Newsstand - SAN residents: 10news will have a segment on Flyer miles

Unsure what time it's on but I thought it'd pass on this PSA to my friends here.

Most of us will be at a Do tonight but it's worth noting nonetheless. Maybe it's the 10pm or 6pm, just didn't hear - I was at the barber shop.

www.10news.com/10newsspecials/4498512/detail.html

Avoiding The Frequent Flier Miles Madness
Tips To Maximize Your Miles
Using frequent flier miles is like playing the slots. You win some, you lose some.

Traveling on frequent flier miles has become a gamble, challenging customer loyalty and patience.

Mike Covert says he feels like he's playing a lottery, trying to get frequent flier seats for the summer.

Covert started the search in February, finally giving up and buying a ticket, leaving 29,000 miles gathering dust in his frequent flier account.

But that's only half the story. Soon after Covert books his ticket, U.S. Airways opens more seats on Covert's flight for frequent fliers.

If a flight is empty, the airline will open up additional seats for more frequent flier usage, reported 10News.

That's one factor affecting the supply of frequent flier seats. And travel agent Phyllis Dorfman says there are others.

Reports about the financial health of airlines affects available seats.

Covert's airline, U.S. Airways, is flooded with frequent flier bookings, up 25 precent since 2003, because it's in bankruptcy.

Available seats are gobbled up by a use-it-or-lose-it mentality.

Another driving force: credit cards that earn travel miles. All those earned miles are now flooding the market and driving down the supply of frequent flier seats.

Dorfman says the value of each mile is also dropping. "...Airlines can't accomodate people who have miles and free tickets," said Dorfman.

To maximize your miles: use them for upgrades instead of tickets and book early... and late.

Dorman says that if airlines don't sell all their seats, consumers have a shot at using frequent flier miles at the last minute.

They should have come to Casa Guadalajara and interviewed us!

Efrem, Seriously :) We know what's up.

In relation to the article, it's all about flexibility... otherwise there's a 'no storm' in your future.

I try to book awards more than 6 months in advance for high demand routes. I was checking availability from SAN-SIN in Sept. and there is a TON of it.. virtually every september day on the inbound, the outbound I did have to shift one day.

Either way... while the article is right about miles flooding the market, most need to learn how to properly utilize the miles and what timeframes to do so.

In keeping with FT tradition, this should not be in "MilesBuzz" but "Newstand".