AAdvantage changes (very little), Alaska / Hawaiian programs will merge next Summer and does Uber charge more if you have credits? (Saturday Selection)

Alaska Mileage Plan and HawaiianMiles will be merging next Summer, American AAdvantage delights loyal customers by doing very little and does Uber charge you more if you pay with credits? All that and more in this week’s Saturday Selection, our weekly round-up of interesting tidbits from around the interwebs (links to the original articles are embedded in the titles).

Alaska Mileage Plan and HawaiianMiles will combine next Summer

Alaska Airlines’ merger with Hawaiian has been one of the biggest news items (in our admittedly narrow world) over the last year. The surprise development of the 2023 holiday season has already yielded Membership Reward transfer to Alaska Mileage Plan for the first time ever, the ability to move Alaska miles into other folks accounts by holding a Hawaiian credit card and a temporary doubling of the amount of Alaska miles you can get via the soon-to-be-defunct Hawaiian credit cards. As things move forward, there are a lot of exciting possibilities: a premium card with 3x earning internationally and a global companion pass that’s usable on award tickets (for all classes), widebody planes moving to the US mainland for direct flights with lie-flat business to Asia and beyond, better Hawaiian lounges and more. Now, we even have merger date to plan our mileage transfers and card acquisitions around, courtesy of View from Wing: Summer 2025. I was excited about the possibilities of this merger when it was first announced and nothing that’s happened so far has dampened it…in fact, I’m even more optimistic than I was then. Gather those Hawaiian cards while ye may,.

American Airlines creates excitement by doing very little

US airline program elite members are bit traumatized. There hasn’t been much good news to soak up over the last few years, regardless of how many “enhancements” the airlines have trumpeted (FYI – “enhancement is usually airline code for “we’re about to give you a gut punch and call it a hug”). Across the industry, benefits are getting more scarce, awards more expensive, lounges more crowded and qualification thresholds ever more bold.

When loyalty programs announce their upcoming changes, often at the end of the year, it’s like a points and miles Stockholm Syndrome: as long they don’t do anything too bad, we’re grateful. So it was this year, with American AAdvantage’s new list of upcoming “enhancements.” There was collective sigh of relief across the legion of AA elite members because…AA has decided it’s not going to make things worse. Qualification thresholds are unchanged, often useless Systemwide Upgrades (SWUs) are now valid for a couple of months longer and AA has finally decided to reward its most loyal customers with lifetime Platinum Pro and Executive Platinum status. Outside of that, AAdvantage will be largely unchanged in 2025 and, by George, we better all be grateful. One Mile at a Time tells us about the changes.

Does Uber charge more if you pay with gift cards or credits?

Uber maintains a significant presence in modern life, whether it be via its original ridesharing function or through the UberEats food delivery service. It could have an even more prominent place in the points and miles world, not only because of the frequency with which we travel, but also the ubiquitous Amex Uber credits that we all have (courtesy of the Platinum and Gold cards) as well as the common deals on Uber gift cards that can be found at Amazon, Costco and other retailers. Within the last year or so, I’ve come across increasing numbers of folks who say that they get charged more when using their credits or Uber gift cards versus using a credit card payment. I’ve never been able to confirm this personally, but I almost always use credits for UberEats and gift cards for rides retroactively. Last week, Doctor of Credit took a deep dive in the dark world of the interwebs and compiled a fair number of DPs into one post that, upon first read, looks pretty damning. If this is true regarding how Uber treats folks paying with gift cards, it seems like it’s only a matter of time before a lawsuit develops. In the meantime, it’s probably best for those with gift cards to use them after the fact instead of pre-loading.

Frontier adding first class seats and companion passes in 2025

For years, Frontier has made a name for itself as the airline where you have to pay extra for everything: seats, bags, snacks, drinks and air. More recently, however, the most unpopular airline in the US has been trying to reform its untoward ways. Why, just in the last few months the airline has added free checked bags for Frontier cardholders, removed change fees and added “economy,” “premium” and “business” fare bundles. The problem with paying for one of those business fare bundles? You’re still in a normal, “extra legroom” seat with the middle blocked. All that’s going to change in 2024, however. Frontier has announced that it will begin adding 2×2 US first class-style seating to its cabins…and not only will you be able to buy these seats directly, but Frontier will be implementing complimentary elite upgrades for Gold members and above. It doesn’t stop there. In a direct shot across Southwest’s bow, Frontier will also be adding complimentary companion passes for Platinum and Diamond members, whereby they can bring a companion along for taxes and fees AND they can use it for any travel companion, without having to designate one with a limited amount of changes like Southwest. Of course, actual ticket fares are often paltry compared to the fees that Frontier implements, but let’s not sweat the details, which Thrifty Traveler breaks down.

Want to learn more about miles and points? Subscribe to email updates or check out our podcast on your favorite podcast platform.