Basically there are two different sets of awards available using AA miles: the all-partner awards (that were discussed above) and the oneworld awards you just mentioned. They have different rules and different strengths and weaknesses. The 101 on the OW awards is that yes, you need to use two OW airlines other than AA, so on a trip to Oz that means QF and CX in all likelihood, but others are possible. Not hard to do. The other benefit is that the mileage is calculated stopover to stopover. In your case, AUS-SYD-AKL-AUS regardless of routing as long as all connections are <24hrs. This can give you great flexibility with availability. On the downside, the OW awards tend to be more expensive, but it really is horses for courses and depends on your needs and routing.