Originally Posted by
runb4fun
i would advise against downgrading to avoid the 1st AF. instead, eat the 1st AF and downgrade back to BGR later on. Upgrade/downgrade is a common churning technique with Amex cards.
What do you think about paying the first AF but downgrading a few month later back to BGR to get a prorated refund (plus a new AF for BGR)? Would that likely trigger some serious adverse reaction like avoiding the AF altogether?