Originally Posted by
sdsearch
Perhaps the most valuable thing I learned some time back (circa 2003) on FlyerTalk was that all AA miles from all sources counted (back then) toward AA lifetime elite status. So I set out trying to earn AA miles any way I could above all else, and half a year before all that ended (in late 2011), I totaled 2 million lifetime AA miles earned in about 8 years and earned lifetime AA Plat status (second level up) as a result..A good fraction of the actual miles I earned from flying were from double and triple RDM miles bonuses on flights (during the economic downturn) that I learned about on FlyerTalk. I pretty much never fly for work, so this is not something I could have ever achieved otherwise.
This brings back some memories! I remember reading about how the "all miles count toward lifetime status" was going to end eventually, so started ratcheting up anything I could to cross the finish line.
I bought about 100k in dollar coins, tried to make most of my dining out at places that were in AAdvantage Dining, charged everything to my Citi AA card, etc. The icing on the cake was the promo AA ran, I think @ 2009, where they introduced service to 27 new cities, and if you traveled to 10 of them in a three month period, not only was it double miles on each flight, you also got 100k bonus miles at the end. IIRC, six of them were straight turns, (DFW-CYS, DFW-FAY, etc.) The rest I had to overnight, I remember a couple DFW-ORD-AVP and similar. On the ones I had to overnight, i'd burn some points on a cheap Starwood hotel. I never did any of the famous transcons AA was offering triple miles, because the positioning flights and lack of upgrade availability scared me off.
I crossed over 2MM Lifetime about a year before they ended the "all miles count", and I got some nice upgrades and other perks from that LT PLT status. Ironically, now I almost exclusively pay for F domestically, J international, and am now starting to look into B6 for domestic flights. It was a fun hobby at the time, but I've realized, if you pay for F/J, and have a ton of BE points to cash in for AAdmirals Club passes, status doesn't matter. FT, and all it's contributors, taught me all this, and for that I'm really thankful!