For the past several weeks, as frequent fliers sit grounded at home, many of us have been wondering what will happen to their beloved frequent flyer programs in 2020. Until a week ago, that question remained largely unanswered. There was of course plenty of speculation about what airlines would do based on past events, but…
By now, almost everyone knows airlines, hotels, rental car companies, and even fast food chains have loyalty programs. Airlines, in particular, design those loyalty programs to reward frequent flyers through award miles, upgrades, waived fees, and lounge access. United has the MileagePlus program, Delta has the SkyMiles program, and American Airlines has the AAdvantage program.…
Congratulations! You’ve made it! After spending countless hours on airplanes flying all over the world you’ve finally reached top-tier elite status with American Airlines. It’s no easy feat. To do so, you have to earn at least $15,000 Elite Qualifying Dollars and either 100,000 Elite Qualifying Miles or 120 Elite Qualifying Segments. To the layman, you basically…
A few weeks ago I completed (potentially) my final major trip of the year. With that quick trip to Japan I earned my 100,000th Elite Qualifying Mile and $15,000th Elite Qualifying Dollar. As a result, I unlocked another year of American Airlines AAdvantage Executive Platinum elite status. About a week after completing my trip I…
For some, myself included, it’s a big deal when they finally earn elite status with an airline. To earn elite status with any domestic airline you basically have to fly over 25,000 miles. On top of that, most require you spend more than $3,000 doing so. Over the past several years I’ve become numb to…
Well, it’s a new year and already I have about 5 flights under my belt. Of those four flights three have been with American and two of those have been in first class. Otherwise, I’ve taken one flight with United and another with Delta as I’ve started moving away from extreme loyalty to American. However,…
I begin each year with a fairly straightforward goal. Every year my goal is to earn AAdvantage Executive Platinum Elite Status from American Airlines. The goal sounds simple enough, but it’s a bit harder than it sounds. Additionally, American recently made it a bit harder by increasing the Elite Qualifying Dollar requirement. So, to complete…
As I wrap up another incredible year of flying I always enjoy looking back at where I’ve been in the past 12 months. Thankfully, American Airlines makes looking back easy by sending customers a year-end email. For the past two years American Airlines has sent AAdvantage members a Year In Review email which summarizes their…
Well, once again I’ve done it. For the second year in a row I’ve officially qualified for American Airlines AAdvantage Executive Platinum elite status. Although the qualifications this year were the same as last year I must say that this year was much more difficult. Last year I had the luxury of flying 60,000 miles…
One of the main reasons I started flying with American Airlines years ago was the AAdvantage program. At the time in order to qualify for elite status all I needed to do was fly a certain number of miles or segments. It didn’t matter how much money I spent with the airline, if I flew…
