AAdvantage program changes rumored Oct 2021
Sep 30, 2021 | 4:28 pm
#76
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 6,477
2 classes of award? There are like 20 iterations of miles between 6,000-50,000 on just the one example I gave. It makes no difference if some are called web specials and some are called MileSaver and some are called aanytime (which, aren't even the max redemptions AA asks for because, as AA says, "there are select dates that require a higher number of miles"
If we are talking about two options:
A. 1 cent per mile on whatever flight and cabin I want to take
B. 0.5 cents per mile on the flights I would want, 0.8 cents per mile on the flights I would accept, but heck, up to 5 cents per mile if I agree to massive inconveniences and spend hours searching on AA.com over months seeking out the right combination of miles, destination, flights that aren't torture. (and shoot, 5 cents per mile is generous. The last few web specials I scored still only ended up being worth about 2 cents per mile because the cash price was low anyways)
I find more value in option A, even if that might "cost more" than certain scenarios in option B. Time and flexibility matter.
If we are talking about two options:
A. 1 cent per mile on whatever flight and cabin I want to take
B. 0.5 cents per mile on the flights I would want, 0.8 cents per mile on the flights I would accept, but heck, up to 5 cents per mile if I agree to massive inconveniences and spend hours searching on AA.com over months seeking out the right combination of miles, destination, flights that aren't torture. (and shoot, 5 cents per mile is generous. The last few web specials I scored still only ended up being worth about 2 cents per mile because the cash price was low anyways)
I find more value in option A, even if that might "cost more" than certain scenarios in option B. Time and flexibility matter.
Sep 30, 2021 | 4:38 pm
#77
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AA EXP; UA 1MM & PP; Marriott AMB; Hyatt Globalist; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 62,381
Indeed. The threshold for GS in a normal year is typically somewhere north of $40k.
No but they undoubtedly would like to match UA's $18/24k thresholds *when* business travel returns.
No but they undoubtedly would like to match UA's $18/24k thresholds *when* business travel returns.
Sep 30, 2021 | 4:56 pm
#78
Join Date: Apr 2017
Location: WAS
Programs: Free Agent
Posts: 1,775
Setting aside the redemption devaluations, a move to basing elite qualification based on revenue rather than distance flown is going to be appealing to many. I left AA because a bulk of my flying with them was on short, expensive domestic routes with very little to show for it. However, any benefit to earnings is probably going to be cancelled by a slaughter of the partner award chart.
Sep 30, 2021 | 5:07 pm
#79
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: New York City + Vail, CO
Programs: American Airlines Executive Platinum, Marriott Bonvoy Ambassador Elite
Posts: 4,266
I'm expecting these AAdvantage changes mentioned are coming fast and coming hard.
Probably less than 3 weeks away and, personally, I expect they will be very very rough.
Sep 30, 2021 | 5:52 pm
#80
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: San Diego
Programs: IHG Diamond, HH Diamond, DL Diamond and 2MM
Posts: 3,637
Book JL for 120k rt in biz class
Formerly free domestic Japan tag-on flights are now 10k extra in each direction. And AA still hides nice Japan Airlines non-stops among the list of AA flights with crazy connections. Pure customer abuse because they can do a "best flights" search if they wanted to.
Sep 30, 2021 | 6:06 pm
#81
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Not here; there!
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold
Posts: 35,046
At least on the AA app, you can click on the "Sort" button, and select, "Number of stops." Nonstops will then appear at the top of the display.
Sep 30, 2021 | 6:15 pm
#82
Join Date: Mar 2010
Programs: AA, UA, Marriott
Posts: 2,428
On AA.com just filter by JL if you know there's a nonstop. I find it hilarious AA will rank at the top something like HPN-CLT-DFW-HND, with an overnight layover in DFW, for 200k miles in J before the JL nonstop.
Is this only on mixed AA/JL tickets? If all JL or milesaver it should price as 1 award. In any case a ticket wholly within Japan is 7.5k miles so I'm not sure how AA can add 10k.
Is this only on mixed AA/JL tickets? If all JL or milesaver it should price as 1 award. In any case a ticket wholly within Japan is 7.5k miles so I'm not sure how AA can add 10k.
Last edited by lrdpenn; Sep 30, 2021 at 6:22 pm
Sep 30, 2021 | 6:43 pm
#83
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: San Diego
Programs: IHG Diamond, HH Diamond, DL Diamond and 2MM
Posts: 3,637
On AA.com just filter by JL if you know there's a nonstop. I find it hilarious AA will rank at the top something like HPN-CLT-DFW-HND, with an overnight layover in DFW, for 200k miles in J before the JL nonstop.
Is this only on mixed AA/JL tickets? If all JL or milesaver it should price as 1 award. In any case a ticket wholly within Japan is 7.5k miles so I'm not sure how AA can add 10k.
Is this only on mixed AA/JL tickets? If all JL or milesaver it should price as 1 award. In any case a ticket wholly within Japan is 7.5k miles so I'm not sure how AA can add 10k.
Sep 30, 2021 | 7:06 pm
#84
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 1,907
Well if you want to just do 1 cent per mile/point just get CC points. If they do that there is really no reason to do anything special to get miles from airlines anymore. Heck AA is really in the miles selling business to CC companies and not really in the airline business itself. Chase UR can get you that magical 1ccp value you want.
Sep 30, 2021 | 7:12 pm
#85
Join Date: Aug 2021
Location: USA
Programs: American Airlines (Executive Platinum), Hyatt (Globalist), Hilton (Diamond), IHG (Diamond)
Posts: 3,251
JonNYC said:
”I'm expecting these AAdvantage changes mentioned are coming fast and coming hard.
Probably less than 3 weeks away and, personally, I expect they will be very very rough.”
”I'm expecting these AAdvantage changes mentioned are coming fast and coming hard.
Probably less than 3 weeks away and, personally, I expect they will be very very rough.”
Most current EXP aren’t re-qualifying at $9,000. No chance AA increases it to $25,000 (or anything over the current $15,000, which itself probably won’t be a hard requirement in 2022).
Sep 30, 2021 | 7:12 pm
#86
Suspended
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Watchlisted by the prejudiced, en route to purgatory
Programs: Just Say No to Fleecing and Blacklisting
Posts: 102,077
AA miles have been a bad store of value for quite some time. That AA will make them as bad or worse than Delta SkyPesos is less surprising than if AA were not to do so.
I stopped adding large volumes of AA miles to my account years ago; and surely whatever AA does next with AAdvantage will just be yet another indication of AA getting ever more into the fleecing game than has already been the case.
Too bad I still have the balance of AA miles I have, as they aren’t getting more valuable anytime soon.
Unfortunately, what AA does will likely also act as a de facto force of depreciation against the”currency” in my mileage account balances with AS, BA, etc.
I stopped adding large volumes of AA miles to my account years ago; and surely whatever AA does next with AAdvantage will just be yet another indication of AA getting ever more into the fleecing game than has already been the case.
Too bad I still have the balance of AA miles I have, as they aren’t getting more valuable anytime soon.
Unfortunately, what AA does will likely also act as a de facto force of depreciation against the”currency” in my mileage account balances with AS, BA, etc.
Sep 30, 2021 | 7:39 pm
#87
Join Date: Aug 2021
Location: USA
Programs: American Airlines (Executive Platinum), Hyatt (Globalist), Hilton (Diamond), IHG (Diamond)
Posts: 3,251
AA miles have been a bad store of value for quite some time. That AA will make them as bad or worse than Delta SkyPesos is less surprising than if AA were not to do so.
I stopped adding large volumes of AA miles to my account years ago; and surely whatever AA does next with AAdvantage will just be yet another indication of AA getting ever more into the fleecing game than has already been the case.
Too bad I still have the balance of AA miles I have, as they aren’t getting more valuable anytime soon.
Unfortunately, what AA does will likely also act as a de facto force of depreciation against the”currency” in my mileage account balances with AS, BA, etc.
I stopped adding large volumes of AA miles to my account years ago; and surely whatever AA does next with AAdvantage will just be yet another indication of AA getting ever more into the fleecing game than has already been the case.
Too bad I still have the balance of AA miles I have, as they aren’t getting more valuable anytime soon.
Unfortunately, what AA does will likely also act as a de facto force of depreciation against the”currency” in my mileage account balances with AS, BA, etc.
Sep 30, 2021 | 7:43 pm
#88
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 6,477
Makes sense, devaluation raise the value of the program itself - its cost cutting. Classic bean counter 101.
Sep 30, 2021 | 8:08 pm
#89
Join Date: Aug 2021
Location: USA
Programs: American Airlines (Executive Platinum), Hyatt (Globalist), Hilton (Diamond), IHG (Diamond)
Posts: 3,251
Oh, I understand it’s cost-cutting for AA. But one would have thought thought this sort of thing would have occurred before $10 billion (or whatever the exact number) was loaned to AA. Asset values are usually agreed to before money starts flying around. Likewise, if I was the lender, I wouldn’t want the borrower further antagonizing its customer base, particularly after AA’s absolutely horrid performance during the summer travel season.
Sep 30, 2021 | 8:12 pm
#90
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Austin, Texas, USA
Programs: AA Platinum Pro, Hilton Silver, Marriott Titanium Elite, AS MVP Gold 75K
Posts: 130
I really wish they would have parity between cash cost and mileage redemption. The whole married segment crap, especially when trying to redeem premium cabin awards is ridiculous. I know if they did that the cpm would be abysmal, but at least it would be quantifiable. It used to be nice to have a stash of miles to be used in emergency situations when a walk-up fare was stupid ($750 o/w AUS-DFW in Y) when you could redeem 25k miles for the same route. That is long gone.
I am a business traveler in the software consulting business. Teams and Zoom have made the work possible, but not optimal. A 3-day onsite visit easily outpaces weeks of virtual meetings and discussions. Some customers get it, others don't. I, for one, am enjoying the return to travel, I just wish we could get adult beverages in Y or MCE.
I am a business traveler in the software consulting business. Teams and Zoom have made the work possible, but not optimal. A 3-day onsite visit easily outpaces weeks of virtual meetings and discussions. Some customers get it, others don't. I, for one, am enjoying the return to travel, I just wish we could get adult beverages in Y or MCE.