Originally Posted by
propofol
Maximizing miles with Privilege Passes
So, a couple of questions, as I'm considering buying the privilege pass.
1) Does class of service benefit apply? In other words, if I fly 2000 miles, do I get credited with 3000 status miles, or 2000 status miles and 1000 aeroplan miles?
2) Can I creatively route my travel within the flight rules in order to take a circuitous route to maximize miles, or, once I've entered my departure and arrival cities, it locks me in to the shortest route and cannot be changed?
Thanks for any help!
1) If you are referring to the Amex 8-credit J-class pass, then yes COS rules apply so you would receive 150% of the mileage flown. The other version is a pure Tango product and would not accrue any status miles
2) You would perform all your bookings through the pass engine, which limits the number of itineraries and routing combinations available. Bear in mind that ALL routings have to be on AC metal... no codeshare flights on UA are covered. In the case of the latitude passes I have heard of some people changing their routing after the initial booking by calling in to obtain a preferred routing that wasn't available through the pass booking engine. Presumably you would have the same option with the J pass, but it is possible that there would be some limit on this.
Question... have you considered purchasing a latitude pass instead? Granted you would give up confirmed J at time of booking and the companion flexibility, but you would save considerable money and you would also get COS bonus for each flight segment when you take advantage of the complimentary 24-hr upgrade window. Therefore, in theory you could earn the same mileage in the same class of service for less money. Also... the Amex pass won't earn Aeroplan bonus miles or passes if you are currently signed up for either via your current Aeroplan status. I took a look at this option and decided that it wasn't worth it to me.
SG