Thinking about switching - need advice!
 

So, I recently switched jobs in my company & will be traveling next year - a lot. In the next 3 weeks, I've got 3 trips & I'm going to be averaging about a trip a week (some weeks I may hit 2 locations in one trip) for the next two years. I am DC based (can fly out of either IAD or DCA - avoiding BWI like the plague though) and my company's preferred carriers are AA/UA/DL & BA - however, all my flights will be domestic, so the BA factor doesn't matter to me.

I've already got NW Plat earned for next year, US Silver (and may hit gold, but not too concerned about it) earned for next year, and was comped to UA PremEx (unsolicited comp - got a letter in the mail from them 3 weeks ago welcoming me to PremEx due to my position within my company - but I think that was accidental - but that's another story for another time). My current levels of status with all airline, rental car, and hotels have all been due to personal travel. With my job change, I'm going to have less opportunity for personal travel (I take a lot of vacations - and with the new job, it'll be harder to take those same types of vacations).

So, for business travel, I'm supposed to book directly with Cliqbook (Carlson Wagonlit) & it recommends AA/UA/DL flights in order of pricing. The system will allow me to pick any carrier I want & will log my choices that are not within the company travel policy. The things that will trigger it logging my choices are:

1) Flying a non-preferred carrier
2) Choosing a fare that's more than $125 than the least logical fare

I am allowed to pick any carrier I want - I am asked for a reason to back it up though. Reasons include things such as flight schedules, airport choice, lower price, flight connections, etc - so there is a little wiggle room - Also, I can sort of manipulate the system to an extent with my queries by doing queries on ITA and finding out when NW (my preferred carrier since I get upgraded on them & I have a lot of miles on them) is priced the best & then using those parameters on Cliqbook so those flights come up as logical exceptions. However, for all the recent searches I've done, AA & UA seem to be coming up with the best prices. I don't know what the reprecussions are if I don't follow travel policies, but I imagine that initially it will just be a stern talking too - my trips aren't paid for by my department - I expense them to another department, so I've never even met the guy that approves my expense reports. I usually will have less than a 2-week booking window for business flights.

I enjoy getting the elite upgrades on NW & DL won't comp me to plat based on my NW status. In DC, there are so many UA upper level elites that I'm not sure that I'll ever get upgraded & they also fly a lot of RJs out of here. Although, E+ isn't really a bad way to fly at all. As for AA, I literally know nothing about their program & am not sure how their UG system even works. I could continue to fly on UA or DL & earn on US/NW, but I'll pretty much never be up front.

So, that makes me think I should switch - I doubt I'll fly more than 50-75K as all my flights are domestics (about 40% east coast, 30% midcons, & 30% transcons) for business & probably not more than 25K for personal next year given my job change. In theory, I could attempt to earn on segments too - If I fly AA, then every trip will be about 4 segments - if I fly UA, then it'll be between 2-4 segments, and if I break policy & continue to try to force NW, it'd be 4 segments as well. So, that's an option.

Any suggestions as to what my best steps would be for a DC based business traveler - I know that UA's the logical choice since I'm already a PremEx through 2007 & they've got a strong program - however, I feel hesitant because I used to be a Premier & felt that was nothing special (25% mileage bonus? Give me a break - everyone else is 50%!) about it & that since there were so many DC based elites, that the upgrades never came & the only benefit was E+ access, which they sell now, so its not even that great of a benefit. I will say though, that UA's got the best redemptions though for premium cabin int'l travel - between them & NW anyways...not sure about AA.

Thanks!

I would work it backwards -- start with where you have to fly to and then see who has the best schedules/times etc.

DC is the end of almost everyone's spokes and not a hub like say ORD, CVG, EWR, DTW etc.

Bob H

I'm not too concerned (at this point anyways) with the best schedules & times & connections - I've been a NW flyer from DC for quite some time now & am used to crappy schedules & multiple connections. As for my locations - it's all over the place - here's what I have on the books for next year already:

SEA
SJC
MBS
BHM
CLT
YYT
DEN
VPS
MLB
SAN
SGU
CVN
PNF
RSW
MCE
GPT
MCO
JLN
YHM
ONT
RDD
CWA
JAX
MTO
PRC
ORF
CDC
TYS
EWR
SAC
PIT
BOI
ATL
DAY
MEM
DTW
GRR
AUS
OMA
BFL
RDU
BUF
BOZ
IDA
PBI
ICT
YVR
SFO

Some cities will be visited more than once - and some cities will require that I fly to a larger airport - for example, I'm heading to SLN (Salina, KS) in 2 weeks, but only US serves it & its expensive as hell, so I'm going to fly to ICT instead - there are a bunch others that haven't been determined yet.

I guess I'm more concerned about between AA & UA, which would be a more fruitful program for me to be a member of from DC (i.e. which would have potentially better upgrades & more mileage opportunity - I'm guessing UA for the miles, but AA for the upgrades?)

AA has three elite levels, Gold (lowest), Platinum, and Executive Platinum. Gold and Platinum earn electronic upgrades (called "stickers" because they used to be paper stickers which you would paste to a paper ticket) by flying. Each sticker will allow you to upgrade 500 miles (or less) of flying, so a
flight of 1235 miles would require 3 stickers (so would a flight of 1550 miles, as they give you 50 miles leeway). Gold and Platinum members earn 4 stickers for each 10000 miles that they fly. Executive Platinum members neither earn nor use stickers - they get all their flights upgraded (space available) for free. Exec. Plat. upgrades can clear at 100 hours before the flight, Plat. at 72 hours, and Gold at 24 hours, so the higher your level, the better your chances.

AA does not normally comp elite status (unless your employer's travel department can arrange it for you - it's not something you can do for yourself). You can earn elite status on either miles or points. Each flight will earn both. Mile earned equal miles flown (but 500 minimum per flight). Points are earned as a multiple of miles depending on fare. First, Business, and full-fare coach earn 1.5 points per mile flown, discount coach 1.0, and deep discount coach 0.5, and again a minimum of 500 points per flight. If you earn either 25,000 points or miles in a year you qualify for Gold, 50,000 = Platinum, and 100,000 = EXP.

Instead of status comps, AA offers "challenges" that are a fast track to status. Challenges operate on points only. 5,000 points in any 90 day period will get you Gold, and 10,000 points will get you Platinum. There is no challenge for Executive Platinum - you have to get that the "old fashioned way" - butt in seat.

This is, of course, just an overview. If you have any specific questions, I would be glad to try to answer them.

gemac,

Thanks for the informative overview of AA - sounds like UA may be more ideal given the fact that they've already comped me status without asking for it. AA would be easy enough to attain though for Platinum, however, it seems like Exec Platinum would be the ideal level, but similar to UA1K, it would be most likely an unattainable goal.

Midwest flies to Salina, the MCI-SLN leg is operated by a US regional carrier, but YX codeshares on it and will sell you DCA-SLN.

Could you get 1K if you credited everything on US to UA?

One strategy would be to be on the lookout for a good Platinum challenge opportunity - Coast to coast should flights raise this possibility. I note that your first two trips are SEA and SJC. Do a Platinum challenge, and then you will have a year to compare UA and AA, see which airline you like better, and which one has schedules that work better for you.

Friends that I have had that travel as much as it appears you will never want to travel on vacation - they want to sleep in their own bed for a change. They end up using their miles to upgrade and to get award tickets as gifts for friends or relatives.

It appears to me that you would have plenty of miles to make top tier. It only takes an average of 2000 miles per week. If you fly every week, that is a minimum of 1,000 miles per week, and any of those west coast flights would get you 5,000 miles.

The next issue to think about is whether you're going to be taking Metro to DC a lot --- if so that would move NW a bit down on my list of carriers -- if only because of the distance from the Metro station to the NW gates -- it's something like a 10 - 15 minute walk and while there are shuttle buses, they can take just as long.

Bob H

That is a potential solution - most of my east coast flights will most likely be on UA or US given their route distribution. Do you think it would be better to go with an attempt to get 1K on UA or would it be better to attempt to hit mid-level on 2 seperate airlines?

Agreed - this could be a beneficial strategy - looking at what I've already booked for 2006, I'll have 10K EQM (currently using NW/DL flights) in the first 3 weeks of January, so getting 10K on an AA challenge wouldn't be too difficult.

I work in Bethesda & live in Falls Church & am not really conveniently located near any sort of Metro station - so generally, I just drive myself to the airport & expense the parking. I do always park in the economy lots though! :)

Just be awAAre..
 

Well, I'm sure you've done your research on the programs and primarily asking about domestic upgrades, but I think this is worth mentioning in case it isn't already on your radar.

If you're considering accruing on AA, then be aware of the wicked "copay" involved with redeeming your hard earned miles for upgrade internationally. It'll sure be a hit on your wallet that you're not used to taking for burning some miles on a intl-upgrade, amigo. It is the biggest downside to AAdvantage in my opinion, but since your travel patterns will be changing, I'm not sure how much you'll really care about this.

Upgrades From Most Discount Economy (Copay doesn't apply if you're flying Y or J):
North America to (Southern S America) 25,000 + $250
North America to Japan / Northern China 25,000 + $250
North America to Europe 25,000 + $250
North America to India 40,000 + $250

That is for each way. So a RT to Europe in business class would cost you your discount coach fare + $500 + 50,000 miles.

At least those eVIPs (sticker upgrades) don't require copays. Yet. :eek: :p

peace,
~Ben~

PS> Good luck with the new position!

What I do in determining what to do is work backwards from:

a) what I want out of the frequent flyer program: awards for which class/routes; upgrades for which classes/routes; lounge benefit possibilities; etc.

AND

b) what can I achieve given my work/leisure travel needs, ticket fare/class mix, etc.

Then after answering those questions and a few more, I decide which programs make the most sense given my answers to those questions.

I'd do the AA Plat Challenge in any event; and if you can think of pulling off 100k miles or points -- points on higher fares are 1.5 points/actual mile travelled -- then I'd aim for EXP. However, if EXP is not readily achievable, I'd diversify and put my eggs in at least two baskets. (And also keep in mind the geographic benefits of using foreign frequent flyer programs and/or basing an account in an easy-to-achieve-status country for one of those programs.)

HOWEVER, AA still lets you upgrade from deep discount econ fares with miles. The copay is not always more than the difference in fare you would have to pay to get upgradable international on other carriers. Regardless...the OP is not concerned about international.

For domestic:
- AA and UA upgades work about the same for mid-tier - except AA only costs $25 per 500 miles and UA cost more, $40?
- UA has E+; AA doesn't
- UA and AA have similar premium products on most domestic routes
- You would probably have less upgrade competition to the ORD on AA
- Of the three preferred carriers, only DL has free upgrades for mid-tier
- If you make 1K, you would have top upgrade priority, earn free region 1 domestic advance confirmed upgrades, and enough SWU to trade with other FTers if wanted to to upgrade all of your longer UA trips ahead of time

Requesting clarification for myself:

If I were to become an AA Gold/Plat, upgrading domestically on a ~ 2k mile RT flight would cost me four 500 mile stickers + $100 for that RT flight?

From what I had read in the AA forum a while back I thought that the domestic sticker upgrades didn't come with an associated fee to use them, but it's been a bit since I considered switching and I could just be mixed up.

Thanks!

peace,
~Ben~

Thanks for the advice everyone! I'm thinking at this stage, I will try to go with UA & NW (forcing it through & pushing NW/DL flights) as my primary carriers & may attempt a challenge with AA if I can pull it off with 2 transcons. I don't like the concept of having to blatantly pay for the ability to UG on international flights - whereas my business won't take me internationally, I have friends in Thailand & the Netherlands that I visit & I have been lucky enough recently to find decent upgradeable UA fares or use my miles for premium cabins to S.E.A. - across the pond in coach is fine as I'm east coast based. I'm not sure I'm ready to give up on NW & UA's just got more mileage earning opportunity overall than AA appears to.

I just dropped about $900 in airfare & $300 in rental cars for 2 business trips, & $250 on a new Blackberry for work today. I spent $1284 in all of 2005 for my NW Plat status of 78K EQMs & ~$300 on US Silver status for 26K EQMs. I never realized how damn expensive "real" air travel costs! Gonna rack up a slew of Amex Rewards points! :D

You can earn stickers (4 per 10,000 miles flown) or purchase them ($25 each). The 2k flight would require 4 stickers. If you had earned them, you could use them, no additional fee. If you had no stickers in your "bank" (i.e., you had already used all you had earned), you could buy 4 stickers for $100.

To the OP: Your plan sounds good to me. The main advantage I see to AAdvantage (and the reason I use them) is award ticket availability, which I think is much better than other U.S. legacy carriers. Since you won't be using miles for award tickets much, you are probably better off with other carriers as indicated.

Thanks for the vote of confidence! :) I rarely use award tickets for myself - in the past few years that I've been "playing the mileage earning game" - I've earned about 800K in all programs & have only cashed out about 155K for myself (120K on int'l travel & 35K to stage a MR/Vacation out of SEA) - the other ~250K that I have cashed out have been for family members & gifts for friends - I only really want to use my miles for personal premium cabin int'l travel & hooking up my friends who can't necessarily afford the airfare to come on vacation with me. The only time I've ever paid the premium prices for awards was for the trip to SEA where I did one way in Y & the other way in F & that was only 35K & I got upgraded on the outbound as NW Gold.

GEMAC is your friend. :D

Great Circle Mapper indicates that one-way nonstops from DCA to each of those airports, once, would already give you 56000 BIS miles (well, leaving out PNF and replacing BOZ with BZN; all the others appear to exist and be in North America!). That's 112K roundtrip.

http://gc.kls2.com/cgi-bin/gc?PATH=d...OR=&MAP-STYLE=

Since a lot of places you'd have to connect to, in reality it would be more, particularly if you're going to visit places twice.

So why can't you make AA EXP? The challenge is a piece of cake with that kind of schedules, so you'll be Plat and earning a 100% bonus very quickly; if you plan to keep up this kind of schedule long, the free domestic upgrades for AA EXP seem by far the best deal for you. It sounds like AA EXPs really do get 90-100% upgrade rates almost systemwide - and the eVIPs are icing on the cake for you. Plus you get award miles you can use.

Of the legacy six, I prefer AA by a longshot over the others. That said, out of DC, with PremEx already in-hand, I'd probably go UA. For one, it has the strongest schedule out of DC, whether you use UA or US. Transcon nonstop? No problem, and you'll probably have multiple flights to pick from. Plenty of short-hops throughout the northeast? Again, no problem and lots of choices. Second, with PremEx in-hand, it's a no-brainer. Flying that diverse of a route map, you're also bound to hit a lot of the one-off promos that UA always seems to have going. You are going to pile up the miles in a major way!

If AA really intrigues you, your idea of a Plat Challenge with a couple of transcons is fine. But unless I was really thinking of switching to AA, I'd probably just continue to enjoy my double miles on UA, E+, upgrades, etc.


One other thing...if costs are an issue, fly to MCI and drive to Salina. It's only about a 2:20 drive...a straight shot out I-70. Unless your connection is perfect, you won't be leaving much time on the table at all. I wouldn't want to do that drive vs. sitting back and collecting an extra 1000 miles, but it's an option...

I guess Delta's out of the race :( :( :(

Considering where you are, you may be making the right choice splitting UA and NW.

However, in my opion, you really should not count this as a strike against AA. Lets compare with NW.
On NW, you have to buy B or Y. So to go to Asia you would pay $1600+ or so plus miles.
On AA, you can buy deep discount econ. So to go to Asia, you could pay $700 for the cheapest N or L ticket + $500 in upgrade fees = $1200 total plus miles.

In this scenario, AA clearly wins even though they have a co-pay.

UA is only better if you can find cheap enough upgradable fares - which yes, you sometimes can, but can't count on it costing less than AA.

For domestic upgrades, AA EXP wins if you can make it. Unlimitted domestic upgrades on any fare with most people EXPs getting 90% to 100% success rates. On UA, 1Ks do not get free unlimitted domestic upgrades.

For international upgrades, AA gives 8 systemwides to EXP verses UA 6. Both allow free upgrades from low fares and no copay.

It seems to me that with connections and all the trips you are planning, you really should get about 80K BIS from you business travel. If you are on higher fares, this will give you EXP on AA from points alone. (on high fare buckets you get 1.5 points per mile flown). 100K points OR 100K miles = EXP If your fares aren't high enough, add 20K/year in leisure and you would have it.

AA EXP would give you:
- Unlimtted free domestic upgrades on any fare with very high success rate
- 8 international upgrades from deep discount fares with no co-pay per year

If I were in your situation, I probably would go 100% AA...but that is me.

A good point, but I wouldn't do this between Dec. 1 and Apr. 1. The interstate tends to close when the blowing snow drifts get over 6 feet.

Thanks again, everyone, for your input! It does seem like the AA folks are really happy with their airline. I still think that it'd make sense for me to go the UA/NW route instead of AA at this point because of the already comped PremEx & the fact that there are always a hell of a lot of promos out of DC on UA for bonus miles.

Also another thing that I just realized, with the pre-comp to PremEx til 2007, I figure if I fly 50K EQMs this year on UA, then I'll hit UA1K - which, if I do that, I may consider having UA as my primary carrier for 2007. Unfortunately, I already booked my SEA trip on DL - however, I'll book the SJC trip on UA.

As for the SLN trip, I already bought a ticket on NW to fly into ICT & drive to SLN - it's about an hour & a half according to mapquest.

This is not the way comps normally work. Your YTD qualifying counter only shows miles you actually have flown regardless of what status you have been given.

You have some strange math going here - You've been given 1P not 50K EQMs - your EQM counter is at zero so you'll have to earn all 100 EQMs to get to 1K (or utilize one of the EQM promos UA is so fond of these days).

Damn! I thought I was really getting hooked up here! Still standing by the UA/NW decision for now - although the AA people have presented some good arguements, I think that in the long run, UA will be more beneficial than AA will be.

Another plug for UA...
A last minute award ticket is free on UA ^
It costs up to $75 on AA. :td:
(Plus, I've found availability to be better on UA/*A internationally.)

But, a plus for AA...
If you don't requalify for status next year, AA drops you one status level. ^
UA just drops you.
:td:

My 2 cents
 

AA has lifetime elite status for 1,000,000 banked miles.

UA E+ has the same leg room as NW F.

I would get AA PLAT no matter what, soon. At least you will be earning upgrades and double miles when you do fly them. You use Carlson as your TA, as I have to. And your companies % discounts/contracts are the ones "prefering" AA/UA/DL, not Carlson.

Often, i will see AA flights that are the cheapest, and have the time in First, when everyone else is in Coach. But there is no way to know what the difference is between our discounts and yours. Generally, they work like this..

Deep Discount Coach Fares = no discount
Discount Fares = 12% off
Full Fare Economy/Discount First, and Full Fare First = 33% off.....


When flights get full, or you are booking 1-2 weeks out and all the Deep discount is gone, you can often find that 33% off the higher price is what will come up. And the important thing about this, is that as AA PLat, all will have you sitting up from. Full Fare Economy gets you there with no stickers, if there is room. Discount and Regular first get you there too, of couse.

Out of WAS, I would give UA and AA a good testing. Make UA comp you, take the AA challege. But do not compare top tier UA to Plat AA. You need to fly 100k with AA to get the full benefits.....

Also, MRTC is gone on AA. But, on most places, if you know where to sit (Generally ahead of the exit row), than the seats haven't moved. Get familiar with Seatguru.com

You will want PLAT and UA just to grab exit rows, if you can.

In fact I would go futher to say the Co-Pay plus fare is RARELY ever more than the upgradeable international fare on NWA for the same route.
Plus you can upgrade B fares with 10k miles only ( and no Co-pay) which the "comprehensive " analysis of the AA upgrade structure conveniently manages to omit :rolleyes:
mike