Originally Posted by
eponymous_coward
I'd probably use that UA lifetime status some out of SFO, see which works best for AA/AS, and pick whoever's cheapest/most effective for your travel instead of getting sucked into "loyalty".
Originally Posted by
dayone
If it were me and I lived in the Bay Area and I had this benefit, I would stick with UA and aim for 2MM.
Originally Posted by
Kacee
Yeah, though I personally would not target 2MM, the marginal value over 1MM is minimal. But UA has so many more nonstop options from SFO than AS and AA combined, I'm not sure I would go all-in on One World.
Thanks everyone! Great insights.
I wasn't clear in my original post. I do not plan to completely abandon UA for AS/AA. I plan to continue to use my 1K benefits next year and my Lifetime Gold benefits after that. I just won't chase any higher status. I will use AS/AA as suggested when they are the better option, and fly enough to maintain the status level that gives me what I want.
I am certainly going to check out the AA other ways of maintaining status but I need to be able to book government rates at hotels and I haven't found a portal that will let me do that yet. Rental cars, shopping portals, credit cards, happy to jump through those hoops though.
I will look at the AA business fast track page, thanks Marty321.