citrixscu

Hello,

I am looking for advice on whether BAEC or AA is a better long-term option given my current status and patterns. Below are more details. Any advice or additional questions are greatly appreciated.

I recently achieved BAEC Silver about a month into the collection year due to some opportunistic business travel to Europe and a J/F run on AA's 321T to JFK. I am based on the West Coast and wondered if it continues to make sense booking Oneworld with my BAEC number or migrate over to AAdvantage and start earning EQMs there? My BA card expires in mid-2017.

Travel patterns are:
Avios for intl reward travel, if available.
Primarily domestic for business travel, with 1 or 2 intl trips annually.

Desires are:
Lounge access, especially for Intl travel
Access to upgrades into J and F
Flexibility of award travel

I also use BA Chase card for most purchases, which may be phased out if it makes more sense to use an AA Citi card.

Thanks!

Mwenenzi

What are your long term objectives from a ffp?
BA status is not much use for USA domestic upgrade opportunity
Why did you join BAEC and not AAdvantage?

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/onewo...help-here.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/infor...help-here.html

guv1976

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry: BlackBerry8530/5.0.0.1030 Profile/MIDP-2.1 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/417)

"Avios for intl reward travel, if available."

In many cases, AAdvantage charges fewer miles for international award travel -- especially in premium cabins -- than BAEC does. And AAdvantage only assesses surcharges when redeeming on BA or IB. BAEC assesses surcharges on many more carriers (including on AA for TATL and TPAC flights).

JDiver

How does the recent Avios devaluation affect you? Not to say AA may not effectuate some changes next year, of course.

Efrem

A factor arguing in favor of BA is that BA silver gives you access to all U.S. Admirals Clubs. AA Platinum, the equivalent, gives you access only when you're on an international itinerary. Since most of your travel is domestic, that's worth something: no more than an AC membership, perhaps less.

In the other direction, it's a lot easier to achieve status with AA via discount economy class travel. BA has as much as a 6:1 ratio of tier point earning between discount economy and first class. AA has at most 3:1; and depending on how you qualify for elite status, there may be no difference at all.

Finally, if you're after AA upgrades, you want to be an AA frequent flyer, period. Nothing else will do you much good in that regard.

My recommendation would be to go with AA and pay for an AC membership if it's worth it to you. If you can, make the switch at a point in the calendar year where you can earn AA status in what's left of it - AA goes by calendar years for everyone - and retain BA status until your AA status kicks in.

citrixscu

Thanks for the input, all.

Some quick answers to the questions posed:
I've been a BAEC member for a few years due to prior travels in/out of LHR, so I instinctively used BA for the first trip and realized I could get OW Sapphire in short order by continuing BAEC FFP bookings for a month until I got to the 600 tier point mark.

Avios devaluation is not ideal but I should have enough to cash in another TATL trip with companion if I can ever find availability

Upgrade desires are primarily on Intl flights, unless its a Transcon flight in/out of JFK.

Based on your comments, it seems that it may be wise to switch to AA on calendar year (since I don't think I can reach Plat or EXP by December) and leverage the BA Silver benefits in the interim.

Efrem

You might want to consider AA's Platinum Challenge. (Lots more information about it in the AA forum. Start with this thread.) It will get you Platinum through the 2016 program year (that is, through February 2017) on the basis of 90 days' flying, and you get to pick the 90 days as long as you start on the 1st or 16th of a month. Then you'll have all of calendar 2016 to requalify for Platinum and perhaps earn EXP.

JDiver

One caveat: to maintain status on AA, one is required to fly a minimum of four AA flights annually (not applicable to challenge status, but definitely to non-challenge status and status renewal).

The May be AA codeshares / marketed by AA.

See: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...ed-2014-a.html

citrixscu

Thanks for all of the advice and tips. I'm currently in a challenge for AA and will be PLT by Oct.