rudykarimi

Hello all,

I am moving from Dallas to Houston this summer and will have to switch carriers. For the past 2.5 years I have been AA top status with annually +100segments and +100k eqms. I grew to love AA. They treat me exceptionally well as an EXP. Overall, I am extremely satisfied with their service. However, with the move to Houston I am realizing I will have to give it up due to connections and cheaper CO airfare. I'm not terribly sad about this since I've heard wonderful things about CO, but I do have some Qs below. I mean, it could be worse... Having to fly US Air! Ouch...

1) Has anyone here made the big switch from AA to CO? Are there any big differences, advantages/disadvantages?

2) How do you compare the AAdvantage Program to the OnePass?

3) How do you compare the OneWorld alliance to the SkyTeam? How would you compare those 2 to Star Alliance once CO switches in October?

4) Once situated in the Big H, my flights for the following 12-16 months will be IAH-PHL just about every week. I typically fly out Sunday nights and return Thursday early evenings. Anyone here fly these routes/times? On AA DFW-PHL I just about always get the free upgrade to F 2-5 days before my flight. Can I expect the same on the CO flights?

5) How is the CO lounge in IAH? I hold a Platinum AMEX so I plan to use this quite a bit here.

6) One thing I really enjoyed about AA is that their Exec Plat group was attained at 100k miles and/or 100 segments. This is higher than most other carriers so being EXP feels more exclusive. With CO Platinum being attained at only 75k miles and/or 90 segments does this dillute some of the CO Platinum perks/upgrades/service/etc???

I might have some more Qs later, but this is it for now. I really appreciate any feedback you guys have! Happy Flying!

-Rudy

TommyC80

I find the IAH main club (btwn Term C and E) to be one of the best in the system. I really like the shower facilities which are helpful for long trips and milage runs^

ijgordon

Haven't made a "big switch" per se, but I am elite on both, and have been top-tier on both. I think CO is a slightly better airline, but AAdvantage is a better FF program. EXP is second-to-none while CO Platinums are dime a dozen. So while they do treat you well, it's nothing like AA Exec Plat. The CO elite phone agents are on the whole very good, but not quite like the EXP desk, particularly in terms of their empowerment. I'm sure you were near 100% on upgrades as EXP; don't expect this to continue as CO Plat. You can still pre-reserve exit row seats though. And one big sacrifice if you move to CO will be the lack of systemwide upgrades.

In addition to what I mentioned above regarding elite status, I think AAdvantage is a better program in terms of award availability, and now, award flexibility. Mileage upgrades on AA domestic 2-class flights are very easy to find, as they come out of a revenue bucket. It's more difficult on CO, but there is no co-pay (on domestic). Another advantage of CO I think is with respect to their tiered co-pay for international business class awards. If for some reason you get stuck with an expensive coach fare on CO, the co-pay will be smaller, not the flat $350 like on AA.

OneWorld was better than SkyTeam -- better carriers, plus the ability to redeem international First class awards. Can't do that on OnePass. I think most would say that Star Alliance is even better than Oneworld; it's certainly larger. I don't know whether Onepass members will be able to redeem for int'l F awards on partners though. That would be a big factor in my assessment.

Yes, absolutely. As I mentioned, CO Platinums are a dime a dozen, not just because it's easier to qualify, but because they comp status relatively freely. AA does not comp EXP status at all, except maybe in very rare occasions. Your upgrade success rate on CO will be lower than on AA unless you purchase expensive fares. With the drop in business travel, CO upgrades were looking pretty good earlier this year, but I think the double EQM promotion will allow a lot more people to qualify for status, and sooner, than otherwise would have. I'm already < 1k miles from 2010 CO Platinum.

I would spend some time searching through the AA and CO forums, I'm pretty sure there has been a lot of discussion comparing the two programs, you're likely to get a lot of additional information more quickly that way then waiting for people to respond here.

Steph3n

unless non stops are important to you AA flights out of IAH aren't that expensive

if you are happy with AA stay with them. I moved over from AA but I wasn't elite(stopped just short, by 470 miles!) and I found sitting in the back of an AA plane to be terrible.

channa

2) AA EXP is probably the premier top tier Elite level in the industry. Meanwhile, CO Plat is probably the least competitive top tier Elite level in the industry. Basic perks that all other airlines offer to top tiers, such as SWUs and free standby/SDC for top tiers are simply not provided by CO.

3) CO is leaving SkyTeam in a few months, so I'd worry about OW vs. Star. Both are good alliances, though Star is larger and has more coverage, IMO. Where Star is weak is LatAm. CO brings some of that to the table so it's not so bad, but between AA and LAN, I think OW has more LatAm coverage.

4) AA EXPs report high upgrade rates (90%+). Upgrade rates like that are not common on CO, though it varies by route. Out of SFO, my upgrade rate was some 33% as CO Plat, so there is significant variance. I'm sure you'll get some upgrades, but get used to coach.

5) The CO lounges are nice. Free booze (pay for premium booze). The IAH E club is quite large.

6) There are indeed fewer perks to the CO Plat program than AA has for EXPs (addressed above). You may also find you'll get less recognition and accommodation when needed.



CO is fine. They run a clean, relatively on-time operation, with good in-flight service. But frankly, there's a lot of hype. With the treatment you are accustomed to at AA, I'm afraid you may be disappointed with CO.

rudykarimi

Wow excellent replies! Thanks!

Yes, I'm afraid I'll have to part with some of the EXP treatment I've become accustomed too. And yes its actually not that much $$$ more to fly AA out of IAH, but since I'm on the road so much as it is the last thing I want to do is make a connection. Especially on my way home.

I think what I'll miss the most is the near 100% upgrade to F. DFW/IAH to PHL is a bit on the long side for me... Sitting up at the front was a HUGE perk.

rudykarimi

So you're saying I couldn't book a F reward tickets thru a partner? What about business class on a 3 class plane?

But I can book F reward tickets to international destinations flown by CO, right??

Thanks again.
-Rudy

aacharya

I think the previous posts were slightly misleading - they discussed overall U/G availability for Platinums, and one discussed SFO, which is extremely elite-heavy to the east coast.

For IAH-PHL-IAH as a CO Plat, you should see a significant percentage of upgrades, as I see them as a Silver, often on discount fares. It's IAH-EWR
that is a little harder to obtain.

Data for tomorrow

CO776 - 11 upgraded, 14 on list
CO1476 - 10 upgraded, 3 on list
CO276 - 9 upgraded, 9 on list

Xyzzy

If you're getting that info from the PDA site you should know that these lists also include upgrades from non-EUA sources, like Y/B-up fares.

aacharya

Agreed, but considering the % of CO Plats versus all CO Elites (14% based on the FAQ), I thought it a safe assumption that most, if not all, Plats were upgraded based on those numbers.

Now, if there were 30 or 40 on the U/G list, then one can assume that a few Plats were not upgraded.

sbm12

No F bookings using CO miles, but only AF and KE have F cabins in SkyTeam.

I believe that *A F redemptions will be possible but that isn't confirmed nor are the rates where it will happen.
For non-premium F seats (e.g. 737s to LatAm) you can book those with CO miles.

craz

On the 1776 I always managed to get the UP even a companion up (last flight out of IAH to PHL). However Im still waiting to get the UP out of PHL on a reg basis, alot harder for some reason

OP if it was Me Id stick with AA, a no-brainer Im a LifeTime Plat with AA and hardly fly them as I cant stand AAs Y especially the MD-80s. Now above I said I fly to/from PHL but I live a quick 15 min drive from EWR ,yet drive down to PHL or did as the fares were cheaper and better chance for the UP. So I subjected myself to a stop in IAH when I could have flown non-stop out of EWR

Id rethink it thru again, and just wait till COs Irrops hits you, youd be so sorry you ever left AA (as a EXP) that you head will be swimming. If you werent a EXP that might be a whole different case

So unless you plan on buying a Y or B that can and will be confirmed then and there to FC, be prepared for some real lousy flights in the back of the bus.

CO has great crews and planes and service, but Unfortunately simply just doesnt come even close to AAs EXP level in any way

( have been Plat with CO for the past 5+ yrs, and requalified back in March , OK 712 more EQMs to go.)

channa

That percentage is a bit misleading. While it may be 14% of all Elites, remember Plats fly more. So on a plane, chances are more than 14% of Elites are Plats.

aacharya

A valid point to consider, thanks. Still, I thought it a safe assumption based on the limited pda data and threads about EWR v. PHL that the IAH-PHL EUAs tend to clear "most" (>75%) of the time for Plats.

It's a shame that the spreadsheet on FT isn't updated enough to pull meaningful data; hence only a Plat member flying that route can give us the actual data.

sbm12

Flying on non-stops most of the time the IRROPS issues will be notably less. They really are bad for connections; for non-stops just annoying when they happen, IMO.

The OP will be mostly on NG 737s that are being retrofit with LiveTV (albeit paid) and power outlets. And if they can get exit row seating the pitch isn't too horrible. What is going to make the flights "real lousy" other than potential for missed upgrades, something that is very difficult to accurately quantify?