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[2016 NEWBIE LOUNGE] Ask Your "Newbie" AA Questions Here (flame free)

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Old Jan 1, 2016, 11:17 pm
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Last edit by: JY1024
Welcome to the 2016 "NEWBIE LOUNGE"
Ask Your Consolidated / Combined AA Questions Here (flame free)
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(This post can only be edited by moderators.)



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NOTE: The older AA NEWBIE LOUNGE post thread is here

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[2016 NEWBIE LOUNGE] Ask Your "Newbie" AA Questions Here (flame free)

Old Dec 14, 2016, 3:44 pm
  #3106  
 
Join Date: Dec 2016
Posts: 6
Originally Posted by mrow
Have you one of your boarding passes to check which number is being added?

It sounds like your BA Executive Club number is being added and not your AA Aadvantage account number.
You guys are right, AMEX Travel was adding my BA number as default. Thanks for the help.
FivePops is offline  
Old Dec 14, 2016, 3:44 pm
  #3107  
 
Join Date: Nov 2011
Programs: AA
Posts: 377
Originally Posted by Mwenenzi
There are dedicated threads on awards to Aust NZ
For QF look for the long haul first JFK DFW LAX SFO to/from BNE SYD MEL AKL
FJ (and TN?) can also get you to Australia
AA also now flys to AKL, New Zealand (~3 hrs from Australia)
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...er-thread.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...solidated.html
Thanks. I was using SYD as an example - I was more interested in the question of whether awards always got priced at premium levels if just one short domestic hop is in a premium cabin.

Originally Posted by Smiley90
Look at DFW-SYD/LAX-SYD directly, like you mentioned, is the only way unfortunately.

Though now that I think about it I don't think ba.com shows mixed-class awards so maybe using their search will work better. The downside being it'll also give you STL-LHR-SYD routings which you cant book with one AAward.
Thanks. I'm willing to try BA's search.

Last edited by JY1024; Dec 14, 2016 at 4:48 pm Reason: Merged consecutive posts
backprop is offline  
Old Dec 14, 2016, 3:55 pm
  #3108  
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: UK
Programs: BA Silver, AA Gold, A3 Gold, Honors Diamond, Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 1,251
Originally Posted by FivePops
You guys are right, AMEX Travel was adding my BA number as default. Thanks for the help.
Great, glad you've got to the bottom of it :-)
mrow is offline  
Old Dec 14, 2016, 4:43 pm
  #3109  
Senior Moderator and Moderator: American AAdvantage & TravelBuzz
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: BOS
Programs: AA EXP, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 10,413
Originally Posted by FivePops
You guys are right, AMEX Travel was adding my BA number as default. Thanks for the help.
Ah - that makes a lot more sense.

And welcome to FlyerTalk, FivePops!
JY1024 is offline  
Old Dec 17, 2016, 9:39 pm
  #3110  
 
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: AA
Posts: 2
Am I being ripped off or am I confused?

Honestly I've never really tracked this stuff that closely but I was getting really curious about my miles and looking at what I would need to do (planning for) 2017 to achieve Platinum status. So in looking a the rules as I understand them and what I was credited in 2016 (when I achieved Gold again) I think I'm not being properly credited for my miles.

I first achieved Gold status in 2014 (for 2015)
Again achieved Gold in 2015 (for 2016)
And again achieved Gold in 2016 (for 2017).

My status is currently Gold and has been for all of 2016 and says I will be Gold through January of 2018. Basically what I am saying is I have been Gold consistently for 2+ years.

On the AA website under Home -> Aadvantage -> Earn Miles -> Partner Airlines -> American Airlines it says:

Calculating award miles

The new earning structure applies to travel beginning August 1, 2016. Miles are earned based on ticket price (includes base fare plus carrier-imposed fees; excludes government-imposed taxes and fees). The more you spend, and the higher your elite status, the more you'll earn.

AAdvantage® member – 5 miles for every U.S. dollar
Gold member – 7 miles/U.S. dollar (40% bonus)
Platinum member – 8 miles/U.S. dollar (60% bonus)
Executive Platinum member – 11 miles/U.S. dollar (120% bonus)
You can earn a maximum of 75,000 award miles per ticket.


I'm talking actual miles - not EQM's. I understand the difference. And I see that for discount coach fares I basically get 1.00 EQM's per mile flown.

But according to the actual miles chart above being a Gold AAdvantage member I SHOULD be getting 7 actual miles per dollar spent + 40% bonus - Correct?

I also understand thats on the base fare - not the taxes and fees.


So here is what my account shows earned on the last few flights in 2016:

Roundtrip flight on 11/30 -12/2 from DFW to MFE
Paid $279.07 + 49.13 = $328.20

12/2
EQMs = 500
Base Miles = 700
Bonus Miles = 280

11/30
EQMs = 500
Base Miles = 700
Bonus mils = 280

So the fare was basically $280 x 5 = 1400 actual miles credited (700 + 700) + 560 bonus miles (40% = 280 + 280)

But shouldn't it have been $280 x 7 = 1960 actual miles credited + 784 bonus miles (40%)??

I am Gold level and it says I should get 7 miles per dollar spent, not 5????


This is the same for every flight I looked at going back for every month it displays (back to June 2016).


Example 2

11/4 to 11/6 roundtrip DFW to NYC
paid $258.68 + 47.52 = 306.20

11/4
EQMs = 1391 miles
Base miles = 510
Bonus miles = 204

11/6
EQMs = 1389 miles
Base miles = 785
Bonus miles = 314

Total of ~$259 x 5 = 1295 base miles (510 + 785) and 518 bonus miles (40% = 204 + 314)

Should have been $259 x 7 = 1813 and 725 bonus miles (40%)



Why am I only being credited for 5 miles for every dollar spent?????
mchensel is offline  
Old Dec 17, 2016, 9:55 pm
  #3111  
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: MSN
Programs: AA, BAEC Gold
Posts: 3,921
Originally Posted by mchensel
Am I being ripped off or am I confused?

Honestly I've never really tracked this stuff that closely but I was getting really curious about my miles and looking at what I would need to do (planning for) 2017 to achieve Platinum status. So in looking a the rules as I understand them and what I was credited in 2016 (when I achieved Gold again) I think I'm not being properly credited for my miles.

I first achieved Gold status in 2014 (for 2015)
Again achieved Gold in 2015 (for 2016)
And again achieved Gold in 2016 (for 2017).

My status is currently Gold and has been for all of 2016 and says I will be Gold through January of 2018. Basically what I am saying is I have been Gold consistently for 2+ years.

On the AA website under Home -> Aadvantage -> Earn Miles -> Partner Airlines -> American Airlines it says:

Calculating award miles

The new earning structure applies to travel beginning August 1, 2016. Miles are earned based on ticket price (includes base fare plus carrier-imposed fees; excludes government-imposed taxes and fees). The more you spend, and the higher your elite status, the more you'll earn.

AAdvantage® member – 5 miles for every U.S. dollar
Gold member – 7 miles/U.S. dollar (40% bonus)
Platinum member – 8 miles/U.S. dollar (60% bonus)
Executive Platinum member – 11 miles/U.S. dollar (120% bonus)
You can earn a maximum of 75,000 award miles per ticket.


I'm talking actual miles - not EQM's. I understand the difference. And I see that for discount coach fares I basically get 1.00 EQM's per mile flown.

But according to the actual miles chart above being a Gold AAdvantage member I SHOULD be getting 7 actual miles per dollar spent + 40% bonus - Correct?

I also understand thats on the base fare - not the taxes and fees.


So here is what my account shows earned on the last few flights in 2016:

Roundtrip flight on 11/30 -12/2 from DFW to MFE
Paid $279.07 + 49.13 = $328.20

12/2
EQMs = 500
Base Miles = 700
Bonus Miles = 280

11/30
EQMs = 500
Base Miles = 700
Bonus mils = 280

So the fare was basically $280 x 5 = 1400 actual miles credited (700 + 700) + 560 bonus miles (40% = 280 + 280)

But shouldn't it have been $280 x 7 = 1960 actual miles credited + 784 bonus miles (40%)??

I am Gold level and it says I should get 7 miles per dollar spent, not 5????


This is the same for every flight I looked at going back for every month it displays (back to June 2016).


Example 2

11/4 to 11/6 roundtrip DFW to NYC
paid $258.68 + 47.52 = 306.20

11/4
EQMs = 1391 miles
Base miles = 510
Bonus miles = 204

11/6
EQMs = 1389 miles
Base miles = 785
Bonus miles = 314

Total of ~$259 x 5 = 1295 base miles (510 + 785) and 518 bonus miles (40% = 204 + 314)

Should have been $259 x 7 = 1813 and 725 bonus miles (40%)



Why am I only being credited for 5 miles for every dollar spent?????
The "bonus" miles are the extra 2 miles per dollar, there are no other bonus miles now.
MADPhil is offline  
Old Dec 18, 2016, 5:06 am
  #3112  
 
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: AA
Posts: 2
Smile

Originally Posted by MADPhil
The "bonus" miles are the extra 2 miles per dollar, there are no other bonus miles now.
Ahhh I got it thank you. Well they have it worded pretty poorly then because of the way they award them - you see the bonus 40% and assume they are missing the base miles. it should say:


AAdvantage® member – 5 miles for every U.S. dollar
Gold member – 7 miles/U.S. dollar (5 miles + 2 miles a 40% bonus)
Platinum member – 8 miles/U.S. dollar (5 miles + 3 miles a 60% bonus)
Executive Platinum member – 11 miles/U.S. dollar (5 miles + 6 miles a 120% bonus)
You can earn a maximum of 75,000 award miles per ticket.

I don't know like I said maybe it was just me.
mchensel is offline  
Old Dec 18, 2016, 9:19 am
  #3113  
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: MSN
Programs: AA, BAEC Gold
Posts: 3,921
Originally Posted by mchensel
Ahhh I got it thank you. Well they have it worded pretty poorly then because of the way they award them - you see the bonus 40% and assume they are missing the base miles. it should say:


AAdvantage® member – 5 miles for every U.S. dollar
Gold member – 7 miles/U.S. dollar (5 miles + 2 miles a 40% bonus)
Platinum member – 8 miles/U.S. dollar (5 miles + 3 miles a 60% bonus)
Executive Platinum member – 11 miles/U.S. dollar (5 miles + 6 miles a 120% bonus)
You can earn a maximum of 75,000 award miles per ticket.

I don't know like I said maybe it was just me.
I think AA must have thought that they were replacing flown miles plus bonus with virtual miles plus bonus and it would be obvious. There is a another FT thread devoted to this topic and it wasn't as clear as AA had hoped!

Welcome to FT! If you stick around you will learn more than you ever wanted to know, but some of it may be very useful
MADPhil is offline  
Old Dec 18, 2016, 12:50 pm
  #3114  
Hilton Contributor Badge
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: flyover country
Posts: 2,434
First UR award, first flight in years

I have not flown in years, and I just "bought" a ticket on American Airlines at the Ultimate Rewards travel center (YYZ Toronto to ORD Chicago). I have a six character "Flight Confirmation #" but am unsure what to do next. The AA web site refers to a "Record Locator" for on-line check-in, which I do not expect to do. Is the Flight Confirmation number the same as a Record Locator?

Do I need something more than the emailed Flight Confirmation number (and my passport) when I get to the airport? I will be checking a bag; does that change the answer?

Thanks for any help.
serpens is offline  
Old Dec 18, 2016, 1:08 pm
  #3115  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Not here; there!
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold
Posts: 29,520
Originally Posted by serpens
I have not flown in years, and I just "bought" a ticket on American Airlines at the Ultimate Rewards travel center (YYZ Toronto to ORD Chicago). I have a six character "Flight Confirmation #" but am unsure what to do next. The AA web site refers to a "Record Locator" for on-line check-in, which I do not expect to do. Is the Flight Confirmation number the same as a Record Locator?

Do I need something more than the emailed Flight Confirmation number (and my passport) when I get to the airport? I will be checking a bag; does that change the answer?

Thanks for any help.
OT, but how many UR points did you pay for the YYZ-ORD one-way? When "SAAver" award seats are available, you can get the one-way for 7,500 UR points in Economy by transferring your points to BAEC, and redeeming for reward travel on AA.

Make sure that you actually receive a ticket number before planning to fly on the ticket you purchased from UR; without a ticket number, it is unlikely that you will be permitted to board.
guv1976 is offline  
Old Dec 18, 2016, 1:13 pm
  #3116  
 
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: TPA
Programs: BA Silver; Hilton Gold; IHG Diamond Ambassador; Marriott Gold
Posts: 2,811
Originally Posted by serpens
I have not flown in years, and I just "bought" a ticket on American Airlines at the Ultimate Rewards travel center (YYZ Toronto to ORD Chicago). I have a six character "Flight Confirmation #" but am unsure what to do next. The AA web site refers to a "Record Locator" for on-line check-in, which I do not expect to do. Is the Flight Confirmation number the same as a Record Locator?

Do I need something more than the emailed Flight Confirmation number (and my passport) when I get to the airport? I will be checking a bag; does that change the answer?

Thanks for any help.
Who emailed the confirmation? Chase or AA?

If you go to AA.com, without logging in you should be able to click on "My Trips / Check In", then on the next page provide your First Name, Last Name, Record Locator. If everything jibes, you'll then see the flight info, and be able to check in (if you're within 24hrs of flight).

If that doesn't work, then:
- If the email was from Chase, call them to confirm they really got you ticketed, and get the AA Record Locator from them
- If the email was from AA, double-check how the names appear on it
SpammersAreScum is offline  
Old Dec 18, 2016, 4:28 pm
  #3117  
Moderator: American AAdvantage
 
Join Date: May 2000
Location: NorCal - SMF area
Programs: AA LT Plat; HH LT Diamond, Maître-plongeur des Muccis
Posts: 62,948
Originally Posted by SpammersAreScum
Who emailed the confirmation? Chase or AA?

If you go to AA.com, without logging in you should be able to click on "My Trips / Check In", then on the next page provide your First Name, Last Name, Record Locator. If everything jibes, you'll then see the flight info, and be able to check in (if you're within 24hrs of flight).

If that doesn't work, then:
- If the email was from Chase, call them to confirm they really got you ticketed, and get the AA Record Locator from them
- If the email was from AA, double-check how the names appear on it
I would add that whilst viewing the record using the six letter record designator (PNR) one should check the ticket status. Is it "on request", "pending", "purchased"? Can one print a receipt with ticket number (beginning with "001")? The latter is the gold standard.

See http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...-ticketed.html, read the Wikipost at the top of the page, serpens.
JDiver is offline  
Old Dec 19, 2016, 6:48 am
  #3118  
Hilton Contributor Badge
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: flyover country
Posts: 2,434
Originally Posted by SpammersAreScum
Who emailed the confirmation? Chase or AA?
The Reply-To address is [email protected]. The Return-Path is [email protected]. Perhaps that means more to you than it does to me.

(Off topic, but how do I prevent the editor from making those email addresses clickable?)

If you go to AA.com, without logging in you should be able to click on "My Trips / Check In", then on the next page provide your First Name, Last Name, Record Locator. If everything jibes, you'll then see the flight info, and be able to check in (if you're within 24hrs of flight).
Let me check my understanding. I can do what you suggest even though it is (much) more than 24 hours before my flight. Also, since it is not yet 24 hours before my flight, I will not be able to check in, but only verify my information. Are those correct?

I do not want to check in now, even if I could. Is there some benefit to checking in early, beyond avoiding a line at the airport? When I check in, do I need access to a printer to print a boarding pass? Can I get the boarding pass on a tablet?

Thanks for all your help. This is quite new to me. And I could not agree more with your handle.
serpens is offline  
Old Dec 19, 2016, 7:07 am
  #3119  
Hilton Contributor Badge
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: flyover country
Posts: 2,434
Originally Posted by JDiver
I would add that whilst viewing the record using the six letter record designator (PNR) one should check the ticket status. Is it "on request", "pending", "purchased"? Can one print a receipt with ticket number (beginning with "001")? The latter is the gold standard.

See http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...-ticketed.html, read the Wikipost at the top of the page, serpens.
Thank you for that link.

As suggested in the wiki, I went to AA.com and requested a receipt. The web site asked for a document number, which must consist of numbers only. I do not have such a number. I have a Flight Confirmation # and an Agency Reference #; each is all letters.

I plan to visit the "My Trips / Check In" page at AA.com as soon as I get confirmation that I can retrieve my information without actually checking in. I will be sure to look for the ticket number. (Is that the "document number" that must consist of numbers only?)

Thanks again for your help and insight.
serpens is offline  
Old Dec 19, 2016, 7:23 am
  #3120  
Hilton Contributor Badge
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: flyover country
Posts: 2,434
Originally Posted by guv1976
OT, but how many UR points did you pay for the YYZ-ORD one-way? When "SAAver" award seats are available, you can get the one-way for 7,500 UR points in Economy by transferring your points to BAEC, and redeeming for reward travel on AA.

Make sure that you actually receive a ticket number before planning to fly on the ticket you purchased from UR; without a ticket number, it is unlikely that you will be permitted to board.
I used just under 14,000 points, but remember that that was for business class.

This is new to me, so I'll ask some questions that show my ignorance. Are SAAver seats necessarily economy seats? If I wanted to buy from AA rather than the UR travel site, how would I do that? It sounds like I would go to AA.com, make a reservation without paying for it (and make sure that I have the ticket number), then go to the UR web site and transfer a sufficient number of points to BAEC (do I need an BAEC number to do that?), then return to AA.com and pay for the ticket using Avios. What did I miss?

Thanks for the education.
serpens is offline  

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