Originally Posted by Tall Bloke
Apologies for jumping on the bandwagon...
I have *G and OW Emerald (already secured through 2006). At present I put all of my Transatlantic miles onto AA as they allow me to pre-book exit row seats (with UA second choice for E+)
I have an EU and US address, so can register to my advantage.
Do any of the Skyteam airlines allow their (status) passengers to pre-book exit seats ?
and..
Based on the above question are they likely to Comp or Challenge me status. I can show >150K Butt in seat miles on * and OW this year. (and about 12K on DL!!)
Thanks for any advice
I'm in a similar position. I am AA Plat (dropping to Gold for 2005) and BD *Gold (through status match only, though may requaliify for *Silver for 2005). The combination of the decline of MRTC and a forthcoming move to a MOW makes loyalty to OneWorld less practical and beneficial. Moreover, SkyTeam offers good service to Moscow and beyond, with OK, DL, CO (from 2005), AF, AZ and KL, as well as SU in the future. SkyTeam also offers more connections options to final destinations in the US (AA's domestic network ex-JFK is somewhat more limited, and LGW-DFW/RDU ex-MOW require an overnight in London; AY is the only other option).
Any suggestions as to what SkyTeam program would make the most sense, and would I be able to match my AA Plat status?
Primary destinations in the US would be NYC and PIT, with most transatlantic travel in Y. DL offers 2x daily JFK-PIT, and CO also EWR-PIT.
1. How are any of the European partners for reciprocal treatment of elites? For example, my AA Plat status is essentially worthless on BA except lounge access, but I understand that BD *Gold has some value on UA (E+ seats, etc.).
2. If long-haul flights are likely to be CO/DL (and I find DL transatlantic service to be miserable and uncomfortable), would either be preferable, or is NW or KL worth considering?
I currently have ~75K miles in NW, 3K in CO and 50K in DL, but no 2004 flights and no status in any (probably should have credited a recent VSUC flight to CO or DL, but 200% class-of-service + 20,000 bonus miles for VS FC were too tempting). UK Amex MR also only permits transfers to CO and DL (as well as VS and BD), making NW, KL and AF somewhat less appealing.