I'm currently a *A flyer based with UA, and am moving my base to KUL later this year. I rarely spend any time in the US so a US FFP seems silly going forward.

I'd like to find a new airline to focus CC activity on flying on. I prefer *A for the larger network as my destinations always change, but I am open. I've read about the programs/airlines NOT to use here, but am confused in narrowing down my search...

I mainly travel to:
Within Asia and all over W/E Europe (from DUB to TBS)
Occasionally to US (former base was PHX)

Main concerns in order:
Ability to earn on the most number of routes
Mileage earning/redemption
Price (since I foot the bill)
Cabin quality (hard to do worse than UA/US/AA)

Contenders:

1. MH. Not a huge fan of OW but not as familiar. Mileage values seem really low, especially on cheap Y fares (which I often buy - at least on US carriers - since my business trips have no set schedule). Would be easy to get anywhere direct from KUL rather than using SIN.

2. SQ. Like the *A connection but their fares seem really pricey. I guess you get what you pay for. Decent mileage earning on SQ but bad on *A carriers. Seems like signing up for a lot of short KUL-SIN hops and then long hauls ie: SIN-Europe. Seems easy to get mileage-earning credit cards throughout Malaysia.

3. EK. Like the ability to transfer Amex MR points in. US partners seem weak for US domestic flights (my US base was PHX). Plus... easyJet?! Fewer int'l partners means I'd be stuck flying through DXB even when not sensible. They do have some of the cheapest KUL-DUBs and KUL-LHRs I've seen, even beating the miserable KL. I guess the quality of EK cabin makes up for some of it?

4. QR. Again, fewer partners, would be forced to fly through DOH, good cabin, reasonable fares.

5. TK. Like the *A connection, IST is closer to Europe than DXB/DOH, and IST lounge is really nice. But customer service seems bad if a problem occurs, and I've read horror stories here regarding luggage handling. I've read mileage redemption is bad, although I was able to get 25,000 miles for KUL-DUB.

Sorry this evolved into a longer thread than I hoped.

Am I missing one? Thoughts?

Is Asia for good or just a few years ?

Definitly not silly to stick with a USA based FFP, especailly if you have a reasonable miles balance. This is what alliances & partners airlines are all about. USA base airlines tend have better mileage earning/redemption rates compared to other parts of the world (as you have discovered)

You can earn miles in an airline ffp, yet never fly with them:- alliances & partners airlines. (Some airlines require 4 or ?? own flights to get status)

MH & QR are both OneWorld, so a good range of partners & possible routes. But not as many as Star Alliance.

FFP miles earning credit cards are more USA centric. Less common in the rest of the world. But you say OK in Malaysia, but crediting to what airlines?

Thanks for the suggestions. First, I don't plan on returning to the US.

I agree *A is best, but I'm concerned that UA (and DL) have implemented a spend requirement, and previously a metal segment requirement, to earn status. If I'm going to put in the BIS miles, I might as well get status I can use.

I guess I could always credit to Aegaen (A3?) for *G, then elsewhere.

You're right on FFP cards; I did see this one earlier but I guess Amex cards offer better redemption into non-airline rewards in Malaysia.

http://www.maybank2u.com.my/mbb_info...onal/CRD-Cards

UA spend requirement is only if you live in USA. Living in Asia there is no spend requirement

Own metal segment requirement to earn status is an issue. For example AA have this but (currently) do not enforce.

Miles can be put from some cc's to Starwood(SPG) then to a range of airline ffp's. Be carefull on the conversion rate