Best frequent flyer [program for itinerary]

[nicky286]

Hi

I need some assistance from you guys, at the moment I do have Qantas frequent flyer (Bronze unfortunately), have not been traveling much

My review date will be 31 January every year

At the moment I'm planning to travel on December, these below flights will be under American Airline code

07 DEC 15 - SYD - HNL - CLASS M - AA7359

13 DEC 15 - HNL - DFW - CLASS M - AA102

13 DEC 15 - DFW - MCO - CLASS O - AA381

18 DEC 15 - MCO - LAX - CLASS L - AA28

01 JAN 16 - LAX - SYD - CLASS L - AA7368

I just wondering is better to put in my AA or QFF or eithad or something else?

Thank you in advance.

 

[Mattg]

It really depends on a few things. What do you hope to get out of this - points, status or both?

My suggestion would be to join AAdvantage and undertake a status challenge. This might be enough to earn you AA platinum (equivalent to QF Gold) status just from this trip. AAdvantage miles are also quite useful to have as they offer excellent redemptions within Australia/NZ (and to other destinations) and can be used to fly on most other oneworld airlines - including Qantas - with no fuel surcharge.

There are a couple of problems here though. Firstly, to retain AA status you need to take at least 4 AA-coded flights each year. That is virtually impossible unless you travel to the USA at least once per year (in which case it is quite doable). The other thing to consider is that AAdvantage miles are difficult to earn in Australia unless you fly a lot. So while AAdvantage miles are good, you can't really earn them at home through credit card spend, shopping etc.

Edit: I just checked and you would most definitely be able to earn AA Platinum (oneworld sapphire) doing a status challenge. See here for more info on that: http://knowledge.australianfrequent...hortcuts-to-airline-status/status-challenges/

 

[nicky286]

Hi

I'm looking for status, Im hoping that I can match it with Etihad (to travel to Europe), they having a Gold status match

Are you be able kindly explain how I most definitely be able to earn AA platinum ?

If I'm correct

07 DEC 15 - SYD - HNL - CLASS M - AA7359 --> 5060 miles * 1 = 5060 miles

13 DEC 15 - HNL - DFW - CLASS M - AA102 --> 3795 miles * 1 = 3795 miles

13 DEC 15 - DFW - MCO - CLASS O - AA381 --> 963 miles * 0.5 = 481 miles

18 DEC 15 - MCO - LAX - CLASS L - AA28 --> 2202 miles * 1 = 2202 miles

01 JAN 16 - LAX - SYD - CLASS L - AA7368 --> 7496 miles * 1 = 7496 miles

total of 19034 miles

Executive Platinum : 100 sectors or 100k flown base miles earned or 100k qpoints

Platinum : 60 sectors or 50k flown base miles or 50k qpoints

Gold : 30 sectors or 25k flown base miles or 25k qpoints




I tried to click on the link, it was saying i do not have any access

 

[Mattg]

Hi

I'm looking for status, Im hoping that I can match it with Etihad (to travel to Europe), they having a Gold status match

Are you be able kindly explain how I most definitely be able to earn AA platinum ?

I tried to click on the link, it was saying i do not have any access

The link was to the AFF Knowledge Centre page that clearly explains the Status challenge process. If you can't access the page, perhaps try logging out and in again on the main page? It should be visible to all members.

But basically, American Airlines does this status challenge where (for a fee), if you then fly a certain number of miles within a certain period (for AA Platinum I believe its 10,000 miles in 90 days) you then get Platinum status for a year. I checked your routing and fare classes and it came in well over the 10,000 qualifying mile mark (assuming you're flying all on AA flight numbers).

Once you have status on one airline, there is certainly the potential to have it matched by other airlines. Not sure about Etihad specifically but I would think it would be possible.

By comparison, crediting all of the flights you'll be taking to Qantas won't even earn you silver status in isolation.

 

[nicky286]

ok got it

Btw, how much fee are we talking about ?

 

[Mattg]

ok got it

Btw, how much fee are we talking about ?

I thinks it's about $200.

 

[nicky286]

I thinks it's about $200.

How do I do it?

 

[Mattg]

How do I do it?

You would need to call AAdvantage customer service closer to the time.

I would recommend you try again to access the info on the knowledge centre, and read up on this online. (Though don't bother with the American Airlines website - there is no info on there, funnily enough.)

 

[nicky286]

Quick question

Ill will be travelling from 7 Dec until 1 January

What's with their period time for frequent flyer, is it gonna be calendar year or?

 

[Mattg]

Quick question

Ill will be travelling from 7 Dec until 1 January

What's with their period time for frequent flyer, is it gonna be calendar year or?

Off the top of my head, you can start the challenge on the 1st or 16th of any month. Once achieved, the status would be valid until the following February, plus one full calendar year.

 

[nicky286]

So you guys reckon,

Call AA, sign up for the challenge at later date around end of NOV 15. I called them cost USD 240 for platinum

 

[Mattg]

So you guys reckon,

Call AA, sign up for the challenge at later date around end of NOV 15. I called them cost USD 240 for platinum

Sounds like a plan.

It doesn't really matter when you start, as long as you complete the 10,000 qualifying miles by the end of the challenge period. You could start earlier, for example, if you were planning to take any Qantas flights immediately before going to the US.

Oh and FWIW, the cost may vary between $200-$240 depending on the time of year. Though I suspect you might just miss out on the lower rate.

This is what the knowledge centre says:

• For a US$200-$240 fee, you have a chance to earn AA Platinum (oneworld Sapphire) status by earning 10,000 Elite Qualifying Points in 90 days The fee depends of what time of year you begin the challenge. If you begin between 16 June and 31 December ,the higher fee applies, however you get to keep the status for longer. If you start the challenge between 1 January and 15 June, the lower fee applies however the status earned will only be valid until February the following year. Status earned from challenges beginning after 16 June expires at the end of February two years later. This means that if you commenced the challenge in July 2015, you would be able to keep your status until at least February 2017. But if you completed it in April 2015, you could only keep it until February 2016.

 

[nicky286]

been with Qantas for a while, so hard to achieve their gold status

 

[nicky286]

Quick question, is it Platinum in AA the same as Platinum in Qantas

 

[Mattg]

Quick question, is it Platinum in AA the same as Platinum in Qantas

No, unfortunately... it's equivalent to oneworld sapphire, which is equivalent to Qantas Gold. And it is not possible to get Exec Platinum (QF Platinum) through a status challenge.

As a quick guide:

AA Gold = Qantas Silver = oneworld ruby
AA Platinum = Qantas Gold = oneworld sapphire
AA Executive Platinum = Qantas Platinum = oneworld emerald

 

[nicky286]

AA Gold = Qantas Silver = oneworld ruby

But if I matched it with etihad, i do believe they know lol

they just gonna assume its platinum hopefully hahah

 

[Mattg]

AA Gold = Qantas Silver = oneworld ruby

But if I matched it with etihad, i do believe they know lol

they just gonna assume its platinum hopefully hahah

I suspect they would take notice of the fact that it's oneworld sapphire, but you never know.

 

[nicky286]

Hi

I have a new itinerary, do you this its ok ?

1.07 DEC14 - SYD-HNL - 10.25PM-11.05AM - 09HRS 40M - AA7359 - M CLASS
2.10 DEC14 - HNL-DFW - 06.40PM-06.12AM - 07HRS 32M - AA0008 - M CLASS
3.11 DEC14 - DFW-MCO - 08.43AM-12.21PM - 02HRS 38M - AA1009 - M CLASS
4.16 DEC14 - MCO-LAX - 05.11PM-07.20PM - 05HRS 00M - AA2381 - L CLASS
5.01 JAN15 - LAX-SYD - 10.05PM-08.05AM - 15HRS 00M - AA7364 - L CLASS

I got above price for 2200 AUD

 

[Mattg]

Hi

I have a new itinerary, do you this its ok ?

1.07 DEC14 - SYD-HNL - 10.25PM-11.05AM - 09HRS 40M - AA7359 - M CLASS
2.10 DEC14 - HNL-DFW - 06.40PM-06.12AM - 07HRS 32M - AA0008 - M CLASS
3.11 DEC14 - DFW-MCO - 08.43AM-12.21PM - 02HRS 38M - AA1009 - M CLASS
4.16 DEC14 - MCO-LAX - 05.11PM-07.20PM - 05HRS 00M - AA2381 - L CLASS
5.01 JAN15 - LAX-SYD - 10.05PM-08.05AM - 15HRS 00M - AA7364 - L CLASS

I got above price for 2200 AUD

I'm assuming you want to know if it would still earn you AA Platinum? The answer is yes. M and L class both earn one qualifying mile per mile flown. Your itinerary comes in well over 10,000 miles in total, so you would be safe.

Here's what you would earn in different fare classes (on flights with an AA flight number:

 

[Moindardt]

I am commencing challenge in a just over a week. However, the person at AA said you no longer had a variable starting time, it was just a 3 month period and you could choose to be in it or not. I am positive she was wrong but it didn't matter for my purposes. FYI BNE-LAX in Full Economy or J is enough to Qualify.

This is the email:
Thank you for registering for an AAdvantage[SUP]®[/SUP] challenge.

To enjoy AAdvantage PLATINUM status through February 2017, please earn 10,000 elite qualifying points between now and 09/16/2015. Qualifying flights on American Airlines, American Eagle, AmericanConnection[SUP]®[/SUP], British Airways, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, Qantas, US Airways and their eligible codeshare flights count toward your challenge.

Since the number of elite qualifying points you earn is based on the fare you purchase and the miles you earn, you can view these details for each airline:

• American Airlines
• British Airways
• Finnair
• Iberia
• Japan Airlines
• Qantas
• US Airways

We wish you every success in attaining the elite status level you desire. Thank you for registering for an AAdvantage[SUP]®[/SUP] challenge.

To enjoy AAdvantage PLATINUM status through February 2017, please earn 10,000 elite qualifying points between now and 09/16/2015. Qualifying flights on American Airlines, American Eagle, AmericanConnection[SUP]®[/SUP], British Airways, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, Qantas, US Airways and their eligible codeshare flights count toward your challenge.

Since the number of elite qualifying points you earn is based on the fare you purchase and the miles you earn, you can view these details for each airline:

• American Airlines
• British Airways
• Finnair
• Iberia
• Japan Airlines
• Qantas
• US Airways

We wish you every success in attaining the elite status level you desire.