View Poll Results: Is an American Airlines/US Airways merger good for the traveling public?
Yes
84
28.19%
No
214
71.81%
Voters: 298. You may not vote on this poll
Nov 12, 2013, 2:24 pm
Last edit by: aztimm
Note:
There is an existing thread in the AA forum that may be useful to US and AA Flyertalkers:
US-AA Merger: Just the Facts thread
As facts become posted, that should be the place to look.
Merger discussion, speculation, and other questions can be directed here, or the similar thread in the AA forum:
MERGER: US and AA 9 Dec 2013 and implications for AA flyers (new)
AA - US Merger Agreement / Announcement / DOJ Action Discussion (consolidated, and now closed to new posts)
There is an existing thread in the AA forum that may be useful to US and AA Flyertalkers:
US-AA Merger: Just the Facts thread
As facts become posted, that should be the place to look.
Merger discussion, speculation, and other questions can be directed here, or the similar thread in the AA forum:
MERGER: US and AA 9 Dec 2013 and implications for AA flyers (new)
AA - US Merger Agreement / Announcement / DOJ Action Discussion (consolidated, and now closed to new posts)
US/AA merger- MASTER DISCUSSION THREAD/incl 'when will US leave STAR'
Aug 7, 2013, 7:00 am
#1186
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,955
I find that very hard to believe. For status to be reciprocal, each flier must have an AA and US FF account. Then they have to be linked, with weekly "sweeps" to be done to update them. I would be surprised if that happened anytime before 2014. They will first focus on putting each others code on their flights. So that every AA flight will have a US code on it, and vice versa. Which will make a AA flight the same as a US flight, and therefore earning full EQM and elite level bonus credit. And I would guess that reciprocating benefits on both carriers will happen when both FF programs mirror each other, anyway. How do you upgrade a US elite on a AA flight when they won't have any e500s?
The IT side is easy, it wouldn't be hard to feed that info both ways. The rest is where it'd get hairy. The programs aren't THAT different, but different enough to make it a challenge.
What I could see is reciprocal mileage earning that quickly.
Aug 7, 2013, 9:19 am
#1187
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Stuck Between the Moon and CLD or SAN, Your local Taco Bell
Programs: AA EXP/LT PLT, DL PM, UA Silver, SPG Plat, Marriott Plat, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 3,510
In all seriousness, they could just match the two statuses via some sort of sync and credit e500's for flights credited to AA. it's not perfect, but since both accounts would have status it'd be a decent interim band aid.
Aug 7, 2013, 9:50 am
#1188
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,955
Upgrade the CP's (EXP equivalent, no "stickers" required). Leave the rest in the back. More for me.
In all seriousness, they could just match the two statuses via some sort of sync and credit e500's for flights credited to AA. it's not perfect, but since both accounts would have status it'd be a decent interim band aid.
In all seriousness, they could just match the two statuses via some sort of sync and credit e500's for flights credited to AA. it's not perfect, but since both accounts would have status it'd be a decent interim band aid.
Aug 7, 2013, 10:50 am
#1189
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: BOS-DCA
Programs: AA ExePlat
Posts: 217
Rampant speculation that USdbaAA will fly MIA-Africa along with other hopes and desires for new international service http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/american-aadvantage/1491406-us-mia-could-african-gateway.html
Aug 7, 2013, 11:21 am
#1190
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: High Point, NC
Programs: None
Posts: 9,171
Apparently easier said than done although it might be easier transferring from the Shares to the Sabre side. In both the HP/US and UA/CO mergers one side used Shares (HP and CO) while the other used a bigger system. And in both cases Shares was the surviving system and both mergers had major problems merging the two systems. Hopefully "new" AA will stick with Sabre which traces it lineage to the industries original computerized res system back in the 1960's - started by AA.
Aug 7, 2013, 11:28 am
#1191
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: BOS
Programs: Marriott LTG, HHonors Diamond, Nat'l Exec
Posts: 3,581
Apparently easier said than done although it might be easier transferring from the Shares to the Sabre side. In both the HP/US and UA/CO mergers one side used Shares (HP and CO) while the other used a bigger system. And in both cases Shares was the surviving system and both mergers had major problems merging the two systems. Hopefully "new" AA will stick with Sabre which traces it lineage to the industries original computerized res system back in the 1960's - started by AA.
Aug 7, 2013, 12:06 pm
#1192
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,955
Apparently easier said than done although it might be easier transferring from the Shares to the Sabre side. In both the HP/US and UA/CO mergers one side used Shares (HP and CO) while the other used a bigger system. And in both cases Shares was the surviving system and both mergers had major problems merging the two systems. Hopefully "new" AA will stick with Sabre which traces it lineage to the industries original computerized res system back in the 1960's - started by AA.
It's not to say someone couldn't screw it up.
Aug 7, 2013, 1:03 pm
#1193
Join Date: May 2011
Location: BOS
Programs: AA PLT, Marriott LTP
Posts: 493
I hope I have the right thread for my question.
What would you do-
I need to get to San Jose (SJC) in Mid October from BOS. I think US is out of the transcon business because their flights are almost 2X the competition (~$630 vs. ~$360 when checking to SFO). So unless I work around my company's booking system which would flag such a large variance, I have to book another airline.
Any other year I would have booked UA direct to SFO. Any guesses if US will still be in the *A mid October? I desperately need the miles.
What would you do-
I need to get to San Jose (SJC) in Mid October from BOS. I think US is out of the transcon business because their flights are almost 2X the competition (~$630 vs. ~$360 when checking to SFO). So unless I work around my company's booking system which would flag such a large variance, I have to book another airline.
Any other year I would have booked UA direct to SFO. Any guesses if US will still be in the *A mid October? I desperately need the miles.
Aug 7, 2013, 1:18 pm
#1194
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,955
I'm with you - I'm trying to book Christmas travel, and US out/UA return works out to be a few hundred bucks cheaper. I'd love to know whether if I booked now, that mileage could still be credited back to US in Dec.
Does anyone remember CO? If someone booked before CO withdrew from ST, but flew after they withdrew and had their DL FF# in there, did they still credit to DL? Just looking for history here, not that it's going to be reliable.
Does anyone remember CO? If someone booked before CO withdrew from ST, but flew after they withdrew and had their DL FF# in there, did they still credit to DL? Just looking for history here, not that it's going to be reliable.
Aug 7, 2013, 1:37 pm
#1195
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: SEA, but up and down the coast a lot
Programs: Oceanic Airlines Gold Elite
Posts: 20,397
This is really simple: if you don't like uncertainty, pay the premium to fly US.
If you need to save a buck, you pays your money and you takes your chances. What dcpatti says is probably the best approach, but there aren't any guarantees. You're the only person who can decide if saving a couple hundred is worth losing an elite tier (and possibly not having any way to buy-up status, worst case scenario... though I suspect that DM + buy-ups could be around for 2014. I think DM isn't going to get wound down before January; it might even stumble into 2015).
Like it or not, making it easy for FTers to minimize the cost per mile on their year-end runs for elite status is pretty low on the list of "things AA/US employees are taking into account when it comes to timing of merger announcements", and they are the only people who can remove the FUD, not the uninformed chattering classes and armchair airline CEOs like me on FT.
If you need to save a buck, you pays your money and you takes your chances. What dcpatti says is probably the best approach, but there aren't any guarantees. You're the only person who can decide if saving a couple hundred is worth losing an elite tier (and possibly not having any way to buy-up status, worst case scenario... though I suspect that DM + buy-ups could be around for 2014. I think DM isn't going to get wound down before January; it might even stumble into 2015).
Like it or not, making it easy for FTers to minimize the cost per mile on their year-end runs for elite status is pretty low on the list of "things AA/US employees are taking into account when it comes to timing of merger announcements", and they are the only people who can remove the FUD, not the uninformed chattering classes and armchair airline CEOs like me on FT.
Aug 7, 2013, 3:52 pm
#1196
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Melbourne
Programs: ►QFWP/LTG►VA WP►HyattExpl.►HiltonGold►ALL Silver
Posts: 21,995
This would be as a standalone carrier with USxxx flight numbers until the merger is finalized sometime 2014/2015.
This staged approach would very much operate on a KISS principle.
Aug 7, 2013, 6:46 pm
#1197
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,955
This is really simple: if you don't like uncertainty, pay the premium to fly US.
If you need to save a buck, you pays your money and you takes your chances. What dcpatti says is probably the best approach, but there aren't any guarantees. You're the only person who can decide if saving a couple hundred is worth losing an elite tier (and possibly not having any way to buy-up status, worst case scenario... though I suspect that DM + buy-ups could be around for 2014. I think DM isn't going to get wound down before January; it might even stumble into 2015).
Like it or not, making it easy for FTers to minimize the cost per mile on their year-end runs for elite status is pretty low on the list of "things AA/US employees are taking into account when it comes to timing of merger announcements", and they are the only people who can remove the FUD, not the uninformed chattering classes and armchair airline CEOs like me on FT.
If you need to save a buck, you pays your money and you takes your chances. What dcpatti says is probably the best approach, but there aren't any guarantees. You're the only person who can decide if saving a couple hundred is worth losing an elite tier (and possibly not having any way to buy-up status, worst case scenario... though I suspect that DM + buy-ups could be around for 2014. I think DM isn't going to get wound down before January; it might even stumble into 2015).
Like it or not, making it easy for FTers to minimize the cost per mile on their year-end runs for elite status is pretty low on the list of "things AA/US employees are taking into account when it comes to timing of merger announcements", and they are the only people who can remove the FUD, not the uninformed chattering classes and armchair airline CEOs like me on FT.
Aug 7, 2013, 8:08 pm
#1198
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2001
Location: LAX; AA EXP, MM; HH Gold
Posts: 31,789
I would assume that December flights won't work if US is going to be in Oneworld by November 1.
Aug 8, 2013, 4:24 am
#1199
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 33
Well, I should re-state, it's relatively not difficult from a technical perspective as long as the process and program decisions are made. If you really wanted to do it, you could solicit US FF# from the AA side, match those against US and feed back preferred level and mileage (BIS, RDM, etc), then flag in the AA system as a specific AAdvantage tier - essentially grant matched status - then adjust the e500's/SWUs as necessary. All of this is relatively platform-agnostic as long as you have the ability to get data in and out.
It's not to say someone couldn't screw it up.
It's not to say someone couldn't screw it up.
Aug 8, 2013, 5:31 am
#1200
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Washington, DC
Programs: US-CP, UA, Marriott Rewards, HHonors, Avis,
Posts: 4,549
Being in the Fortune 500 doesn't make you immune to having poor IT shops. Seriously sometimes I wonder how some of these companies even stay open, just judging from their IT dramas.
(Most of my customers are actually smart, hard-working and capable, but the duds are real duds.)