AAExpDFW

With no status I wouldn't count on exit row. That RDU-LHR is full with premium local contract pax that would have taken those seats weeks ago. You have a slight chance at MCE, but at this point I'd plan on a standard Y seat.

PainCorp

When is this flight, today or in the future? If it's day of you can't get seats until you get to AA.

ausstone

I'm currently Diamond on Delta but I'm looking to move over to AA for the obvious reasons. Will AA provide any type of status match? Will USAir provide a status match? Or should I just stick with the AA Challenge?

I'm based in Miami so I'm guessing the AA Challenge shouldn't be an issue. Thoughts?

jeffreyt

I'm curious... what are the obvious reasons?

tegelad

If MIA based, AA. You may be able to get a challenge from the AA folks, while the US Airways folks main mechanism is to purchase chairman preferred.

I would contact the AAdvantage customer service phone number and talk to someone about it.

+-ADT

lizs

US' main mechanism is to do a trial preferred. So $200 to get Silver for 90 days and you get a chance to hit Silver, Gold, Platinum, or Chairman's depending on how much you fly in that 90 days. You also can immediately start out at a higher level for a higher cost. You also don't need status on any airline to do this.

In the coupon section of FT I think many people give away trial preferred since it is a special dividend you get when you hit certain amounts of miles per year and not everybody has anyone to give it to.

But overall if you're MIA based AA makes the most sense.

JDiver

A good start is this thread Help Desk: AAdvantage Elite Status Challenge (Gold and Platinum) in the AA (Pre-Merger) Forum, with links, etc. Essentially, pay a fee, fly and earn 5,000 or 10,000 POINTS (NOT miles, you earn 0.5 - 1.5 points per mile dependent on fare class) within three months' time and you earn Gold or Platinum status. (If you fly internationally Platinum is a much better status - it includes alliance lounge access for qualifying flights.)

Superguy

You won't get a match out of US unless you can get one thru a corporate travel deal. US will invite you to either buy your status straight up or do a trial.

The trial can be a good deal - pick the tier you want to try and fly to keep it. Very similar to the AA challenge but keep in mind it's all BIS miles. CoS bonuses don't count toward your total (I had to fight with US over that one). Better to start lower - you can always earn higher with more travel. If you don't make the cut with a higher status, you get nothing.

The only thing you'll really miss out on AA with US status is upgrades. Which, as an AA platinum, you'd have to earn or buy stickers anyway currently.

trose93401

I have been a 1K flier on United for about 7 years, with about 800K lifetime miles. I have accumulated many miles with US Air flights on east coast, as I am based out of Albany, NY (ALB) and travel to DC often (DCA). I almost never fly American mainly due to my home base in Albany. With the American-US merger, I need to join one of the FF programs at American or US Air. Since I fly US Air much more than American, I am tempted to start a new account with US Air. But since it seems they will consolidate into American, then perhaps I should join American and get credit on the US Air flights.

My questions are: (1) Which program should I join? (2) Since I am a 1K with United, any advice on how to get status match?

Thanks!

BoeingBoy

Nobody really knows when the AA and US programs will be combined although I have speculated that 1/1/2015 would be a good time to do it. Until the programs are combined, there will probably be some at least minor differences (still some major differences now like not having reciprocal upgrades).

Since you fly a lot of US flights, I'd probably open a US account. That way you'd get the benefits of whatever status you earned on US until the programs are combined. I'd also take a look at US' trial preferred program where you pay a fee, get status immediately then have 90 days to fly a given number of miles/segments on US/USX to secure the status. Unless your company has a corporate discount program with US and could get you a status match, that would be the quickest way to get status while earning it.

At some point I'd recommend opening an AA account so that when the two programs are combined into a single AA account you'd already have the AA account.

Jim

Superguy

+1

scherzva

I have almost 1.3 million lifetime miles on United and I can say that my experience lately has been mixed. I have several friends that are loyal to American and have told me to give it a try.

I called AAdvantage (I have had an account since 2003) and they wanted a picture of my white MP card and a print out of my activity (which I used Awesome Screen Capture as a Chrome plugin). I got a response in less than an hour and was granted status (note, it got stuck by my SPAM filter so be sure to check).

I have 90 days to earn 25,000 points (not miles) to keep my ExecPlat status. Points are based off fare class (so 1,000 miles flown on a N fare ticket is only worth 500 points while a P fare is worth 1,500 points). http://www.aa.com/i18n/AAdvantage/el...quirements.jsp

I am keeping United for now since I have someone I am sharing my 1K status with (a 1MM benefit).

American does seem to treat its elites better than United (I got a free BOB and drinks on my last two flights while seated in Main Cabin Extra (their version of Economy Plus), living near IAD makes it harder to use American except for a few select routes.

Once I get my 25,000 points I will get 8 systemwides which are good on any fare class (not just W and higher for international like United). I can also purchase 500 mile upgrades at $30 each (I get 4 for every 10,000 miles I fly).

It is impossible to find out what your chances to clear an upgrade instantly when you book (like with R fares on United) and you can't see the upgrade list till 4 hours before flight time as opposed to 24 hours on United.

goingbananas

Curious, for the timing of doing that. Over at AA if you do a challenge after June 16th, your status is good until Feb 2016. If it is done prior to that, the status is good until Feb 2015. Does US have the same program in place for its trial preferred program?

BoeingBoy

US does indeed have basically the same although I think the date is different than AA's (later in the year for US I think). But before some date the trial status, assuming you fly enough within 90 days, is only good for the current program year while after that date it's good through the next program year.

The question I was answering was from a 1K on UA, so I assumed that enough flying would be switched to US/AA to maintain status into the future so I didn't go into the "when to do the trial" to get the longest period of status out of the trial.

Jim

goingbananas

I understand. I have a colleague that flies right at 120,000ish mile and doing the trial on US for example might be tight to make 100,000 (since we are 2 months in already) by the end of the year so if US had their trial set up where the date later, he can do it at a later time to get status good for next year as well without having to hit the 100K boggy by December.