT, RECTOR, REGIMENT SERGEANT MAJ, REVEREND, REVEREND DOCTOR, REVEREND MOTHER, REVEREND SIR, RIGHT HONORARY, ROYAL HIGHNESS, SAPPER, SERGEANT, SENATOR, SENIOR CONSTABLE, SENIOR DETECTIVE, SENIOR WRAN, SENOR, SENORA, SIGNALMAN, SIR, SISTER, SQUADRON LEADER, STAFF SERGEANT, SUB LIEUTENANT, SUPERINTENDENT, SWAMI, TOUR LEADER, TROOPER, VENERABLE, VICAR, VICE ADMIRAL, VISCOUNT, VISCOUNTESS, WARRANT OFFICER, WARRANT OFFICER 1, WARRANT OFFICER 2, WING COMMANDER, WRAN

simongr

I am surprised that AA have Sqd Ldr and not Wg Cdr/Gp Cpt - Sqd Ldr is a peculiarly english rank - not replicated in the US military? Is it just that a Sqd Ldr was looking to add a rank, couldnt find it and complained....

simongr

A Sapper is the name given to a an engineer in the military

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sapper

/me hugs wikipedia

Grasshopper

Darn, and I just went with boring "DOCTOR" for my Qantas Club lifetime card. interestingly, they spell the whole thing out, not just "DR".


One other thing I found interesting about the AA list - they have the Army (CMSGT), Navy (Lt Cmdr) and Air Force (TSGT) officer and enlisted ranks, but they seem to omit the USMC ranks (GySgt, MGySgt, 1stSgt). Hmm.

Weenie

Ok, you provoked me to do some research. Besides, I shouldn't try to get AA to grant me this title without understanding what it is.

---
In the United States Army, there is an entity of 8-16 soldiers which is called a squad. A Squad is the lowest element of the Army organizational structure. In a Light Infantry Squad (that means it is non-mechanized) there are normally nine soldiers and one Squad Leader.
---

Wow! I don't want to be a squad leader anymore. I'm going to do some more research.

party_boy

I'm thinking of pulling a prank on my gf and have her aa mail turn into Princess XXX XXXXXX.

I figure since she acts like one.

skAAtinsteph

Accoring to this you don't need any legal documentation to change the prefix under most conditions. Right over the phone, taken care of.

Changing Your Name?

Need to change the name on your AAdvantage account? Send an email to AAdvantage Customer Service.

Examples of name corrections/changes managed via email* or by calling AAdvantage Customer Service at 1-800-421-0600.
Change to a last name*
Misspelled names (Wilson vs. Wilsen, Smith vs. Smyth, Vicki vs.Vicky)
Abbreviated Names (Susie vs. Susan, Bob vs. Robert)
Reversed first and last names (e.g. Dickens Charles and should be Charles Dickens)
Changing a prefix that doesn't include a gender change (Mrs. to Ms.; Mr. to Dr.)
Adding or deleting a middle initial or entire middle name
Changing a hyphenated name to any of its variations
Expand first initial to full first name, provided there is an existing prefix (i.e. Mr. or Mrs.)
Prefix change which does NOT alter gender (Mrs. Jane Jones to Dr. Jane Jones)
Change which does NOT alter relationship (John Jones to John Jones, M.D.)
Reversal of middle and first names
Information needed to change a name
Your name as it appears on your AAdvantage account today
The reason your name is changing**
The name you would like to appear on your account
Send an email to AAdvantage Customer Service
The following name change requests must be in writing and require legal documentation
Change to a first name
Abbreviate first name to initial
Prefix change which alters gender (Mr. John Jones to Mrs. John Jones)
Change which alters relationship (John Jones, Sr. to John Jones, Jr.)
Send your request along with the proper legal documentation to the American Airlines AAdvantage Department at the address below
Send name change requests requiring written legal documentation to:
American Airlines AAdvantage Department
P.O. Box 619688
DFW Int'l Airport, TX 75261-9688
Fax number: 817-963-7882

* Changes to last name are allowed for life events only - such as marriage or divorce. AAdvantage members who request a last name change for any other reason will be required to submit written legal documentation.
** American Airlines / AAdvantage reserves the right at its discretion to require written legal documentation for any name change request received (including: marital status, military titles, titles and suffixes, nicknames, hyphenated names to any of its variations, inverted name changes, misspelled names, etc).

bal214

i prefer lord^

guy999

I've have already updated my info on AA.com thanks for the info.

My wife always says that i'm a king in my own mind.

skAAtinsteph

Where does it let you change it online?