Originally Posted by hodad

I'm about to purchase five round-trip tickets from SAN-LIH on AlaskaAir, and I'm planning on using my Chase Sapphire Preferred card. Every passenger has a Mileage Plan account, but none of us have accrued miles yet.

What connection does Alaska have to American? Would there be any way of earning American miles instead of Alaskan miles on these flights? They don't show up when I search AA.com, so I assume not. But I'm still learning. I have a Citi AAdvantage Platinum Elite card too.

I would appreciate help walking me through this, including click-thru portals, codes, and anything else I might need to know to maximize the benefits available for such a purchase.

Thank you!