Originally Posted by
moondog
-assuming they have an address in Italy, they could possibly use it to avoid the $6k spend requirement for AA
-the reason I bowed out of the BA status game was the BA flights requirement
-the Iberia angle is somewhat intriguing to me, especially mid-tier because of the lounge access
-assuming Iberia points work the same as BA points, and are similarly easy to book, I would prefer them to AA points
Even though both use Avios as their "currency," the BA and IB FFPs are very different programs, so it's best to research each. However, if you've had both a BAEC and Iberia Plus account open for more than 90 days and have earned at least one Avios in each, you can transfer your Avios back and forth between the two programs.
I've gotten very good value from IB Avios for a four-segment short-haul redemption on AA. BA would have charged 30,000 Avios for the trip (7,500 Avios per segment); IB charged just 12,000 Avios! But Iberia Plus redemptions on AA are completely non-refundable, non-changeable, so that should be considered when planning a redemption. Fortunately, neither BAEC nor Iberia Plus has a close-in award-booking fee.