[QUOTE=akcae;27611497]
Originally Posted by
SpammersAreScum
Most of the time, the fare-vs-distance question seems to be clear-cut. Most of the gray area seems to be in ticket reissues and paying with TYPs; those sometimes go one way and sometimes the other with no (so-far) detectable pattern./QUOTE]
There's been speculation -- and reasonable, IMO -- regarding TYP-booked (and possibly others, like AMEX or Chase points) about the specific fare that is booked through those proprietary OTAs. If you can pull up actual fare rules, which is possible at least for tickets booked through TYP portal, at the time of purchase, you can search for "bulk" or "wholesale". If you find it, it's likely a fare that falls under "special" category and your earning of EQM/EQD/RDM will fall under that table. If you do not find those terms in the fare rules, it's likely a normal published fare which will then display on your AA itinerary page, and your earning will be fare-based.
Further to this, I just realized I had an itinerary I booked through the TYP portal, so I checked:
- Flight booked and wholly paid for with TYP.
- Itinerary page on aa.com does NOT display fare details, and says to contact my travel agent.
- Checking fare rules on thankyou.com (which is a huge benefit to be able to access AFTER THE PURCHASE) confirms that this appears to be a consolidator/special fare, as I see "wholesale" in rules. Specific fare code is O3AUCTN3 (booking class O).
Additionally, and what reminded me to check -- my EXP upgrade, including companion, cleared just now, so the fact that this is apparently a special fare does not seem to affect that.
The flight is on Monday, so I will see on Tuesday how the mileage credits -- fare- or distance-based.