nocturnalgringo

Hi folks,
I'm a newbie on FlyerTalk. I'm currently a United 1k and a few months ago moved to Puerto Varas, Chile. I'm considering going for a status match to either AAdvantage or LATAM Pass. For the record I have seen threads discussing the two but I haven't seen any since major changes have taken place to both programs, so I figured it's worth a new thread. The backstory with my reasoning is below, but I have three questions basic questions which you may be able to provide feedback on without the backstory:

1) Which one is a better program, considering 75% of my travel will be between PMC in Chile and the US with 25% being to other parts of the world.
2) When they do a status match do they ever offer to match upgrades (or equivalent) as well? Or just the status?
3) What status would a United 1k likely be offered in each program?

Here's the backstory:
My home airport is now PMC, which is not served by any Star Alliance partners. Every few weeks I have to travel internationally, mostly to the US but occasionally elsewhere. Star Alliance is terrible in and out of South America forcing me to usually fly through the US first to get out of the Americas, resulting in very long trips. It recently took me over 40 hours to get to Amsterdam. OneWorld has excellent access in and out of South America.

While I can get itineraries through United that include the PMC - SCL leg on LATAM, I obviously don't get Premier mileage credit for it and it counts against my PQD, and often they are inconvenient itineraries with long layovers in SCL. So sometimes I buy that leg separately, but this causes problems with baggage since I often have to travel heavy and don't get my baggage allowance on the PMC - SCL leg unless I book through United. It would be nice to be able to get credit for this leg and get better itineraries.

I have taken advantage of registering my address outside of the US on UA to now have the PQD requirement waived, which is nice, but since I usually fly business class (either pay or with upgrades) the PQD waiver hasn't really benefited me yet.

All that to say I've been considering jumping ship from MileagePlus to LATAM Pass or AAdvantage. I've been studying LATAM Pass and AAdvantage but can't figure out which one makes more sense in my position. Any feedback would be really helpful. Thanks!