If AA works best, that is what I would fly. AS is good for earning, and can be fantastic for burning on AA. If you don't fly enough AS routes to be viable, then I would skip this. You can earn up to 30K AS EQMs with the AS credit card, so with a small business, this may be enough to get you OneWorld Sapphire/Emerald status with enough flights credited to AS.

Depending on the route, I probably get upgraded to First domestically about 1/3 of the time on American. I'm OWE through AS.

If I was going to be on 80 AA planes every year, I would personally get the $595 AA credit card for lounge access, and the other card for the mileage bumps when you hit a certain amount of miles. (One Citi and one Barclays). I would do the math on staying 100% in that ecosystem, especually if you have business spending to put on the card.

Are you sure that you get Flagship Lounge access on (short) domestic flights with OWE through Royal Jordanian? That also may be worth it if you can find good redemptions for their miles.

Thanks - that is helpful! I'll definitely be flying AA, so I'd just need to figure out what program to credit the flights to.

I don't have any plans to fly Alaska this year, but it seems like there might be a case for crediting all my flights to Alaska rather than AA. Since I'll be taking a lot of short, cheap flights, and Alaska offers a minimum of 500 per trip, that'd get me MVP w/ 20 round-trips (rather than the ~40 it'd take to get AA Gold). And then, in theory, I'd be eligible for first class upgrade + MCE on AA flights. In that case, do you think Alaska would be a better move than AA?

And, strangely, yes, I'm pretty sure OWE through Royal Jordanian would get me Flagship Lounge access on domestic flights. From AA's terms and conditions:
​​​​​​

I would recommend Iberia's program.
Oneworld Sapphire is 7500 Euro of spend on AA, and it isn't too far off from your budget.. and the elite point bonus per segment would apply if you purchased non-basic economy.
You'd get all the benefits like MCE, lounge access, group 3 boarding, etc.

Central Europe (BUD / VIE) to SE Asia, USA & Middle East* (TLV, UAE )
 

Hi all, AA or IB were recommended On the info desk FF questionnaire post.
I avoid QR FF and all flights through DOH.
Was suggested to post in the alliances forums.
Looking for more ideas or any possible info!

1. What is most important to you in a frequent flyer program (FFP)?

Class & seat upgrades, mostly from Economy / PE to Business.
Easy status gain & maintenance.
Optional Status match with current LY Matmid gold,
and possible future status match options from New FFP to other FFP's if I decide to move .
Long term value for miles / points.

2. How many miles do you usually fly each year? How many flights/sectors?

70000+ Miles, 30+ flights/sectors

3. What fare class do you usually buy?

Business Flex / PE Flex on long haul, economy on short haul

4. Are you able to choose your airlines and/or class of service? Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?

Yes. I choose my flights and airlines, can choose business on most long haul flights over 6 hours.

I travel mostly for work.
Some pleasure short haul flights & rail travel in Europe.
Will use rail & air tickets for the domestic leg of a long haul flight when possible.

5. Which routes do you fly most often?

5-6 Europe to SE Asia , varied, such as BKK, SIN, BLR, HKG, SZX Mostly Business class
1-2 Transatlantic Europe to East coast US - Boston / Washington DC Economy / PE
5-6 Central Europe to TLV : mostly BUD - TLV , Vienna - TLV. Low cost / Economy
1-2 Europe to UAE Business / Economy
1 TLV - UAE Low cost / Economy


6. What is your home airport?

BUD / VIE (Plus train)
I may relocate next year in central / southern Europe, and will keep similar international routes.
Some options are: MXP, LIN, AMS, BRU, BCN, MAD

7. Do you have status in any FFP? What is it? How many miles do you have banked in each FFP, if any?

LY Matmid Gold ~80000 points , ~2900 / 5200 diamonds.
Miles & More member 31,059 Miles 366 Points.
Small amounts of :
Emirates & Etihad points and old United & Delta miles.

8. What are your preferred airlines, if any?

KLM, Swiss, Emirates, Etihad, Hainan.
EL AL to TLV

9.
I will travel with / through:
UAE (Emirates, Fly Dubai, Etihad) , Singapore, Azerbaijan, Morocco.

I Avoid traveling with / through:
Qatar Airlines & Doha airport, Iran, Lebanon, Kuwait, Tunisia, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Malesia, Indonesia.
Turkey & Turkish Airlines, Jordan, Egypt and Russia.

10.
I'm interested in matching credit card reward programs, can also be american based.

Thanks!

None of your preferred airlines are Oneworld,so why are you looking at Oneworld programs?

Hi izzik, thanks for your reply,

If a Oneworld FFP works out for my needs then I'll focus on Oneworld airline. If chosen FFP also has agreements with a favorite Airline - that's a bonus.
Also:
.

Cheers

Chiming in with a few thoughts for some [ideally flame-free] guidance from our travel-weathered forumers:

• I'm based out of KWI, and have been flying QR for years; I've had Platinum with QRPC since 2017 and currently have it secured until 2026, but my requalification for 2027 is looking a bit shaky at the moment.
• I've been increasingly frustrated by QRPC as a rewarding program and experience; their devaluations are frequent, their IT is a shambles, rules are insane and convoluted, redemptions and upgrades are hard to come by and are often poor value when I do find them, etc.
• Part of me kicks myself for not crediting to BA before their horrible devaluation this year; pretty sure I'd have had a solid crack at Lifetime Gold with all the travel I've done.
• QR doesn't offer a lifetime program, and I'm considering if it's worth building a new relationship with another OW carrier for now, with the following caveats:
  • BA stopped flying out of KWI so I don't think their new program structure offers much value/gain since I wouldn't be flying on BA metal.
  • AY has lifetime, but their LTE qualification is steep at 3.3M tier points.
  • IB also offers lifetime, but I've been told their program is a bit complicated and Spain-centric.
  • Is AA worth pursuing from zero?
• With regards to other alliances, I have Delta Medallion and about 20K lifetime miles with them, as well as more and more SV-flown flights. I have about 19K LT miles with UA, but Star Alliance's regional representation is via TK which I'm not a fan of.

What do I care about with a program? The below:

• Lounge access [preferably with a guest]
• Priority check-in and boarding
• Extra baggage is nice, but not a feature I use with any regularity
• Upgrade priority
• Redemption availability and the ability to upgrade

I consider myself a frequent traveler, and would ideally like to build a lifetime relationship with the smartest investment of time and money given the above; I'm sure we're all in the same boat, ha.

Thoughts, team? Curious if I should pivot away from QRPC and start over with OW, or if I should move my eggs out of that basket to another alliance entirely.

Thanks!

khabah

I know it's lengthy but it's ideal if you answer the suggested template of questions.
Because.. my first questions are-- what routes do you fly, what are your preferred airlines, are you buying business class, etc..

I am SIN-based OWE. The conundrum of being a SIN-based OWE is that ex-SIN business class tickets are typically 60-120% pricier than ex-ASEAN countries with lower GDP and income per capita. You probably want the OWE partly to access QF F lounge in SIN, but unfortunately that will cost several thousand. I end up buying the cheaper ex-ASEAN business class tickets, e.g. CGK, MNL, CEB to Europe on QR, so despite being OWE I rarely get to use the QF F lounge in SIN. In your case I might still consider the cheaper ex-ASEAN business class route, like spend the money on more business class tickets (3-4 ASEAN-Europe returns a year), be OWE with QRPC, forgo the QF F lounge in SIN but get Al Safwa in DOH. Another way is to purchase all your Europe trips in reverse, buy 3-4 OSL/ARN-SIN AY business class returns a year, be OWE with AY or AS.

Help
 

(1) What is most important to you in a FFP?Reply: Lounge access +1 guest, baggage

(2) How many miles do you usually fly each year & in what class? How many flights/sectors?Reply: 0-25k in J, R or I 4x / yr

(3) What types of fares do you usually buy?Reply: discounted business class

(4) Can you choose your airlines and/or class of service? Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?Reply: Run my own business and have full discretion.

(5) Which routes and airlines do you fly most often?(US Domestic, Transpacific, Kangaroo, in Asia etc)Reply: Asia to EU 4x yearly

(6) What is your home airport? SIN, MNL

(7) Do you have FFP status of any kind in OW or other airline? What is it? Do you have any miles banked in a FFP? OWE soft landing OWS, burning my stash of Avios (600k down to 300k). Trying to maintain at least OWS with both redemption travel and biz returns. Have KF Gold for Asian/regional travel but can divert some spend.

* * *

Hi all, am OWS, with infrequent J travel Asia to EU. I am currently burning through my BA points to divorce myself from the programme, and have a redemption return flight with Oman Air MNL-LHR-MNL. Is Qantas a viable option to credit for status? Any other airlines also credit TPs for redemptions? Thanks.

mrjetlag Welcome to FT
For QF status need 4 eligible QF or Jetstar flights. With Jetstar Asia now closed makes it a lot harder for those living in Asia.
Flying business class status does not add alot. But more business fares are unbundled. No lounge access, seat selection, etc.
Consider IB (movable avios ff currency) Avios used by BA IB AY QR IE

Suggestions welcome...
(1) What is most important to you in a FFP?
Lounge, baggage allowance, priority security/boarding.
(2) How many miles do you usually fly each year & in what class? How many flights/sectors?
Usually 3-4 trips from London/Europe to Asia in Business (tending to use QR ex-EU at the moment), 2 trips London to US, mix of East and West Coast, in premium/business, a few other US internals/positioning flights for ex-EU, usually economy
(3) What types of fares do you usually buy?
Business or PE as a preference for longer trips. Economy for short haul
(4) Can you choose your airlines and/or class of service? Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?
Within reason yes. Most travel is for work so do need to consider VFM.
(5) Which routes and airlines do you fly most often?
Most Asia travel is to SE Asia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Bangkok. US is usually IAD, CLT or LAX. Asia usually QR and US mix of BA/AA, but open to changing that.
(6) What is your home airport?
LHR
(7) Do you have FFP status of any kind in OW or other airline? What is it? Do you have any miles banked in a FFP?
BA Gold, about 500k avios and a companion voucher to use (I think).
(8) Preferred Airlines? Most common Airlines flown on?
Currently QR but again open to whatever is best to max FFP.

If you book paid tickets on oman air, their program looks easy to gain status on business class tickets especially connecting long haul to long haul routes. Their program will probably change a bit once Oneworld partners and rules kick in.

Hi
Have been trying to figure out what best to do in the light of the changes to BA FF programme now that it’s gone to revenue based earings…

1 I’m looking to keep my OW Emerald status primarily as well as maximise my points/miles

2 nearly all my travel is ultra long haul as I’m based in New Zealand and is on OW round the world tickets and in first class and usually use my 17 flights and usually base miles are anything between 35000 and 50000 miles and some years I do 2 RTWs

3 Long haul in F when available and J when not.

4 I get to choose and on my RWT i try to maximise flights in First on JL CX QR QF BA and AA in that order of preference and travel is mixture of work and pleasure

5 most often fly ultra long haul eg SYD to DOH . SYD to DFW. HKG to JFK LHR to TYO
and on QF QR CX
Usually try to book flights as BA codeshares where possibly to max my Avois as currently BA Club member at Gold level

6 Home airport it Wellington or Auckland

7 BA Clue Gold and OW Emerald and have been for many years and am trying to retain status in the light of changes to BA earning
Is made complicated due to flying on RTW tickets - usually plated on CX or AA -
currently hard to know what my earnings are on BA. But will find out soon as about to head from NZ to USA and Europe and on to Asia …

8 Prefer CX JL QR QF

Hope the above info is helpful and I know that it’s tricky with RTW Tickets to know what the earnings might be on BA at present but I suspect it’s time to move FF programme

Maybe this post better belongs on the OW RTW forum ?
but thought I’d ask here first

Many thanks for thoughts shared

pianoperson , since your travel all seems to be in First or Business, how much benefit do you actually derive from your elite status?

If you want to continue to earn Avios, I would look at Iberia's program. But since AA's miles are generally more valuable, I'd also take a look at the AAdvantage program: some of AA's partners still earn miles and Loyalty Points (which are used to determine elite status) based on distance and fare booking code, rather than on pre-tax spend.