benzguy80

all it takes is money ... and getting the right paperwork to an expediting service

mvoight

Well, they are valid for 10 years. Useful for about 9 1/2

benzguy80

My first international business trip (actually first trip off-continent) was sprung on me at the last minute requiring me to expedite the passport application process. I got a call on a Tuesday night informing me that I would be leaving on following Friday for Singapore in the company of my customer.

After getting the photos I went to the post office for the requisite paperwork which I filled out and handed to an agent who had another person hand carry it through the process in Houston. The whole thing was supposed to take 48 hours, however a freak winter storm in Memphis held up FexEx! Fortunately the departure for my trip also slid out 24 hours.

There I was on Saturday morning, waiting at the curb (@DFW) with my bags while the agent on my end waited at the local FedEx depot and my customer who had already boarded our flight was wondering if I was going be joining them.

Finally the guy drove up and handed me the packet without leaving the driver's seat. I then hot footed it through security (pre-9/11) and onto the plane with less than 10 minutes to spare. I recollect imbibing before lunch for the first time since graduating from college.

doclkk

So lemme get this straight.

If you booked your ticket before 3/18 you don't get DEQM and if you FLY after June 15th you don't get the DEQM.

So you basically get jacked on both ends =P

Also - about the person that was told not to challenge because of DEQM. In general, I don't think AA customer service is wonderful. In my pre-status days, I called and asked if I could be moved to an aisle seat from a middle. I had flown 16k banked miles but only 7k eqp so i hadn't hit my status. I felt like I asked politely and got the reply that i could use 15k miles to upgrade myself for a leg.

She said that they're already giving me the accommodation of a platinum challenge and I can't expected to be accommodated that much. I asked, "well, I'm not trying to argue - but I'm paying for the platinum challenge. Don't you give it to anyone that wants to challenge as long as they haven't done it before."

She replied, no - that its only for select travelers.

I dunno, AA CS is pretty garbage based on that and a few other experiences.

ORDPLATAA

wow - pretty harsh. I think the promotion is more than fair. The level of entitlement shown by folks can be so out of control sometimes.

doclkk

I would disagree. I spend probably $15,000 worth of flights a year. In loyalty marketing, promotions are what keep programs afloat - particularly with recurring travelers. I can just as easy book another airline. If you really think that customers are on the winning end for loyalty programs you should take a course on marketing.

brp

Sounds like you'd be best served taking your enormous spend elsewhere and leave this deficient program to those of us for whom it does work. When they offer double qualifying miles for all flights you choose to book, any time you book it, we'll let you know. It might be worthwhile then.

Cheers.

nytango

How do you "get Jacked on both ends" The promotion has a beginning and an end. Why does that cause a problem. Should it go on forever??

From this and other comments about AA maybe you should be spending your 15000 on another airline.. try DL or UA you will love the upgrades and CS there.

MiamiAirport Formerly NY George

Don't you know brp, "O", "Q", and "I" International fares should allow for EVIP use, there should only be sparkling bottle water served in F, if EXPs have the absolute horror of riding in the back they should get served enough comped booze so they won't remember it, and AA should immediately dump all of its MD80s for new 737s so there will be IFE for everyone. No matter that AA has to make a profit.

ORDPLATAA

well, i was offered something extra (double eqms) which are not part of the stated benefits of the program. I am willing to conform my travel patterns around the requirements set forth in the promotion. For flying a little over 50,000 BIS, I will receive a benefit (EXP status) over what I would have received under their stated program qualifications (PLT status).

Did the program make me more loyal to AA? Yes - as most of my travel has been migrating to AS - so AA has successfully built a fence around me until Feb 2011.

This may be a case where the program is not the right fit for you and you may want to look elsewhere - to a program that offers you more value for your $15,000 spend.

doclkk

So this might be a logical reasoning question for you guys. "Should it go on forever" is a foolish rhetorical remark and assumption. I'm sure if you asked the question, "should it go on forever" everyone would declare an absolute no! It's not that it should be DEQM forever. It's the standard they use. Book AFTER March 18th and fly BEFORE June 15th.

If its not clear to you, perhaps I should spell it out.

If they say book AFTER march 18th then it should be book after March 18th and have DEQM for all flight booked BEFORE June 15th. This is known as parallel logic - concept lost to a few people here.

If they say fly BEFORE June 15th then you should get DEQM for all flights AFTER March 18th.

Here their logic is book AFTER March 18th and Fly BEFORE June 15th. This is not parallel logic and thus the reason for my dissatisfaction.

As for the customer service - UA has crappy CS as does DL. UA has Econ+ , but fewer upgrades for 1k but UA is part of a far superior alliance. Yea, AA / DL are better for upgrades.

Does AA have a better loyalty program - yes, I would agree. Is there room for improvement - hell yea. - So in spirit of improvement why not keep the logic consistent?

jordyn

The promotion is pretty clear: you must satisfy BOTH of the conditions, not EITHER of the conditions. (Put another way, there's a logical AND, not a logical OR.) It doesn't seem confusing or unfair, and satisfies the sort of logic that most people use--I can't find any references to this thing you're calling "parallel logic" and Wikipedia doesn't seem to know about it either.

doclkk

Your analogy suggests leaving this airline would leave you without a benefit if you went elsewhere.

You offered something extra - WHY - realize the reasoning. AA wants you to stay with them and not move elsewhere. They want you to connect with AA even though UA might take you direct. That is the loyalty that AA is hoping and loyalty marketing at its best.

You're missing the point of the $15,000. The point is that AA should want to retain me. Telling me to leave would be foolish. It doesn't cost that much to retain me. UA needs to spend a lot more to pull me over but what UA is banking on is that AA / DL upset their customers. This means less money on promotional marketing. That's the point. From a business perspective - we as consumers have the upper hand at this moment. (a little bit) Airlines don't have much cash and they're trying to increase flying - people to get out of normal behavior and move to more deviant behavior (ie mileage runs, connecting etc).

Is it worth .....ing and moaning til someone hears us? Hell yea. It's the reason for protesting.

I don't know why people are pissed at me - if anything - people should be happy that there is complaining because complaints brings reform. If its broken, fix it. There are many radical changes that airlines / hotels should pursue and I think keeping consistency should be a starting place.

doclkk

This is the reason I said you get jacked on both ends. There's not one end where you can benefit from.

Am I not being clear? I don't think you read the object of my complaint before.

Maybe law/business students can appreciate parallel reasoning a little more.

http://www.lsatexampracticetests.com...-parallel.html

ORDPLATAA

well, I guess I must be a simple minded fool - I read the rules and understand clearly that the promotion is for tickets reserved and purchased AFTER March 18th for travel ON OR BEFORE June 15th - a pretty well defined window and set of requirements. I think marketing types do this sort of thing - you know, have a PROMOTIONAL PERIOD- to drive incremental sales. But, that is my foolish assumption.