Ownership and Status
 

Does anyone have any information on programs that confer special status or reduced award/status levels on people who own shares in the company? In other words, if I own some USAir stock, can that get me preferred status or upgrades?

Unless you owned a whole lot of shares, to the point that you could sway the share price, I highly doubt that you'd be able to get anything more that a stock certificate to hang on your wall.

That would be too easy to exploit to get free status -- buy the required shares, then offset with a short.

Ask Carl Icahn what it takes...he did it with TWA!

IIRC, several foreign airlines offer(ed) special deals for their shareholders. SR and BA come to mind...

This just wouldn't make financial sense for the airlines. I recall when I used to be a LUV shareholder that there was an attempted shareholder petition to institute something, ostensibly to allow one to come to the shareholders meeting, but it was defeated.

A few companies do this. O'Charleys is a southeast-based casual dining restaurant that gives you a free dinner or something. Never heard of any travel companies doing it.