AAdvantage program updates
What’s new
AAdvantage® and Hyatt elite members earn more benefits
AAdvantage® elite members are now eligible to earn more benefits with World of Hyatt®. Link your AAdvantage® and World of Hyatt accounts, and you can earn both World of Hyatt points and AAdvantage® bonus miles on qualifying Hyatt hotel stays and experiences.
Log in to link to your partner account.
Redeem your miles online for travel on even more partner airlines
Dreaming of a trip? You can now redeem your AAdvantage® miles on aa.com for travel on even more partner airlines:
- Air Tahiti Nui
- Cape Air
- Cathay Pacific
- Etihad Airways
- Fiji Airways
- Japan Airlines
- Malaysia Airlines
- Qatar Airways
- S7 Airlines
- Seaborne Virgin Islands
- SriLankan Airlines
Earn and redeem miles with China Southern Airlines
AAdvantage® members can now earn and redeem miles throughout China Southern’s network of more than 2,000 daily flights to 224 destinations in 40 countries and regions.
Redeem your miles for travel in Premium Economy
Starting January 24, 2019, you can redeem AAdvantage® miles for travel in Premium Economy, available on international flights to/from Asia, Australia, Europe, New Zealand and South America as well as on select domestic flights to/from Hawaii and Alaska. Premium Economy amenities include:
- Spacious seating
- Enhanced amenities
- Entertainment options
- Elevated meals and drinks
Premium Economy awards are available for as few as 25,000 AAdvantage® miles each way plus any applicable taxes and carrier-imposed fees.
You can book Premium Economy awards via all of our channels including a new tool when booking on your desktop.
Upgrades into Premium Economy using your AAdvantage® miles or other AAdvantage® products aren’t available at this time. Premium Economy awards for travel on our partner airlines are limited to select airlines.
Changes to award levels for Canada and Hawaii
Effective for award travel booked on or after January 16, 2019, the following changes apply:
- The Canada region becomes part of the Contiguous 48 U.S. states region award levels. In some cases, the mileage levels decrease, and in others, they stay the same
- Mileage levels for travel to/from Hawaii in the premium cabin increase for most regions
2019 AAdvantage® program updates
We’re introducing a few updates effective January 1, 2019, for AAdvantage® members, including new qualification requirements for AAdvantage® Executive Platinum status and extra rewards Executive Platinum members can choose.
Additionally, we’re changing how you earn Elite Qualifying Miles (EQMs) on American and select oneworld® airlines, and what you earn when flying on special fares (such as bulk or consolidator fares) and exception tickets (cases when ticket/fare details are unavailable).
Executive Platinum qualification and rewards
The Elite Qualifying Dollar (EQD) requirement for AAdvantage® Executive Platinum status is increasing from $12,000 EQDs to $15,000 EQDs for the 2020 membership year.
Upon qualification for Executive Platinum status, members will continue to receive 4 systemwide upgrades. Additionally, members who reach 150,000 Elite Qualifying Miles (EQMs), 200,000 EQMs and 250,000 EQMs can choose a reward.
Reach 150,000 EQMs and choose from:
- 2 systemwide upgrades
- 40,000 bonus miles
- Gift of AAdvantage® Gold status
Reach 200,000 EQMs and choose from:
- 2 systemwide upgrades
- 40,000 bonus miles
- Gift of AAdvantage® Platinum status
Reach 250,000 EQMs and choose from:
- 2 systemwide upgrades
- 40,000 bonus miles
- Gift of AAdvantage® Platinum status
You can track your progress toward reaching these reward levels in your account. Once you reach these goals, your reward choices will be available in your wallet.
Earning Elite Qualifying Miles (EQMs)
The EQMs you earn on select oneworld® airlines are increasing to be aligned with what you earn when flying on an American-marketed flight.
The EQMs earned on American-marketed flights on fares booked in “Y” are decreasing from 1.5 EQMs to 1.0 EQMs per mile flown to be more in line with the ticket value.
Earning on special fare tickets
We’re adjusting the award miles, class of service bonus, EQDs and EQMs to match the value of the ticket for select booking codes for travel on American-marketed flights on these ticket types:
- Special fares (such as bulk and consolidator fare tickets)
- Earning when ticket/fare details are unavailable
In some cases what you earn on these tickets is increasing and in other cases it’s decreasing.
Book AAdvantage® award travel using the American Airlines app
We’ve made it even easier to redeem your miles for award travel on American and various partner airlines when booking through our app.
How to use this new feature:
- Download our free app
- Log in to your AAdvantage® account
- Choose your flights
A new look for your account
We’ve updated the look of your AAdvantage® account, added new features and moved a few things around.
All your information is now organized under 3 tabs:
- Account summary
- Promotions
- Wallet
Account summary
View your progress toward elite status, upcoming trips and program news.
Promotions
Check out current promotions available to you and track your progress toward completion.
Wallet
Find all your account balances in one place, like award miles (including Million MilerSM activity) and 500-mile and systemwide upgrades.
Companion benefits
Systemwide and mileage award upgrades
If you and a companion are waitlisted for the same type of upgrade, you can sponsor them to receive your priority level. You’ll stay prioritized together, even at the airport.
Companion and sponsor qualifications:
- Book on the same flight (same or separate reservations)
- Use the same upgrade type (systemwide or mileage award upgrades)
Companions don’t have to be AAdvantage® members; the upgrade can be deducted from any account.
To sponsor a companion for a new or existing trip, contact Reservations.
Reservations and ticket changes
500-mile upgrades
Today, you and another elite status member can be prioritized together on the 500-mile upgrade waitlist. If the upgrade isn’t cleared before you get to the airport, you are prioritized based on individual status.
Now, you can ask an agent to reconnect you on the list at the airport. If available, the 500-mile upgrades will be deducted from the sponsor’s account.
Upgrade prioritization
Upgrade requests will be prioritized by elite status level, then:
- Type of upgrade
- 12-month Rolling EQDs
If the upgrade type and 12-month Rolling EQD value are the same we’ll look at the booking code then date/time of the request to determine prioritization.
Type of upgrade
Before you get to the airport, requests for systemwide and mileage award upgrades are processed independently from 500-mile upgrade requests.
At the airport, upgrades requested will be prioritized in this order:
- Systemwide and mileage award upgrades
- 500-mile upgrades on purchased tickets
- 500-mile upgrades on award tickets
12-month Rolling EQDs
Your 12-month Rolling EQD value is updated daily and is different from your Year-to-Date (YTD) EQDs, which is used to track your progress toward elite status.
Rolling EQDs are based on:
- EQDs actually earned in the 12 last months
- EQDs earned from reaching qualifying spend thresholds on eligible AAdvantage® Aviator® MasterCard® cards
Booking code
Booking code priority:
- From Business to First (for systemwide and mileage award upgrades only): J, R, D, I, C
- From Main Cabin to the next class: W, P, Y, H, K, M, L, V, G, S, N, Q, O, T