I think there are a number of Canucks like myself who have dumped AC like a hot potato due to their extreme cutbacks to elite levels in 2002.

There are unfortunately limits to how far we can go due to the lack of any real competition when flying within Canada but transborder flights have more options of using US based carriers thankfully.

I am like Neverathome - I dumped AC like a hot potato and switched to Canjet for local east coast service, Westjet for west coast service and UA / LH for all other transborder and Intl service. Not sure who I will go to if UA goes under... I hate NW, really hate NW (comes from being held captive in MSP years ago).

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If you want to experience good customer service from an airline forget Air Canada and try CanJet or WestJet

US. I'm not too thrilled with them after their recent actions, nor do I want them stealing any more of my tax dollars to waste.

On routes where I can't fly my preferred AA I used to fly US; now I'm going to fly B6.

d

(edited for typo)

[This message has been edited by Doppy (edited 09-18-2002).]

I plan to keep my UA active as ever, but if there's an unbelievably great party next door, I'll pull out some ironed clothes and drag the family along too if its really that good.

Dropped Alaska Air/Horizon. I flew them weekly for 6 months, and never got a welcome kit. I tried calling the FFP phone #, and got busy signals all the time. I didn't get through to them ONCE.

After accumulating enough miles for 2 trips, I gave the miles to family and dropped Alaska like a hot potato.

I abandoned Delta because their International economy class is the pits.

I abandoned Air Canada because of the lack of opportunities to upgrade.

I have adopted KLM as my new airline plan because they are the most genorous for the routes I fly.

I echo Prem Ex's comment, I don't dump programs, only airlines. UA and CO fall into that catagory, but I still am in good standing in MP and OP if I ever fly those carriers again.

The only program which I let expire is Midwest Express. It was not due to anything wrong or bad with the program, and we all know there is certainly nothing wrong or bad with the airline itself either. I was not flying YX frequently enough to keep up program status. But now that they are partnered with Frontier's Early Returns, which I fly more often, I can at least put my miles on YX somewhere - I am happy!

Back in December of 2000, I finally got fed up with the "Friendly Skies" cancelled flights and indifferent or arrogant service. I wrote AA a letter stating that I'd love to fly them more often, but I was reluctant to because I didn't have any "status" with them.

They called me back and said that they would give me the equivalent of my UA1P status on AA. All I needed to do is send them a copy of my last MP statement. I've been a happy Plat ever since.

I do keep my MP account open, as I do with other airlines, in case I have to fly them.

I absolutely refuse to fly AirTran, though.

Delta - Due to LUser

Continental's ONEPASS - gross lack of availability of simple 25K domestic awards. Speaks volumes to Continental's skewed reliance on, and allegiance to, business travelers, to the detriment of leisure travelers. Good for business travelers, bad for primarily leisure travelers. IMO, of course.

I can understand, even sympathize w/ the concept of capacity control - but ONEPASS takes it to limits I find unacceptable and in turn their "affinity program" becomes a real big turn-OFF for me.

Every year - when ONEPASS wins a Freddy - I gag and choke and wish Inside Flyer would apply one [more] simple criterion to even being considered for a Freddy:
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Does the airline make 25K domestic awards AVAILABLE, or do they NOT ?
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Seems to me a 25K domestic award is the "benchmark" award - literally the common denominator - of most domestic programs, and easily trackable statistically.

Yet, to my greatest disappoint regarding Inside Flyer, Randy never seems to tackle this issue on behalf of flyers. Or at least I've not seen an in-depth critique of airlines on this issue. Simple, yet an excellent starting point to analyze any carrier's affinity program. So be it.

Therefore - after accumulating over 300,000 lifetime OnePass miles via active and preferential use of my marine Midland credit card...I am letting them dwindle and use this credit card intermittantly at best.

I switched form NWA to UA in order to snag a coveted upper deck seat on the infamous PIP express. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif



[This message has been edited by Punki (edited 09-20-2002).]

Two words:

Delta - SkyMiles

-Plat

Stopped accumulating miles in my Republic Perks account (I think they call it "WorldPerks" now?) once NW and CO hopped into bed together. I still fly NW, but put those miles into CO's TravelBank ("OnePass"?), or Alaska if the trip is in conjunction with KLM. Of course KLM is now a bonafide CO partner, so that rule no longer applies.
Also I never fly AA, but if I did, those miles would also go to Alaska's "Gold Coast Travel" Program(or whatever they call that now).
I always try to keep miles "alive", as you never know what the future will bring; and it has paid off! Once, just the combination of the sign-up bonuses from PI, AL and PSA plus a Credit Card application (and maybe one flight?) got me enough for a free flight on USAir after the merger.

I dropped the Club Rewards program (Diners Club) this year, after being a member continuously since 1985. Believe it or not (you young whippersnappers), when I first joined, there were virtually NO other credit cards that offered any kind of points or rewards for their use, and Diners Club was the pioneer, for which I will remain grateful. However, nowadays it's hard to find a credit card that DOESN'T offer some kind of a premium, and usually for little or no annual fee. The Diners Club annual fee (nearly $100) is one of the highest, and while you can usually negotiate some miles and a fee reduction for staying with them every year, I'm tired of doing that dance year after year. So for the first time in 17 years, there is no Diners Club card in my wallet.

I stopped almost all hotel programs. When I started converting what a stay was worth (in future rewards) and then compared the value of the $120 Marriott/Hilton/Westin room and the much more relaxing $59 rooms with fridge, microwave, decent work table and free convenient light breakfast it made much more sense to stop collecting points that had marginal value.