Another "Which program to pick?" thread
 

Emboldened by the guts of someone with a far higher post count than I to pose this question (in this thread), I figured I'd poll the collective wisdom here too:

I have lifetime Platinum with AA and have, for the past four years, also been able to maintain *A Gold with bmi* by putting most of my flying there. Its Diamond Club program will likely be merged into LH's Miles and More next year. For a US-based flyer who's typically in the back of the bus, it's much harder to earn status in M&M. I'm looking at options for 2011. (My status will last through Sept. 2011 with no more action on my part.)

I used to fly a lot for business, over 100K miles/year for a few years. Then I moved to academia and recently retired. I fly mostly on my own dime these days, typically 40,000+ miles per year. (Gotta go to OzFest!) I'm not averse to a mileage run if that's what it takes to get up a level. My priorities are (a) elite status for the benefits en route, (b) award upgrades and tickets.

Alternatives seem to be:

1. Forget *A, "come home" to AA and oneWorld.
Pro: They meet my needs, have been good to me, I already have status, I know how they work.
Con: No status with another network for trips where oneWorld isn't the answer. (OW generally flies where I want to go, but the prices often aren't the lowest.) No lounge access in North American travel. Since getting within MR distance of EXP ain't gonna happen, it feels like wasting all those status miles/points.

2. UA's Mileage Plus.
Pro: UA is also good out of Boston. I've flown with them a lot. As Premier Exec, I'd have E+ and other benefits, including *A Gold for non-UA flights. Can earn it in 2011 for 2012 while I still have *G benefits from BMI. Can get credit cards to help earnings.
Con: No "soft landing." No lounge access in North American travel. Would often need a mileage run to maintain 50K miles/year, though some credit cards may provide enough status miles to make up the difference.

3. Another *A program.
Pro: Air Canada and Aegean have lower mileage thresholds than UA for *A Gold, so probably no MRs needed. Can also earn status there in 2011 for 2012 while I still have *G benefits from BMI.
Con: No E+ on UA; it's not an alliance benefit. Both airlines, and their programs, are complete unknowns to me at this point. (I had flown bmi before signing up for DC.) AFAIK, no affinity credit cards for US residents. (This is a very minor point; I don't have one for bmi now.)

4. Stay with bmi, let the merger happen, and decide then.
Pro: No need to decide anything now. This appeals to the procrastinator in me. (For those into MBTI, I'm a strong P.) It's possible that DC Gold members will be given LH Senator status. If I don't care about requalifying for something, I can save money by using up my miles.
Con: By the time the facts are known, a January trip to India, February trip to the UK and probably a May trip to Australia will have been booked. That's most of my 2011 long-distance travel. I don't want it in the wrong place.

5. Something else. What?

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*When I first signed up for DC, bmi served the U.S., and my travel included many trips that combined the U.K. with other European destinations. Both of those have changed.

Here's another argument for procrastinating at least a little bit more: Wait to see how the greater integration of AA and BA on the one hand and CO and UA on the other shake out in the near future, starting as soon as Oct. 1. That could affect your decision.