747-800i

I can assure you that we do, if you're in F you even get FF dining. This assume it's a JFK-LAX flight, I don't know about CLT-PHX or something.

_fx

I agree upgrades aren’t worth much but I think you’re massively overvaluing flagship lounge access for short haul flights. Sure it’s nice, but compared to actual bars and restaurants flagship doesn’t even come close. I can’t imagine a world where I’d get to the airport hours in advance of a commuter flight just so I could go to flagship dining when I could eat anywhere in NYC, LAX, ORD, etc.

Antarius

JFK-LAX and JFK-SFO (and maybe MIA-LAX) do.

To the broader post, if you book J and F, crediting it to BA or another JV partner makes sense. If you book largely domestic Y (such as me), AA EXP wins. The value of flagship check in is near zero, although having FL access is one thing that would be nice to have - albeit not necessary for short trips and short 45 minute layovers.

econ

Anyone in F (on premium transcon, long haul intl, etc.) got FF dining, regardless of if they were EXP or not.

ashill

If there's one headline benefit of US (AA, DL, UA, AS) frequent flyer programs, it's upgrades. If there's one headline benefit of most foreign frequent flyer programs, it's lounge access. (I'm putting redeemable miles aside because all programs have them as the main feature for most customers, and the value opportunities vary a lot more widely and less clearly along geographic lines.)

If you value upgrades more, AAdvantage is better than Executive Club and EXP is more valuable than non-AA JV Emerald. If you value lounge access more, vice versa.

Personally, I'm more in the lounge access camp if for no other reason than it's far more predictable for my travel habits (although I never have been and almost certainly never will be as high as Emerald), but that's subjective. One could argue that lounge access has a ceiling value (the cost of an Admirals Club membership, although that doesn't get you into Flagship Lounges or oneworld lounges) or no value (if you think airport restaurants and bars are nicer and would rather go there anyway); one could also argue that upgrades have enormous value (if you'd otherwise pay whatever it costs for J/F) or no value (if you would never pay for J/F, which is closer to the camp I'm in). Again, subjective.

FlyerTalker324193

Sure, in choosing your primary OW FFP, differences in benefits like lounge access vs. upgrades are a biggie.

But I think the differences are just as substantial when it comes to status qualification. Few OW programmes other than AAdvantage have got that spend requirement. Also, there exist dramatic distincitions in the treatment of eco vs. premium cabin for elite-qualification purposes.

Lastly, contrasts on the earn-and-burn side can be dramatic, too. Not saying they always are, it depends on your flight profile. Anyways, a quick rather extreme example to drive home that point: If you mainly fly RJ in R, AA is not gonna be the programme for you

tl;dr The OP is all about how benefits vary across OW programmes. I think the other two dimensions 'qualification requirements' and 'earn and burn characteristics' are no less important.

SonicStar817

For BA, while that is the case, the flight requirement can be done without flying BA. BA codeshare flight numbers and Iberia flights count towards the flight requirement.

fotographer

I have often thought of going for BA Gold , since most of my travels prior to the world shutting down was international in J , and it would be very easy to meet the requirements for flying BA , then I came to my senses ... why ?
only thing I wish AA had would be lifetime EXP after let’s say being EXP for 10 years or something like that

aaupgrade

And BA does have lifetime Gold for 35,000 TP which is a good 20 years of flying unless you fly a lot, then maybe 10 years. I doubt I'll reach that goal in my lifetime, nor am I trying.

FWIW and as another data point, I switched to collecting BA EC when AA went to $ based earning so I could still earn miles based on mileage. I fly international J and F on RTW and CirPac products so it was a no brainer and much easier to achieve BA Gold then AA EXP. Having AC and Flagship lounge access when flying domestic is nice and I have no need for upgrades, SWU or otherwise (despite my username from an earlier era). On BA as BA Gold I earn about 25% more Avios than I would earn AAdvantage miles, and longer haul awards run much higher on BA; however, shorter haul awards like HND-HKG (positioning when switching from RTW ticket to CirPac ticket) are less BA Avios (22K) than AA miles (30K). Examples in J (unless otherwise noted) below:

HKG-SIN
BA 22000
AA 22500

DXB-AMM
BA 22000
AA 30000

DOH-HKG
BA 62000
AA 40000

CDG-HKG
BA 123750
AA 90000

DXB-ARN
BA 62750
AA 42500

ORD-DCA
BA 15000
AA 25000

SYD-HKG
BA 77250
AA 40000

HKG-LAX First
BA 144250
AA 110000

HKG-ORD First
BA 206000
AA 110000

HND-SIN
BA 62000
AA 30000

HND-HKG
BA 22000
AA 30000

Also, after reaching BA Gold I then credit miles to AA. As a general rule I credit all AA, BA and IB flights to BA and figure out in advance which CX, QF and other OW flights I will be crediting to AA. So I still have a nice collection of miles in both programs to pick and choose whose currency to use for award tickets.

Insiderdude

This is correct, something has changed recently. I was just on LAX-JFK-LAX, ticketed in J (cash purchase) and was denied at JFK Terminal 8 saying that I had to be ticketed in F. The entry dragon had a list and I wasn’t on it either. I didn’t try at LAX, but swear pre-covid I used T8 Flagship ticketed in J many times before. I’m not sure what changed...🤷🏻‍♂️

JJeffrey

Nothing has changed AFAIK, business class on the 3-class transcons has always come with Flagship Lounge and/or Admiral's Club access at both ends. I can't believe an agent at JFK of all places would be that mis-informed.

econ

Flagship lounge/AC access definitely. Just got in there a few weeks ago in J.

Flagship checkin may be a different story.

united 1k flyer

So if your a exp in Y you get access to the flagship lounges, that’s interesting because United doesn’t let any elites into their clubs on transcontinental unless in J ( besides GS of course)

JJeffrey

EXP in Y does not get lounge access at all on premium transcons. Only business or first.

united 1k flyer

Hmmmm I’m not super familiar with aa, it appears I’m getting conflicting info. From what I understood exp in y on transcons can’t access the flagship lounge, however I was corrected by someone earlier in the thread. Can someone chime in on the official policy.