And if you're new in the business world and just join AA next year, 2MM is an awful lot of flying to get lifetime status. Even UA doesn't require that under their current guidelines. If you had to start off fresh would you see the 2MM as attainable? How many years would it take you to get there? It would take me, averaging about 125K a year of AA flights, 16 years. Someone who only flies 50K a year would take 40 years. That's one long road ahead. It took me 19 years to make 1MM at UA and that was with a 5 year break during their bankruptcy.

I wish they had tweaked the program for 1MM to award lifetime Platinum for actual flight miles, versus raising the goal to 2MM, as I suspect we have some FTers that could qualify just on that route in a much shorter span than what they've rolled out this week. 1 million flight miles is a lot less travel than 2 million flight miles.

Edit: Before it was merged --->This thread made me lol.

Unless I am mistaken it looks like LTP on a go-forward basis will accrue miles based on base miles, no bonuses.

Given some of the schemes being posted in other threads... maybe.

Miles towards LTP will only accrue for base miles. People with LTP will continue to receive the 100% elite bonus RDM.

I'm more concerned about how AA is going to devalue miles earned from flights for use on flights. The negative aspect of the MM program change is nothing compared to what that will end up being the case for miles earned from flights for use on flights. Those looking to dump hotel points for AA points to pursue lifetime elite status with AA may even end up thanking AA for not giving them time to devalue their points once by doing such transfers and once again by whatever AA ends up doing to devalue the points even further.

For the entire duration of my posting history on FT -- that's 10 years completed now -- 1 Million AA miles granted lifetime Gold status.

Here's a thread that goes to show that: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...s-13760-a.html

For those considering options for lifetime airline elite status pursuits, here's a thread about what other airlines have done: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/miles...d-summary.html

First of all, if you knew me, you'd know that I don't care a lick about lifetime status. Honestly. I didn't even know I had lifetime Gold until I took 2 years off from flying AA in 2007 and 2008 by which time I was already at 1.7MM miles. And the only way I figured it out is because I ended up getting stuck at Gold when I thought I should have been downgraded to general member in Feb of 2009.

And the purpose of this thread was the same as the purpose of all the other inane threads that spawned that whined about this program change. I am getting tired of the whining and entitlement.

many people do not have the ability to get thay many cards

yes, but the 100% bonus on redeemable miles still makes PLT far more valuable to me than GLD

Are you referring to a specific promo/scheme or making a general statement?

If I knew you, I would be very surprised that someone who doesn't care a lick about lifetime status, would choose the handle "AAExPlat!" I would be even more surprised if your profile mentioned that you had "2.50MM!" ;)

Tom.

If I was starting out anew today, my decisions would be made the same way I made them back in 2002 when I started traveling full-time. My priorities were and are upgrade policy, award availability, and ability to accrue RDM. In that order. Lifetime has never even crossed my mind. I also have 600k BIS miles on CO and you don't see my flying CO/UA fulltime even through I could close the gap to 1MM in 2 years with BIS only. And if I started out today, I'd still pick AA given that I live in AUS and value the perks I do.

The mantra that UA requires only 1MM to get 1P is flawed for one major reason. UA's MM program is still based on the age old idea that one carrier has to fly everywhere themselves to move their pax. With the alliances and particularly the JVs and ATIs out there today, airlines are frequently handing over routes they used to ply to their partners. AA has recognized that and as a result included partner airline BIS in the tally. If they had then used UA's practice of 1MM for AA LT Platinum, AA LT Plat would have been way too easy to hit.

I believe before long, UA will change their program to either of the following scenarios:

- 1MM BIS will get 2P for life
- 2MM BIS will include partners and guarantee 1P for life

I believe UA's program is problematic in the long-term. As I mentioned, the only proviso that I think AA missed was to give some sort of premium fare BIS booster, but that could be added anytime.

I agree with those that say AA made the right decision to reward MMers for flying, not from credit card churnings, Healthy Choice or Cheese Fondue purchases, AA Dining promos, etc.

But I have to question what incentive does a high value flyer have to achieve MMer status if only base miles count?

IMO, including class of service (full fare Y/B, J and F) and elite bonus miles to the lifetime counter should also be given a second review as they are part of actual flight miles.

By adding both class of service and elite bonus miles to the equation, this will reward AA's most frequent flyer to achieve MM faster and provide an incentive to keep being loyal to AA by reachieving GLD/PLT/EXP status until they reach the distinguished threshold.

Otherwise, it wouldn't be fair to distinguish between:

A person flying on an AA LAX-NRT flight on an O fare earning 5451 mi to the lifetime counter

vs

Another AA LAX-NRT flyer on J earning the same 5451 mi to the lifetime counter

vs

A high value EXP on AA LAX-NRT in F earning the same 5451 mi to the lifetime counter

discourse or discord?

I think it is already dieing down on its own, even though the announcement was anticipated, an actual change being announced is still shocking. Starting another thread about it probably actually feeds it.

Let alone wanting to carry that many cards that could be lost or stolen in certain parts of the world. Making international calls to three+ different card issuers would be a real pain.

Believe what you want to, but I am merely a very diligent person, so I list this nonsense out of a sense of OCD. And frankly, I have never cared about LT Plat because all but 2 out of 12 years (through 2/2013), I have been EXP anyway.