Originally Posted by ctuttle

Always burn miles, on any airline, as the only time they have real value is when you use them. When they are banked they only have implied value, and as others have said here, only become less valuable. Remember miles are NOT cash, and there is value only when you use them.

You aren't getting any interest on banked miles, so as they sit in your account they don't grow, but potentially lose value as they increase the number of miles for an award. Plus they could put an expiration date on any of your miles with just a little notice. Think of them as found money, and spend it like it isn't yours.

The only exception I would make to the above is if you are retiring in the next year or two, or will be in a situation where soon you will have more free time to use miles rather than to just earn them. Then when you have the time live the life and enjoy using them.

If you have a boatload of miles, why not give them to a family member, friend, or coworker for what some might consider a frivolous trip? Know someone who has a family emergency, or celebration who can't afford a ticket to go, you can fix that, and it won't cost you a dime. Know someone getting ready to get married? A gift of two tickets for their honeymoon, given early, might be one of their most thoughtful and remembered gifts. Airline tickets for family and friends to attend the wedding would also be a wonderful way to spend some of those hundreds of thousands of miles some have in their frequent flyer accounts.

On your next business trip, ideally to an interesting place, take your wife/husband/friend/son/daughter/whatever along with you on an award ticket. They get a free vacation that doesn't cost you anything, plus it might remind you just how much fun travel can be if you don't get to do it very often.

Many years ago I gave a young shuttle bus driver a domestic roundtrip ticket that was expiring in a week (back in the day you got a voucher for a ticket and it was transferable) and told him he could have it if he promised to use it. He did and told me he had a blast.

Over the years as airlines go through bankruptcy I have been able to get some outstanding awards. A bankrupt airline might also make more award seats available and more at a discounted rate simply because they realize they need to keep the planes full to give the illusion of "business as usual"

I would be surprised if American didn't do some sort of push to get people to burn miles, as it would cost them little, and it would be a good viral marketing that would help offset the negative of the bankruptcy. First quarter of the year traditionally is always low traffic, so why not offer more award seats, and get people to use miles when the planes aren't as full, on tickets they never would have purchased in the first place. Win-win for the airline, as it is positive PR, plus it gets rid of some of the financial liability of the frequent flyer program.

Again the key thing is to USE the miles, you can continue to accrue, but use 'em before it is too late and you miss out on enjoying them.