How to change allegiance from QF to AA

[AliCat]

Hi I am a newbie. Gold QFF, Gold Velocity and just signed-up to AAdvantage. I like AA for their generous rewards flights, and buying miles is such a great deal. I am travelling to USA this week and will be taking domestic flights with AA. I can only book through QANTAS as a reward booking. If I book with AA I can pay cash but can obviously can only list one flyer programme with the ticket. So I either put my QFF number and receive the benefits of gold/sapphire OW, or I do AA and and start afresh. Can I flash my QANTAS gold at the lounge and get in on an AA ticket? What's the best way to change my allegiance to AA? Use gold Velocity to ask for a challenge and collect points on AA and QF? I heard they don't challenge other OW. How hard is it to attain gold through AA as opposed to QF? Thoughts appreciated

 

[AliCat]

Hi I am a newbie. Gold QFF, Gold Velocity and just signed-up to AAdvantage. I like AA for their generous rewards flights, and buying miles is such a great deal. I am travelling to USA this week and will be taking domestic flights with AA. I can only book through QANTAS as a reward booking. If I book with AA I can pay cash but can obviously can only list one flyer programme with the ticket. So I either put my QFF number and receive the benefits of gold/sapphire OW, or I do AA and and start afresh. Can I flash my QANTAS gold at the lounge and get in on an AA ticket? What's the best way to change my allegiance to AA? Use gold Velocity to ask for a challenge and collect points on AA and QF? I heard they don't challenge other OW. How hard is it to attain gold through AA as opposed to QF? Thoughts appreciated

To clarify: I want to maintain my OW status, but accrue miles to AA, not QF

 

[RooFlyer]

To earn status with AA you need to quote your AA number in the paid bookings. In that case your QF status will not show. However you can buy a 1 month AA Lounge membership for a reasonable price to get you lounge access during your trip (including QF lounges in Oz). This is a membership, not a 'pass' - see the AA site.

If its an Award flight, either on QF or AA, put the QF FF # in the booking - they don't earn, so get the existing benefits.

People used to - maybe still do - make the booking (in your case, in QF), so get a BP with their QF status on it, to get entry to AA lounge. Then, once in the lounge, they get the agent to put their AA # in the booking, so it then earns. Not sure if you can still do that though.

Obviously the optimal time to switch your FF program earn account to AA is just after you have requalified for Gold on QFF, thus maximising the time you have Gold privileges and maximise the time to get status on AA. You realise you need to take 4 AA flights a year?

 

[ogs70]

FWIW, last year I was able to use my QF SG / OWS privileges whilst crediting to BA (no status at the time) when flying AA domestically. My BP only had my BA FF number on, and showing that in addition to my QF card gave me no problems. I also had no issue with CX, QF and BA lounges doing the same.

If the lounge agent challenges it, you can always change it again on your way out.

 

[Danger]

Hi I am a newbie. Gold QFF, Gold Velocity and just signed-up to AAdvantage. I like AA for their generous rewards flights, and buying miles is such a great deal. I am travelling to USA this week and will be taking domestic flights with AA. I can only book through QANTAS as a reward booking. If I book with AA I can pay cash but can obviously can only list one flyer programme with the ticket. So I either put my QFF number and receive the benefits of gold/sapphire OW, or I do AA and and start afresh. Can I flash my QANTAS gold at the lounge and get in on an AA ticket? What's the best way to change my allegiance to AA? Use gold Velocity to ask for a challenge and collect points on AA and QF? I heard they don't challenge other OW. How hard is it to attain gold through AA as opposed to QF? Thoughts appreciated

You should have no issue entering your AA number and presenting that boarding pass at the lounge, along with your QF boarding pass. In my experience AA is not cough about this, unlike QF at times.

 

[Reggie78]

Don't forget about the AA Platinum Challenge!

 

[drron]

Again I have had no problem in the past crediting to AA,have status with AA and not QF but being able to access the domestic ACs by showing my lifetime QP card.
In most cases it is harder to get status on AA now than QF.We fly J internationally twice a year with little domestic travel.Mrsdrron used to easily requalify WP whereas I would fall short of OWS on AA.Fortunately I was able to get LTP with AA before they made it very much harder.
They also now insist on 4 AA flights per year.Not that hard as there are a lot of QF domestic flights that have an AA codeshare but that will mostly be dearer.Best though if you are a regular traveller to the US.
As to burn rates they are changing.Really only good on partner airlines.Great value on QF domestic and across the ditch.Longhaul premium cabin awards are progressively getting harder.My feeling is the partner airlines that I now have started using my AA miles on may make those awards less available to Aadvantage members over the next year or two.
On top of that the merger of USDM and Aadvantage brings in another unknown.Almost certain there wont be any more major changes for a year or two but most expect it will eventually move to a revenue based loyalty program some time in 2016 or 2017.
I think we are entering an age where it will pay to be disloyal.Where I always used OW awards in the past this year I have already used Krisflyer and lifemiles awards.

 

[Danger]

Not that hard as there are a lot of QF domestic flights that have an AA codeshare but that will mostly be dearer.

To be clear, though, isn't only possible to book an AA-coded/QF-operated flight when the flight is part of a US itinerary?

 

[drron]

To be clear, though, isn't only possible to book an AA-coded/QF-operated flight when the flight is part of a US itinerary?

Yes basically connecting flights.Forget that although we basically only fly longhaul virtually all of our domestic flights are connecting flights hence OK but that most others here are different.

 

[amaroo]

I was keen on moving over to AA - did my homework and found the numbers didn't suit us.

The 4 flight rule and fees for family transfers (1,000 = US$12.50) were a real turnoff ... add in the falling AUD/USD and it only gets worse.

We're all different so AA could be a perfect fit for you.

 

[wandering_fred]

I would use the QF account number with online AA ticketing, using QF status to get seat assignments. At check-in change to the AA account number. Seating is open at T-24, so you get to keep your good seats. Use the QF card to get lounge access. Absence of AA domestic lounge access was never that big a deal for me. And as pointed out, the 30-day AC membership is a good deal.

Family transfers should not be an issue with AA since you can "buy" an award ticket for anyone you want. Especially if online and you have the corresponding OW FF account number for your beneficiary.

Long haul PEY/Y+ is the cheapest way to AA status at 1.5 EQP. Remember with AA qualification is either EQM, EQP or EQS(segment count). What AA does next year will be interesting.

In my case I figured out I was never going to make AA LTP (under the new rules) having just earned LTG. Not seeing 50K annual flying, longer term CX Silver (with account holder lounge access at 30K points and the ability to earn fully on CX V class) seemed like a better current choice. Why QF? E class domestic only credits to QF. So three accounts.

Happy wandering

Fred