martyYOW

MR (Amex Gold) as my primary card.

For now I'm hanging on the the TD Aeroplan Visa because it's the only card I have that offers flight delay/cancellation/ etc on Aeroplan tkts. I only use it to pay the taxes on my Aeroplan redemptions and for locations that don't take Amex. Most months my spend on it is $0.

alc

While I do know this is a wrong thread, but I do wonder why a lot of people do think Air Canada will really let someone who fly and earn Aeroplan miles on a flight say on May 20th, 2020 and then come the 1st day of new FFP, those miles become worthless. It is pretty much like 99.9999% for sure that Air Canada new FFP and Aeroplan will "HAVE TO" overlap for a period of them or Air Canada will allow members to transfer their balance over from Aeroplan at rate that is 1 to 1, assuming the new FFP continue with the same structure.

ridefar

I have posted this before but I have yet to hear a logic based response. They "have to" is a hope based response, not a logic based response. And the issue is this: you are claiming that AC will take a charge of hundreds of millions of dollars to do what you say: give people a whole bunch of miles in their account. For the last 10 years they have been unwilling to increase benefits at all, even marginally. Given that they haven't been willing to spend an extra $1m a year (even this year when people had this notion that introducing AQD was going to "cull the heard" and by diminishing numbers allow AC to increase benefits -- snort!) why would they suddenly ante up $100m? (Or pick a number yourself. As long as it is significant the actual number doesn't really matter.) And on top of all that, the indication is that the programs can't overlap due to the contract in place. So. Um. No, to pretty much everything you said.

rankourabu

I'd like to have some of what you are smoking.
You will be able to continue using your Aeroplan points on toasters no doubt - perhaps even on AC flights - ala Avion.

Like the post above this said - if you are hoping for a 1:1 transfer (even into the much devalued new program) - wishful thinking.

If your account is not zero on the day of changeover, you are gambling.

It will be interesting to see what happens with Aeroplan credit cards. No doubt it will be a fun year.

alc

I did leave a 0.0001% chance for AC not doing anything at all, right

All I am saying is that if AC really just do a clean cut where today your flight will credit to AP and tomorrow your flight to go to an empty / 0 balance new AC FFP account, this will affect "ALL" people, SE or not, hence, I just can't see how AC will even do that, from a business point of view. That move is pretty much telling everyone that I don't care your loyalty all together to anyone, again SE or not.

But I could be wrong and maybe AC does want to get everyone not to join their new FFP with starting balance that is carry over from AP.

I think we will just have to wait and see before we can draw the conclusion stating AP is useless comes 2020, or specifically June 29, 2020.

ridefar

We are in total agreement.

And by way of yet more evidence, AC just further enhanced the program by requiring SE to co-pay for upgrades on domestic routes for some Flex fares. But yeah, things will get better any year now. They just have to, right? Just like the co-pays for SE last week were "just a glitch". Keep dreaming.

BlondeBomber

But this seems to be added functionality and doesn't affect the cost of what you could do before adding these cheaper fares. Doesn't mean to say there won't be bracket creep--indeed I think we can guarantee there will be bracket creep--but for the time being, this is "better" or no different depending on your perspective.

ridefar

Is it? I thought all Flex fares were upgradeable for SE before, w/ no co-pay. Now there is co-pay. Yes, you could argue that Tango functionality has increased. But for the co-pay cost, you might as well just buy high Flex.

yosemite1

Won't we still be able to use AP points other other *A flights? So maybe its not SO useless?

ridefar

I don't believe there is anything definitive but the consensus seemed to be "no". AE will have no contract with *A. The only way we have access to those seats now is through AC's *A relationship. Points will only be good for AC, and at (presumably) diminished rates similar to market fare or Avion.

canopus27

The complexity is that they have introduced new classes into Flex.

Looking at the Flex classes that originally existed (none of which required an SE co-pay), I don't believe any of them have changed ... they still don't require a co-pay.

But AC has now let you buy cheaper fare classes (LASTK) that used to be only Tango, and now buy them as Flex (with 100% AQM). Those classes can now be bought (for domestic & TB) as either Tango or Flex. The Tango option used to require a co-pay (and they still do), and the Flex option is new (but does require a co-pay).

It's complicated, and I'm still trying to get my head around it ... but unless I have my facts wrong, I don't think what they've done is that unreasonable.

tcook052

Let's please not intermingle multiple topics and keep the co-pay discussion for the current thread on that subject which is here:

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/air-...lex-fares.html

tcook052
AC forum Mod.

tcook052

Why wouldn't AE post-2020 be able to ticket other *A airlines like Air Miles or other loyalty programs do?

ridefar

They could, I suppose (although they have given no indication that this will be possible). But that would be at what, a 90% reduction in the value of the points? Give or take? So significant that it would be somewhere between disingenuous to outright misleading to say that the program is intact or that redemption is still possible. Sure it is. But at an insanely huge cost relative to pre July 1st 2020. Just like I can redeem to FRA-YYC for 55,000 points in J, or use 832,300 points for a market fare redemption in J, and still not get a direct flight.

Stranger

Is there another option, though, beyond some temporary transition plan perhaps. During which AC might be inclined to be a bit more generous in order not to lose too much goodwill with customers.

Although even that, given the long advance notice, the great majority of AE point holders should be able to redeem before the split.