There are 3 huge problems with Air Miles:

1. To make a reservation, you will wait 30 minutes on hold before talking to an agent. Many times when I got through to an agent I have been told "we are extremely busy and only taking reservations for flights within the next two weeks, please call back another day".

2. For simple flights from city A to city B availability is poor unless you book at least 3 months in advance. For flights involving a connection, availability is zero no matter how far ahead you try to book. I have been unable to book any Airmiles flights through a connecting city, ever.

3. The fees Airmiles charges are outrageous, amounting to about 40% of the cost of a paid ticket. During booking they claim these fees are "taxes" however the "taxes" include the Airmiles service fee despite their denials on the phone. They advertise "free" flights, in fact they are offering discounted flights in exchange for severe restrictions on availability.

In summary the program is crap, considering the time you spend waiting on the phone, and the low chance of getting the flight you want when you want, and the exorbitant fees they charge, you are better off just buying a ticket. You can't get something for nothing, this program is clear evidence of that.