Originally Posted by
_kurt
I think that is true as long as you call before the end of the challenge. OTOH, there was a report a while back that if you started a PLT challenge but only flew 5K, you could still get gold. Since the rep you talked to contradicted that, I'm not sure what to think. If it makes you too nervous, you can call back and try to get another rep to upgrade the challenge immediately.
As pandaperth said, many people complete a PLT challenge in a single roundtrip. Others might have enough travel already booked that flying 10K is virtually certain.
OK, I think I found an answer to my earlier question about upgrading my challenge from GLD to PLT that makes sense to me.
I spoke to another AAdvantage rep yesterday who confirmed that I can, in fact, upgrade my challenge from GLD to PLT anytime during the original challenge window if I cross the 10,000 EQPs during that time. The cost to upgrade is $125, not $80, which means that it's not free optionality - it actually $45 more than starting with a PLT challenge from the beginning.
I didn't confirm that I'd get conferred GLD status if I started a PLT challenge and only reached 5,000 EQPs, but, by starting GLD and upgrading to PLT, I'll pay $45 more in the long run, but guarantee that I end up with some Elite status, provided I reach at least 5,000 EQPs.
Hope this helps.
Fly safe.