Jan 15, 2015, 5:11 pm
Last edit by: Prospero
Future of AA / US Lifetime Status / Million Miler program (consolidated)
Until the new (and current) Million Miler program was launched December 2011, any miles from all sources (all redeemable miles) counted as Million Miler miles. Lifetime status granted was the same as today: Gold at 1,000,000 miles ever earned, and Platinum at 2,000,000 lifetime miles ever earned; no lifetime top tier (EP / EXP) status was, or is, offered. Further million miles thresholds earn 4 SWUs.
The current Million Miler program "grandfathered" existing MM counts because until now there existed no way to differentiate miles for MM count. With the announcement of the new program, AA announced only Base / Elite-Qualifying Miles would count and be added to one's Million Mile counter.
AAdvantage® Million MilerSM program recognizes and rewards AAdvantage members when Million Miler thresholds are achieved. Base miles earned by flying on American Airlines, American Eagle® or any eligible AAdvantage program participating airline will count toward Million Miler status.
AAdvantage members will enjoy the following benefits when Million Miler status is reached:
At one million (1,000,000) Million Miler miles, AAdvantage members will receive lifetime AAdvantage Gold status and 35,000 AAdvantage bonus miles*
At two million (2,000,000) Million Miler miles, AAdvantage members will receive lifetime AAdvantage Platinum status and four one-way systemwide upgrades
At each additional Million Miler mark, AAdvantage members will receive four additional one-way systemwide upgrades
For all members, your beginning Million Miler balance will include every AAdvantage mile you ever earned in the program. This Program to Date balance is currently reflected in your AAdvantage account on aa.com. Million Miler activity will be displayed in your AAdvantage account on aa.com separately from award miles so progress toward reaching this special designation can be easily tracked.
It's a special honor to be recognized with Million Miler status - and it is our distinct pleasure to reward such loyalty.
US has had a lifetime status / million mile program, and it counts PQM.
The greatest likelihood is current million miler counts will be merged, and that there is no way to "beat the system" by trying to inflate Redeemable miles counts in AA or US accounts; they both differentiate the kinds of miles, and no indication the Million Miler program will include lifetime Redeemable miles counts when USDM accounts are brought over and merged into AAdvantage (nor has anyone who has already caused an account merger stated to the contrary).
In the second quarter of 2015, we’ll combine your million mile balances (if you have both a Dividend Miles and AAdvantage® account) or transfer your million mile balance to the AAdvantage program.
AAdvantage Million Miler program:
http://www.aa.com/i18n/utility/millionMiler.jsp
Delta's comparable program (no lifetime top tier status):http://www.delta.com/content/www/en_...er-status.html
United's comparable program (lifetime top tier status granted):
http://www.united.com/web/en-US/cont.../lifetime.aspx
Until the new (and current) Million Miler program was launched December 2011, any miles from all sources (all redeemable miles) counted as Million Miler miles. Lifetime status granted was the same as today: Gold at 1,000,000 miles ever earned, and Platinum at 2,000,000 lifetime miles ever earned; no lifetime top tier (EP / EXP) status was, or is, offered. Further million miles thresholds earn 4 SWUs.
The current Million Miler program "grandfathered" existing MM counts because until now there existed no way to differentiate miles for MM count. With the announcement of the new program, AA announced only Base / Elite-Qualifying Miles would count and be added to one's Million Mile counter.
AAdvantage® Million MilerSM program recognizes and rewards AAdvantage members when Million Miler thresholds are achieved. Base miles earned by flying on American Airlines, American Eagle® or any eligible AAdvantage program participating airline will count toward Million Miler status.
AAdvantage members will enjoy the following benefits when Million Miler status is reached:
At one million (1,000,000) Million Miler miles, AAdvantage members will receive lifetime AAdvantage Gold status and 35,000 AAdvantage bonus miles*
At two million (2,000,000) Million Miler miles, AAdvantage members will receive lifetime AAdvantage Platinum status and four one-way systemwide upgrades
At each additional Million Miler mark, AAdvantage members will receive four additional one-way systemwide upgrades
For all members, your beginning Million Miler balance will include every AAdvantage mile you ever earned in the program. This Program to Date balance is currently reflected in your AAdvantage account on aa.com. Million Miler activity will be displayed in your AAdvantage account on aa.com separately from award miles so progress toward reaching this special designation can be easily tracked.
It's a special honor to be recognized with Million Miler status - and it is our distinct pleasure to reward such loyalty.
US has had a lifetime status / million mile program, and it counts PQM.
The greatest likelihood is current million miler counts will be merged, and that there is no way to "beat the system" by trying to inflate Redeemable miles counts in AA or US accounts; they both differentiate the kinds of miles, and no indication the Million Miler program will include lifetime Redeemable miles counts when USDM accounts are brought over and merged into AAdvantage (nor has anyone who has already caused an account merger stated to the contrary).
In the second quarter of 2015, we’ll combine your million mile balances (if you have both a Dividend Miles and AAdvantage® account) or transfer your million mile balance to the AAdvantage program.
AAdvantage Million Miler program:
http://www.aa.com/i18n/utility/millionMiler.jsp
Delta's comparable program (no lifetime top tier status):http://www.delta.com/content/www/en_...er-status.html
United's comparable program (lifetime top tier status granted):
http://www.united.com/web/en-US/cont.../lifetime.aspx
AA Lifetime Status / Million Miler program - discussion, speculation (consolidated)
Jan 6, 2014, 10:22 am
#106
Join Date: Sep 2011
Programs: AA SPG Amex
Posts: 4,644
So, I would say that the LT status achieved via hitting MM status is a nice "retirement" option from active frequent flying to try and requalify for status annually. However I would not say that having 1mm in the bank is sufficient to retire from collecting miles at all, because of the constant devaluation pointed out by Fanjet. Not to mention that 1mm only gets me r/t sAAver seats in F to Europe for two four times, and I think I'll want to travel there more than that once retired
.
Jan 6, 2014, 12:41 pm
#107
Join Date: Aug 2008
Programs: AA EXP
Posts: 1,714
Sounds like we're talking about two different definitions for "MM" and two different definitions for the term "retirement". On the one hand, "MM" can refer to banked miles, but on the other hand, it can refer to thresholds for lifetime status. "Retirement", too, can refer to retirement from active frequent flying or retirement from all collection of FF miles.
The OP was commenting, specifically, about "MM status" My bolding
The mention of "status" eliminates any chance that we're discussing banked miles (which I agree are not a good idea for retirement). So the question really has to stand, if the OP believes that aiming for or using MM Status as part of a retirement plan (be it retirement from work or miles/points collecting) isn't a good idea then what is a good idea? What should a "retirement plan" look like?
Jan 6, 2014, 12:57 pm
#108
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: High Point, NC
Programs: None
Posts: 9,171
To me, anyone who counts on any specific benefit from a FF plan being there at some point more than a few years away isn't "planning" anything - they're taking a chance and hoping that the benefit will be there. Who's to guarantee that in 5 years a given FF program won't use only revenue as a qualifier?
Jim
Jim
Jan 6, 2014, 8:02 pm
#109
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: west of DFW airport
Programs: AA LT Gold 1.9 MM flying my way to LT PLAT
Posts: 11,074
To me, anyone who counts on any specific benefit from a FF plan being there at some point more than a few years away isn't "planning" anything - they're taking a chance and hoping that the benefit will be there. Who's to guarantee that in 5 years a given FF program won't use only revenue as a qualifier?
Jim
Jim
The 100,000 AA miles I reserve are for use in case of a family emergency or some such as purchasing last minute tickets can be very expensive.
Jan 6, 2014, 11:02 pm
#110
Suspended
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: LAX
Programs: AAdvantage EXPLAT, Hilton Diamond, SPG/Marriott Gold, IHG Platinum, Citi Exec MC, Amex Plat
Posts: 1,443
Not possible.
And they have no easy way to go back through the decades of records of each individual and figure out how many miles were from what. (Those records are probably not online in ready-to-process form, they're probably archived in some format they no longer currently use. So they're researchable on an individual basis if occasionally needed, but unwieldy to reprocess for every AAdvantage member out there.)
And they have no easy way to go back through the decades of records of each individual and figure out how many miles were from what. (Those records are probably not online in ready-to-process form, they're probably archived in some format they no longer currently use. So they're researchable on an individual basis if occasionally needed, but unwieldy to reprocess for every AAdvantage member out there.)
I parse plenty of data that comes in unwieldy formats and turn them into readable consistent formats for my job (and it's quite fun). Shouldn't be that difficult to do. Give me a couple months and I'll get it done! AA can compensate me with 1.7 Million Lifetime miles
Jan 7, 2014, 8:53 am
#111
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Southern California
Programs: The usual for over 7 Million paid miles flown to date... My first paid flight was on a DC3.
Posts: 1,518
As the OP of this thread, a key statement that I made in my original post was:
"I get the vibe that the program looks good to continue in the future."
This morning I received the following email from AA:
Dear prspad,
AAdvantage Platinum Number: ******
It's an exciting time at American Airlines, and we're kicking off the new year with you, our most loyal customers, in mind.
For now, we will continue to maintain our separate loyalty programs — AAdvantage® and Dividend Miles — with rules and benefits of each program still applying, but rest assured your mileage balance and elite status are safe, secure and will continue to be honored.
There is much work to be done as we combine two great airlines — American Airlines and US Airways, and since the close of our merger, we have been working to bring you our first phase of enhanced benefits, effective today. Here are a few highlights:
Earning and redeeming miles
You can now earn and redeem AAdvantage miles when flying on American or US Airways. All eligible travel on either airline will count toward elite status qualification in the program of your choosing.
Elite benefits
Elite members of each airline can now enjoy select reciprocal benefits when flying either airline, including First and Business Class check-in, complimentary checked bags, priority security and boarding and many more.
More lounge access
In addition to the 35 Admirals Club® locations currently in major airports worldwide, Admirals Club members (including Citi Executive® / AAdvantage® World EliteTM MasterCard® cardmembers) can now access all 19 domestic US Airways Clubs, 10 of which are in airports where Admirals Club lounges are not currently offered.
Same great benefits with the Citi® / AAdvantage® card
Your credit card benefits will remain unchanged. You'll continue to earn AAdvantage miles for purchases on your Citi® / AAdvantage® card without disruption.
Coming soon, we'll begin the first phase of a codeshare agreement with US Airways, which will bring you easy access to the combined company's global network.
Stay up-to-date on the latest developments and benefits coming your way by visiting aa.com/arriving and following our social channels. If you're traveling soon, check out aa.com/findyourway for day-of-travel information.
Sincerely,
Andrew Nocella
Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer
American Airlines
I'll tell you what a bad vibe is for me... Flying a C-119 Flying Boxcar between Thailand and South Vietnam in 1966 when my Starboard engine gave up the ghost! A good vibe, is that AA has been very kind to me and my family over the years and the feeling I have that the future looks pretty good for those of us who have been loyal customers!
*
"I get the vibe that the program looks good to continue in the future."
This morning I received the following email from AA:
Dear prspad,
AAdvantage Platinum Number: ******
It's an exciting time at American Airlines, and we're kicking off the new year with you, our most loyal customers, in mind.
For now, we will continue to maintain our separate loyalty programs — AAdvantage® and Dividend Miles — with rules and benefits of each program still applying, but rest assured your mileage balance and elite status are safe, secure and will continue to be honored.
There is much work to be done as we combine two great airlines — American Airlines and US Airways, and since the close of our merger, we have been working to bring you our first phase of enhanced benefits, effective today. Here are a few highlights:
Earning and redeeming miles
You can now earn and redeem AAdvantage miles when flying on American or US Airways. All eligible travel on either airline will count toward elite status qualification in the program of your choosing.
Elite benefits
Elite members of each airline can now enjoy select reciprocal benefits when flying either airline, including First and Business Class check-in, complimentary checked bags, priority security and boarding and many more.
More lounge access
In addition to the 35 Admirals Club® locations currently in major airports worldwide, Admirals Club members (including Citi Executive® / AAdvantage® World EliteTM MasterCard® cardmembers) can now access all 19 domestic US Airways Clubs, 10 of which are in airports where Admirals Club lounges are not currently offered.
Same great benefits with the Citi® / AAdvantage® card
Your credit card benefits will remain unchanged. You'll continue to earn AAdvantage miles for purchases on your Citi® / AAdvantage® card without disruption.
Coming soon, we'll begin the first phase of a codeshare agreement with US Airways, which will bring you easy access to the combined company's global network.
Stay up-to-date on the latest developments and benefits coming your way by visiting aa.com/arriving and following our social channels. If you're traveling soon, check out aa.com/findyourway for day-of-travel information.
Sincerely,
Andrew Nocella
Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer
American Airlines
I'll tell you what a bad vibe is for me... Flying a C-119 Flying Boxcar between Thailand and South Vietnam in 1966 when my Starboard engine gave up the ghost! A good vibe, is that AA has been very kind to me and my family over the years and the feeling I have that the future looks pretty good for those of us who have been loyal customers!
*
Jan 7, 2014, 1:39 pm
#112
Join Date: Jan 2010
Programs: AA Life P/2MM, HH Life D
Posts: 11
AA did away with all credit card miles counting toward their MM status about 2 years ago. One of the cards continued to add to MM status (the city executive black if I remember right) but that went away after a year also.
Jan 7, 2014, 5:44 pm
#113
Join Date: Sep 2011
Programs: AA SPG Amex
Posts: 4,644
The Executive card may have continued to accrue MM qualifying miles, but it was the World Elite card which was best known for maintaining that benefit.
Jan 7, 2014, 6:41 pm
#114
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 3,528
The card's name is the "Citi Executive® / AAdvantage® World EliteTM MasterCard®".
Quite a mouthful.
Jan 10, 2014, 8:40 am
#115
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: US
Posts: 92
Million Miles Status - Question
Ok, I didn't find anything when searching, but my question is on time remaining to qualify/earn MM status before they make any changes.
Both US and AA keep saying both FF accounts will be kept separate for at least a year.
I am making 2 assumptions from that statement:
1 - year = full 2014 year or close to it.
2 - when they say separate, it means that each program will continue to operate like it does now.
So, wouldn't it mean that I still have until the end of 2014 to earn my remaining 70k miles to get to my 2MM status?
Thanks
KG
UPDATE: I just spoke to an AA Advantage CS Rep and she seemed to agree with my assumptions...
Both US and AA keep saying both FF accounts will be kept separate for at least a year.
I am making 2 assumptions from that statement:
1 - year = full 2014 year or close to it.
2 - when they say separate, it means that each program will continue to operate like it does now.
So, wouldn't it mean that I still have until the end of 2014 to earn my remaining 70k miles to get to my 2MM status?
Thanks
KG
UPDATE: I just spoke to an AA Advantage CS Rep and she seemed to agree with my assumptions...
Jan 14, 2014, 8:54 am
#118
Join Date: Feb 2008
Posts: 783
Any idea if U.S. Air miles will count towards AAdvantage Million Mile mark?
Ex: if you have 700,000 miles with AAdvantage and 350,000 with U.S. Airways, all are qualifying miles, would that make it 1.0+ million and get you lifetime gold?
thank you,
PedroNY
Ex: if you have 700,000 miles with AAdvantage and 350,000 with U.S. Airways, all are qualifying miles, would that make it 1.0+ million and get you lifetime gold?
thank you,
PedroNY
Jan 15, 2014, 11:50 am
#119
Join Date: Apr 2007
Programs: AA-EXP, Hertz-PresCir, Marriot-Platinum, SPG-Platinum, Hyatt-Diamond, Hilton-Silver
Posts: 55
Interesting that I no longer see Million Mile Total miles on my account anymore. There used to be a separate section but now I just have "program miles".
Jan 15, 2014, 12:19 pm
#120
Join Date: May 2003
Programs: AA (1MM), Marriott (LT Gold)
Posts: 1,766
I just wish AA would reflect the million miler activity that they ignored when having system problems a few months ago. My ending balance is correct, but it just "magically" changes with no activity from December to January.