Which FF program for me?
 

I am PLT on AA, due to miles I earned when based in the US.

Now, I am mostly based in London, and Star Alliance airlines are so much better for destinations that I travel from here -- around Europe, Africa, etc. I'm realizing that tying myself to a system that doesn't fly to most places I want to go, except through BA... which is often more expensive.

I'm probably not going to earn PLT this year, so I think I might switch to another alliance.

A few questions:
- I've read about the differences, but what are the major pain points you notice when you switch from OneWorld to *A? What really bugged you personally?

- Should I choose United, Continental, or USAirways for my US program? I'm mostly going to be flying partners like Lufthansa, LOT, Ethiopian, etc.

- Are there bank accounts where you can earn money for miles on your deposits? I saw programs where you get miles for *opening* an account, but not for keeping money in there.

- Any other tips? Is this a good idea?

Is there a reason why a European program might not work for you? You may want to look at BMI's programme (it will be replaced by LH's Miles and More soon, but if you hurry you may sneak in before that happens... and you might end up with a year of LH Sen status once they convert the programme). You may be able to status match straight from AA Platinum to BMI Gold.

Everyone raves about bmi including some who do not ever fly them. Once it converts you'll have M&M and LH SEN has better benefits than most, especially since you'll be traveling in and out of Germany a lot.

With Air Berlin in OW now, though, you may want to consider sticking with OW, at least some of the time.

That won't happen until 2012, though. :(

Do a status match to Continental (and quickly since nobody knows when they will stop doing it - check that forum) from AA Plat to CO Plat. Since UA/CO will merge at some point I would just choose that if you want a US based program. There are chase credit cards that will help you out if you want.

I guess M&M would be okay, but I hear the redemption options are not great - I have no real basis to make the last statement - just what it posted around.

Cheers.


http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/conti...h-onepass.html

As your travel pattern apparently includes Africa, another option would be TK Miles&Smiles. They have an excellent network into (eastern and northern) Africa and thresholds for Elite are reasonable.