Originally Posted by SAT Lawyer

I'm a NW Platinum elite in SAT. I do much of my intraTexas flying on WN. You can certainly maintain your NW status while based here by using a combination of NW, CO, and DL, although you mind need to buy more expensive fares when flying CO to avoid a 50 percent elite qualifying mile hit; DL will always afford you full elite qualifying miles, but no chance of a complimentary upgrade. NW itself has mainline flights to DTW, MSP, and MEM, with the latter offering the most frequency and easy upgrades even for Silvers, but the worst equipment. One minor problem with the SkyTeam Alliance is that the only lounge (a Presidents Club) is in Terminal 2, but NW and DL operate out of terminal 1.

WN has a large presence and is my carrier of choice on most of my intraTexas flights, although I don't find it to be a particularly attractive option on longer flights.

CO, with its home at IAH, and AA, with its home at DFW, both offer easy and frequent single connections to multiple destinations. Unfortunately, CO and NW don't like to poach each other's members and therefore don't generally (if ever) match each other's status. AA would be more receptive, but it is unlikely to comp you to the Executive Platinum level so you will have to get used to not being eligible for complimentary upgrades.

UA offers nonstops to DEN, ORD, LAX, SFO, and IAD, with onward connections, but many of those flights are on ExPlus regional jets, and its frequencies lag behind CO's SAT-IAH flights and AA's SAT-DFW offerings.