[Consolidated] "I need XXX UA PQD's/PQMs in 2014 for Elite Status in 2015
 

Hi,

I'm going to be 50 EQM short of silver. I'm taking all my business to American (for the time being until they change their program), so don't want to travel on UA this year.

Any suggestions. I'm fine on the $2500 PQD requirement.

Try buying a JST-AOO ticket, then buying Award Accelerator and Premier Accelerator, then refunding the trip within 24 hrs. Let us know what price you're offered as I've been curious!

Then why are you bothering to get Silver on UA if you're not going to fly them? Seems pointless to spend the funds to just get a card that you'll never use.

MKE-ORD is 56 miles oneway, buy the EQM multiplier on it, and then cancel the ticket.

Hedge. If AA publishes a frequent-flyer program devaluation to match UA+DL, it may no longer be worth it to fly AA in 2015 and preferred carrier might become UA. If UA becomes preferred carrier in 2015, might be a better experience with 500-mile minimums on PQM and free E+ at T-24.

Yeah, but if they announce it in the second half of the year, going back to UA would require a potential of flying a lot in a short span. Their status is only going to be good through EOM Feb 2016 no matter what.

Right I'm hedging. AA has said they aren't going to be any changes in 2015 since they are focusing on merging with US. But if they do change in 2016, expect the announcements in early 2015 which gives me plenty of time to compare UA with AA and put all my spend on one of them.

Just so I understand. I buy the cheapest ticket I can (doesn't have to be JST-AOO). Then buy the Premier accelerator (is it always offered?) and then cancel it.

What is the typical cost to buy 1000 miles (I presume that's the smallest increment).

I have noticed that some of the high status flyers know nothing outside their own world.

I can tell you that if you from my own experience that if you are flying IAH-SAN on a Saturday evening, you will be bumped into first with Silver and so will your family. And there will be empty seats all around you.

I flew SAN-SFO-LAS and the SAN-SFO part had 50-60 people in boarding group 1. The SFO-LAS part had 8 people in boarding group 1. I flew MEX-IAH on Sunday afternoon Labor Day weekend (August 31) and there were empty seats in First and about 50 people in the back. There were entire rows empty in E+, but the FAs would not allow anybody from E- to move up there.

Flights on weekends, or with low fares, or to leisure destinations have very few status flyers.

From what I have seen, the mileage accelerator takes whatever miles you would have earned on your flight and doubles or triples it. So if your booked flights is 247 miles long, you can get MP Accel for an additional 247 miles or 494 miles. However, it seems very expensive when it has been offered to me.

A better way is to just book a short trip to the cheapest place you can find and fly the trip. Then you will have the miles you need.

Bingo!

about 14 cpm for PQM by the accelerator route presently (SEP)

It will double by DEC, roughly

I would count on a revenue system for AA. I would not count on an early 2015 notification

Your talking about award redeemable miles being based on $$ rather than miles flown right? I think its inevitable that AA will talk that route, but I hope its a bit more generous than United's scheme.

In United's scheme as a 50K flyer, I used get about 75,000 miles (including 50% mileage bonus). Under there new revenue based scheme I would get 40K miles (8 miles per dollar spent which is about $5K).

DUe to travel restrictions at my work this year I will lose 1K for 2015. As it stands at the moment I am due to rack up just over 49K miles, so just short of Gold status (PQD does not impact me as an international member). Gold is important for me as it brings the SA Gold status with it (and > 50% of my travel is on non UA flights)

So I am lookign to do the trick of purchasign a flight, buying accelerator miles and then cancelling the flight.

However I need an option where I can buy 1K PQMs, and when I tried this with a LAX-SFO flight it was offering 5K & 10K only.

Any suggestions for flights/segments I can look at that might offer 1K?

How about LAX-SAN/SBP/MRY/SMF/MCE/PRC?

suddenly found myself short 354 miles of silver status due to schedule/connection change. Bought one way JST-AOO for $104
The offer on EQM - 5000 miles for $95, and accelerator is $400 more :-(

I am 1k now. Is round trip going to make a difference here? Or is UA screwing me because of current status?

PS - tried a round trip IAD-JST - same offer of 5000 miles