airplanegod

SW and B6. AA's was in a very close third until they switched from distance flown to how much you pay.

Proudelitist

Yes, heresy!

SW (aka WN) is a waste of money and time. For one thing, there is only coach..so what you get by flying and earning is yet another coach seat. It also means there are no other class perks that you get with biz and first classes, such as lounges, priority bags etc. You are still in the cattle call scramble, even if you get further ahead in the cattle line. No assigned seat number for that hard earned coach seat. Worse if there are thru pax..enough of them, and boarding A1 won't make a bit of difference.

Secondly, even though the OP may only fly domestic, with other carriers that also have int'l you can fly domestic and earn enough to go int'l on the rare occasions you do want to go further abroad. There is some limited partnership with WN if you want to go to Canada or Mexico..during some seasons. Sometimes. On some flights. Maybe.

Thirdly, the program has been deteriorating for years. Despite the coach-only crap, it was at one time much much easier to earn a free flight. I can remember getting one for every fixed amount of flights..then WN decided to change the program to a point system that varied based largely on distance, making the earning as effective as on any legacy carrier..but you still get very little for it..much less than on a legacy.

In short, the WN program offers diminishing returns on the ability to get a crappy coach experience. It's like there is no reward at all.

standard

WN's program does have benefits.

Scenario: You have a small business. You pay all the expenses. If you take a business trip and eat grocery food or a steak dinner, your income is the same. Any award trips that you take saves you airfare and is profit.

Conclusion: WN is fine.

Scenario: You can bill your client for anything that is not excessive. Fly DL business class overseas or upgrade to first on domestic, no problem. Award travel is either for vacation or for upgrades.

Conclusion: WN is not very good unless they are the only non-stop and you want to get home fast.

MSPeconomist

You need to first decide whether it makes sense for you to strive for status on one carrier or just pick the cheapest flights and purchase add on services if desired, such as fees to reserve better seats. Depending on the annual fees, it can make sense to acquire a credit card for every airline you use regularly as these often give you a free checked bag and somewhat early boarding. You want to have some FF program where every flight can be credited, specifically one program in each alliance (or AS to cover both SkyTeam and oneworld via DL and AA plus other partners). You want these programs not to have expiring miles (like DL) or at least to have a cheap and easy way to keep your account active, maybe by getting miles for a dinner or buying a song for a couple dollars. You can abandon the idea of loyalty when buying tickets while still collecting the miles that come your way in hope of later being able to redeem for something useful to you. A mile is a terrible thing to waste.

jrl767

it's a bit easier to read and digest in smaller and more focused paragraphs, but MSPeconomist has provided an excellent summary

MSPeconomist

Thank you.

Cloudship

For me, what I have found is that I am far more price conscious than I used to be. I used to be willing to pay ~$50-$100 more for a domestic flight on my preferred carrier, but since there is no benefit to having a referred carrier anymore, I wont spend that money. For me I just need a wider seat.

So, I know collect points with everyone. I travel enough that I am somehow keeping my points active, but they only get used for an occasional upgrade tickets. I have had to become far more choosy about what dates I travel. I am also now really looking for discount first tickets all the time, since I no longer have that additional incentive to gain more qualification points. Overall I would say I probably travel about a third less than I would if there was more incentive.

But there are some benefits. I fly B6 a lot more, since I don't worry about having to keep on my chosen carrier. And while I don't fly international often, now it is based more on who gives a good price and what the experience is going to be versus the alliance. The last time I looked at international trips (I didn't take one) I for the first time found myself seriously considering the discount non aligned carriers.

beachmouse

If your flights are going to take you to what WN considers to be outstations, it's easy to start hitting the limitations of their IT & booking system. Sorry, WN, that you do not allow me to book a round trip between Pensacola and San Francisco is a bug and not a feature. (And apparently I shouldn't even think about a round trip between Pensacola and Reno or expect a route from ECP to DTW that arrives in Detroit between 10:am and 11:00pm)

darthbimmer

OP, you haven't described the routes you fly. If you are in an airline's hub city or most of your destinations are one airline's hubs, then that airline should be your first choice for reasons of convenience. For someone who travels only occasionally, flying nonstop without perks is a better value than receiving silver-level benefits while having to connect.

TravelerMSY

Rather than chase status, why not just seek out the price, schedule and amenities that you require? If that means first-class travel, then buy discount F when it's available or use miles. You can also use airline credit cards to get an approximation of low-level status benefits like waived bag fees.

You might still be better off doing this than chasing mid or top-tier status and taking a bunch of unnecessary trips at higher fares.

It's going to be difficult to optimize price, schedule and in-flight amenities all at once. You're going to have to pick something to prioritize.

My personal version of this is to fly Southwest when it makes sense domestically, traveling on a companion pass with a +1, typically on super-discount fares that approach bus fare when divided by two. Traveling alone, either Southwest on a nonstop or maybe a domestic first award ticket if the travel involves a connection and a long travel day. For international, it's biz/first award tickets or I don't go. To make this work, you need to manufacture a ton of miles and have an ultra-flexible schedule. In effect, you want to either go big or go home. Either aim for top-tier on AA/US/DL or forgo status at all and just book the flights that fit your mission.

ETA- I should add that *very few* of the miles used to accomplish any of that flying were actually earned from flying.

Beven12S

I'm in this position. I have a lot of disposable income but I do not want to pay for J/F most of the time and I pay for my own travel.

I basically find the best compromise of itinerary and base Y price and I get the E+ option. I have stopped fighting for seats on legacy carriers. With all of the "elites," I am not confident of finding a close overhead so I tend to check a bag. If you have a few extra dollars to spend, it is not a bad way to travel and it is cheaper than J/F.

pinniped

Hometown? Most common routes? Those will probably drive your decision.

All things being equal, if you *don't* fly enough to reach silver, then you need to be looking non-alliance. Flying UA, AA, or DL with no status is a recipe for disaster: I would rather be on Spirit, and that is not hyperbole in the slightest. If you do, however, reach silver, then the experience is fine with whichever legacy meets your needs. Figure you can live with one checked bag, not two, right?

Southwest is great if they meet your needs. They are expensive - you're paying a premium to fly them in most cases - but they have become the premium product in the U.S. domestic airline market. (I haven't decided if that's sad or not: they have a bunch of 737's, 31" seats, and everybody gets to check bags so, yep, they're the premium product!!) They of course have their elite statuses, but beyond the boarding sequence it's a relatively egalitarian inflight experience. You aren't punished at every step of the way because you're not A-list. Just check in 24 hours in advance and you'll be okay.