travelingbob

LINDEGR

I would be LIVID!!

GetSetJetSet

Well played, I should cross over the EQD threshold around 136k EQM.

jmappleby

I’m $25k in and still not EXP. Lots of short notice Y travel.

My least favorite travel this year was $3400 on RT to Europe on the B767-200. Not AA’s finest bird.

metallo

Perhaps you mean 767-300? I think I last flew on a 767-200 about 6 years ago JFK-LAX .

Bummer for you status-wise, but we’re hearing about more and more $25k EQD non-EPs and even $50k non-CKs. The rules have changed compared to the old days.

I easily re-qualified for EP on AA, but I’ve spent almost enough on DL for their PM status (75k level), and I’m still only FO due to having <50k MQMs (not even enough for the 50k level GM).

FlyForFun

I’m on track to reach 165,000 EQMs and to still be short of $15,000 EQDs by the end of the year. I guess I’ll squeeze in one more transatlantic flight through AAVacations to qualify. Having problems resisting packages including RT air from DFW to Europe plus three nights hotel for $700 or less. Since October 1 have been to Amsterdam. Vienna, Prague, and Copenhagen. Heading to Nice and later to Paris. Staying at nice ****hotels and averaging $700 per trip. EQMs post at actual mileage but EQDs are averaging $450 per trip.

thunderdeacon

I know this is child's play compared to the intent of the thread, but I thought I would share. I have done a ton of really cheap flying this year, and I don't think I will even be able to make gold for next year. I have 37K EQM and 45 EQS but only 2432 EQD. I have one more trip booked for the year, OKC-DFW-PHX-SEA-PHX-OKC, but I only paid $239 for it. I am going to end up with around 42K EQM and 50 EQS and still not have enough spend to even get gold. I don't think gold is even worth anything anymore, so I don't think I'm going to go out of my way to get my spend up to 3K.

I would be happy to trade some EQM/EQS for some EQD with some of you in the opposite situation!

jmappleby

You’re quite right. It felt like a 762 though 😂 Freezing cold, with bad Halloween movies shown on the shared 15” TV on the wall. It did have intermittent WiFi.

I hate the AA 763 and fly them all the time because they’re used on PHL-Europe - Lisbon, Zurich, etc. Had 3 flights canceled this year on 763s.

it will be fine, I will make 100k EQM by Thanksgiving and 120 or so by 12/31, depending on the number or last minute customer visits in Q4.

When I qualified for CK in 2017 for the 2018 year, I did only $45k and 225k miles. I didn’t expect to reup but happened to be sat next to an AA exec on a flight and they said they’d take care of me.

Doubt very much this would fly in 2019 :-)

I will go back and look at AirPass because I have paid silly money for Y travel lately - $800 for 500 miles this week. And AA will negotiate EXP/CK as part of the program spend.

If I lived somewhere where Delta had good destinations, (not PHL), I’d ditch AA in a heartbeat. How come you prefer AA?

Zacnlinc

It wouldn't surprise me that we soon see that ALL airline start to increase their "spend" factor to qualify for being elite, while also decreasing airfares too. It's just a matter of time for the entire game changes once again....

shaddie

Huh?

Airfares have 0% to do with elite status. I am guessing but it seems the big 3 are increasing their qualification specs due to too many “low $ flyers” getting perks that said airlines don’t feel have been earned. If you are a “barely getting status thru lots of low fares” elite they want to not “pay” as many bennies to you.

Zacnlinc

Precisely... I'm in the camp that the Airlines are in a conspiracy campaign to make us spend more for some faux sense of loyalty. No more visits to clubs unless you have a membership AND/OR are flying the said airline for your intended flight. I'm sure it's going to be soon that you can only enter clubs if your a member regardless of being an elite or class of service flown. I cannot wait for Star Trek Transporter technology to put the airlines out of business for the next phase of monopoly in play!

metallo

I've stuck with AA as my primary frequent flyer program, because I feel I get better value out of AA EP than I would from DL DM. AA is also much stronger at ORD and slightly stronger at STL, which are two of my primary airports.

DL miles seem fairly worthless (although the folks on the DL forum lately seem to think one of the best uses for them is TOD upgrades (or perhaps more accurately, TOTOM - tens of thousands of miles). I get much better value, particularly partner-wise, out of AA miles, and the web specials have become nice for short domestic hops when revenue ticket prices are high, usually last-minute.

I suppose I feel I can get all the benefits I need on DL by paying for them (I just buy paid F when I would need or prefer to fly DL), and I don't really worry about SkyMiles or elite benefits with them.