I have to share the joy. I've had about 100K AA miles parked in my account that I earned in the '80s. I still have the letter from American saying that I could use these miles towards awards valid in 1989. There are very few savings to be had there, frankly - 2 first class awards for 75,000 miles - not much of a discount over the 80K normally required.
AA has one transcon route from San Diego, which goes to JFK. This plane has 3 classes of service. Today I had the idea to book that flight in the premium cabin using the old miles. (We have a summer wedding at attend.) It took awhile; the AAgent didn't believe that 2 person awards still existed, and didn't believe that 75,000 miles could be used for 2 Premium Cabin awards - but sure enough, when she checked, it was allowed.
This award would have cost me 120K new miles - so I'm feeling very very good!
==========================MODERATOR NOTE===========================
FewMiles' pages on shaw.ca have expired; links to the many pages with historical data on AAdvantage and old miles no longer exist. For the best information on how these miles could / can be used, please read this thread.
A Class Action lawsuit has been filed over expiration/conversion of old miles; see:
http://www.amrcaseinfo.com/pdflib/4460_15463.pdf
Current (Sep 2012) FAQ on AA.com state:
Originally Posted by aa.com FAQ
Q: What is the definition of 'old' non-expiring miles?
A: If you were enrolled in the AAdvantage program prior to January 20, 1989, you may have earned 'old' mileage for any transactions up to and including June 30, 1989. You can use this mileage to claim awards from either the regular award structure (old awards) or the new award structure. You may also combine 'old' miles with 'new' miles to claim an award from the new award structure, such as a MileSAAver or AAnytime award, an upgrade, AAdvantage Car Awards or AAdvantage Vacation Awards for hotel stays.
Any mileage that you have earned for transactions on or after July 1, 1989, which has not expired, is 'new' mileage. This mileage may be used to claim awards from the new award structure only. Members enrolled on or after January 20, 1989, may only earn "new" miles to be used for awards from the new structure.
Thanks to new member
Robert Woodhead and his recent post (#278), here are links to the original information about "old miles" posted on shaw.ca by our own FT member,
FewMiles. Also link via waybackmachine Internet archive
here.
Originally Posted by
Robert Woodhead
And
njfan07 has posted both charts; they can be downloaded, enlarged, etc.
Originally Posted by
njfan07
And sadly for many of us, the end is near - "old" miles convert to "ordinary" AAdvantage miles 1 Nov 2012.:
just recd the following email:
For more than 30 years the American Airlines AAdvantageŽ program has been making travel special. Thank you for your loyalty for so many years as an AAdvantage member.
In order to streamline our program, we are announcing a change to AAdvantage miles earned before July 1, 1989, also called Miles With No Expiration.
Starting November 1, 2012, these miles will automatically be converted to Miles Subject to Expiration, and because of your tenured loyalty, you will earn a 25% mileage bonus on every unredeemed mile earned prior to July 1, 1989. To have your Miles With No Expiration converted and to earn the mileage bonus, you do not need to take any action. For more information about this change, please visit AA.com/MileConversion.
Once your miles have been converted, as long as you earn or redeem AAdvantage miles at least once every 18 months, your miles will not expire. This is our normal mileage policy and more information about this policy can be found at AA.com/AAdvantageTerms.
It is easy to keep your account active! In addition to earning AAdvantage miles for travel, you can earn miles for making everyday purchases such as dining out, shopping and paying your electricity bill. Plus, you can redeem miles for hotel stays, rental cars, flight awards, and more! Find out more ways to earn and redeem miles by visiting AA.com/AAdvantage.
If you are planning to travel soon, please note that until November 1, 2012, you may redeem your Miles With No Expiration for "Regular" Awards from the original AAdvantage award structure by calling AAdvantage Reservations at 800-882-8880. On November 1, the original AAdvantage award structure will be discontinued; however, you can still redeem miles for awards from our current structure at AA.com/Redeem.
Finally, to receive special offers and exclusive promotions, be sure to update your account at AA.com/MyAccount and sign up for email notifications.