Not much change on earning/status front. I usually do 2 RT/year in J from LAX/SFO to India, which keeps me at Gold (rest of my flying is on UA/LH/CO).

Base earning went down from ~10K per one way flight to ~9K, but the J premium went up from 1.5 to 1.75. Award accelerator was worth less than the online booking premium, so overall my tier miles are slightly higher for the year and my award miles are slightly lower.

What's REALLY been annoying is how much harder redemptions/upgrades have gotten, hence my thoughts below at:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/emira...al-scam-3.html