Originally Posted by FullFare

Let me share my personal experience about CK, a status level that I was denied, on multiple occasions, even after advocating for myself with some credibility.

I purchased a Lifetime Aairpass back in 1994 for a big chunk of money (approx $200K for limited). At the time, AA had decided to make SJC into a hub, with flights to everywhere in the world, with major convenience. My other option was to purchase a similar product (UA "Pass Plus") which was similarly priced and with similar benefits and capabilities.

I even bought a lot of revenue tickets that I couldn't use my AAirpass allotment for, and bought limited Aairpass plans for my wife and kids.

Over time, AA's flight service, and other travel options at SJC, went south (literally) and AA managers out of Dallas decided they would de-hubify SJC and that LAX would be their West Coast focus hub. Gone was service to HNL, JFK, and much of the West of our county for non-stop service. Service up and down the West Coast which was terrific, was now gone, You had to put up with the connections at the infamous outlying connecting hub at LAX, flying bus routes through the airport runways.

It's so bad here in the SF Bay Area that there is pitiful service even out of SFO One rare non-stops to ORD. Even out of SFO, we have only 2-3 flights/day from SFO-ORD. Even to JFK, the service is cut way back.

So, what did wife and I do? We booked carriers such as UA to ORD and DL to JFK (they had 8 non-stops/day) and others. International lying? Forget it. AA had nothing. Flying connections now in our Covid days are totally unreliable. If one goes wrong, the trip goes to hell.

So, after having my share of airline travel disruptions, I appealed to the powers to be at AA to consider me for CK. I was told by some not to do it---don't call them---they would call me. Well, they did reply, with a classically snarky letter that I didn't qualify, and maybe don't bother them again.

I have been insulted by better people than AA's managers in my life, so it pretty much rolled off my back. I still board flights with first class (paid) and my wife stays on top of out trips so we have learned to adapt to any of the uthinkable problems that AA confronts us with. If there are other missed perks of being CK, I never knew what they were anyway. I am a 30+ yr Advantage member (back to when Crandall started it) and it all went by, under my radar all the time, despite being top tier (EXP on down) for every every year since Advantage started, often w 200K plus/yr flow, and $60k+ dollar spent over Aairpass mile usage.

So if AA remains selective about whom it admits to CK, that is AA's decision. I remember purchasing yearly AAirpas membership for my wife and 2 children back in the 1990's. AA made them all CK, even though I was the one who was the sugar daddy. But not me, after I wrote them and told them it would be a good thing for both of us.

Got another snarky letter about an appeal for CK (at this time, was purchasing $80K/year over and above AAairpass usage. Still, had to use UA out of the Bay Area because of the dearth of air service out of the Bay Area due to AA.

When I was rising to the position as President of the Santa Clara County Medical Association, and later the California Medical Association, I selected UA as our preferred carrier for travel, displacing AA from an account easily eclipsing over $200K in annual value. Don't think AA knows, and undoubtedly doesn't care. After 7million lifetime miles, it's something that is in the past for both of us.

There may be others who have other reasons to have felt snubbed by some capricious soul in the AA hierarchy for handling this status level. (CK) out. I think AA is unwise to have a higher level than EXP, and tell the world that it is secret, and have capricious reasons for not allowing those who want to aspire to it to achieve that level.

Short point: If there is a level to be achieved---spell it out and let those who want to aspire to it have at it. Don't keep secrets or tell kids on the street that they can't join the club or make the grade. Doesn't have a great potential for building love.

There are others like myself who resent such business decisions and can only fight back with ways that work for us---directing business and cash flow elsewhere. Such is the way of business. Potential clients have a lot of money, aren't fools, don't like to be snubbed, and frequently have a long memory and ways of retaliation for such treatment. AAL stock likely destined to stay at thirteen bucks a share for some years to come. Dumped mine earlier this year in April.