sts603

There are not "premium dates" when MileSaaver wouldn't be availble. I guarantee you that you can find MileSaaver awards on any date. On every route? No, of course not. But sorry, if the airline can fill some 1000 mile route for $1000 a ticket on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, it shouldn't be allowing those seats to go for 12.5K miles.

tylerdurden4543

This is counter to what I was told by an EXP agent last week; she said that ORD-MIA (and return) between Dec 19 and Jan 1 fell into "AAdvantage premium dates" where MileSaaver F seats would never be released (she likened it to a blackout but then backtracked from that term). I'm just reporting what I was told...admittedly still seems to be an n of 1.

JonNYC

An important correction-- and it explains why we've seen reports that _seem_ counter to the thrust of the topic; Qmax as an automated exception tool is indeed dead.

However, thats not to say shopping for award space is dead, just the process known as Qmax.

Receiving incoming information (not sure how much of it will be sharable) on what is and isn't possible in terms of award seat "shopping" now.

sts603

Maybe on ORD-MIA non-stops. But I just put in, for example, NYC to LAX. Everyday during that period has MileSaaver J/F awards available. And at least on the couple dates I clicked, tons of options.

There have always been routes where no Milesaaver awards would be released on a particular day. That's nothing new.

What the agent may be misinterpreting is the new AAnytime award levels. BUT that is not to say that MileSaaver wouldn't be relased on Level 2 and Level 3 AAnytime dates.

DWFI

Interesting. I will eagerly be awaiting more info if you can share.

JonNYC

I'm eagerly awaiting more info too.

sukn did indeed report that AAgent "shopping" for upgrade inventory for EXPs was still alive post-qmax, I'm *assuming* this is something beyond that-- either by a lot or a little (or maybe not at all,) but I do get the impression it's something a little more nuanced.

JonNYC

Well, can't really explain it-- and more than willing to "talk about it" -- but, it appears to me that the reports of QMAX's demise were greatly exaggerated.

I'm looking at a full description of QMAX in what I believe to be it's present state and the only real change I see is:
There is some other stuff in there making it pretty clear that some members will have better results than other (for sure) with QMAX, but the only outright elimination I se is requests for -T-.

Accordingly, I personally believe the report that QMAX was gone entirely was either incorrect, or, has since been rescinded. My belief at this point is the former.

Very open to correction if any informed person thinks I'm misreading this, but I can't see how presently.

djibouti

Am I reading your reading accurately, in that premium award QMAX requests are still allowed? That is, T- inventory is the sAAver economy award only?

JonNYC

That's exactly how I'm reading it. I have some feelers out (including to Gary (viewfromthewing)-- who seemed to have the whole thing confirmed by American Airlines, officially) to see if more clarity can be gained.

Also, in the version I see, I see no reference to "to complete party" requests-- but unsure if that might be in a different section or is no longer part of it. But the only real change I see is no more qmax requests for -T-.

JonNYC

To recount the genisis of this thing:

-this thread was started by a member who was told:
- then a few more members reported having had AAgnets tell them the exact same thing, also in this thread, -and- there had been a previous, identical report in another FT thread.

- then, a member here with a generally good history of getting access to this kind of info reported that they had heard something similar:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/22730511-post22.html

- then, Gleff saw those reports on travelingbetter (where I picked up the info from this thread) and an AA spokesman confirmed:
http://boardingarea.com/viewfromthew...th-didnt-tell/

HOWEVER, I believe it was all a mistake. I see entirely new language for QMAX and limiting ONLY and explicitly requests for -T-. It also more clearly outlines that not "all members are created equal" in getting inventory released, that RM has it's own criteria.

I will send to a moderator or two so that maybe we can start removing some of the bad info here.

Sorry for my role in spreading this misinformation!

JonNYC

Must add; ALL this info subject to final confirmation and/or other explanation of why some members here were being told one thing, others another and then this official documentation that seems to agree with none!

So, still a "discussion" here to be had, but I feel pretty comfortable in saying that something is very "off" in terms of:

° what AAgents are telling members

° what AAgents might be telling friends of theirs, etc, in an effort to be helpful

° what AA officially told Gary/viewfromthewing

beachfan

Jon, thanks so much for your efforts and perspicacity on this and other issues!

JonNYC

Thanks for the kind words, you're very welcome! I feel bad about my role in perpetuating what I now believe to at ;east *possibly* be a completely (or largely, anyway) erroneous report-- it's been a bit of a clusterpluck, but hoping to get the right info out there now.

MarkedMan

I wouldn't dwell on it too much, it was easy to think the worst given this bubbled up around the April 8th situation and that there was a lot of confirmation of the rumor going on - i.e. not your garden variety rumor.

I have never been in a position of wanting to request something like this with AA until now, and now that I could use this I must say AAgents I have talked to have been very discouraging, not even wanting to address this, so I think there is at least a trend towards moving away from this except in very specific cases, which I apparently don't fit.

It's also possible that, given what happened post April 8th, AA may have decided to back down somewhat at least for very HVFs. Guess I need more J/F purchases than I normally have

JonNYC

all this would make perfect sense (business-wise, etc)-- thing is, though, I can't see that emphasis is the document-- at least in the section I have access to, all I see is:

And while I have zero doubt that certain customers will meet with (far) greater success in such a request (new system or old), I do NOT see instruction to AAgents to discourage elite members from asking (except for -T-, needless to say.) And, personally, it makes me wonder if some of these agents are doing so out of a lack of desire or interest and/or making their own decisions as to if qmax is "likely to approve" in particular, given cases. PURE speculation on that last sentence, needless to say.