About Frequent Flyer Program

Introduction

In my knowledge, the Frequent Flyer (FF) Program is an airline’s loyalty reward program in which customers can earn points, segments, or miles based on types of services in which an airline registered. Customers can choose which airlines which he or she can “customized” way to reach its goal of free flights depending on how many points or miles required he or she can redeem. Historically, Frequent Flyer members can only earn on flights they only enrolled in a particular airline. Today, Frequent Flyer members can earn miles in numerous ways. They can also earn miles with partnered with some hotels, gifts, shopping, and other promotional entities.

For example, for American Airlines’ Frequent Flyer Program, a one-way ticket from Philadelphia to Tucson is 12,500 and 25,000 for a round trip ticket. I am not an American Airlines member but am a United Airlines member known as MileagePlus for over 6 years.

You will examine what’s like of becoming an airline member.

What’s like in an airline program

Being a member of an airline has numerous benefits, ranging from online promotions, emails about current balance, and overall mileage progress regarding how many miles needed to fly either domestically or internationally. Courtesy to this, you will have to schedule your time to research numerous ways to use or to earn more miles, especially you are working or going to school full-time.

Here how it works

Other than you have to fly to reach certain miles to be able to redeem a free flight and to keep your account active, you can also join various programs that enable you to accrue more miles in less time. Most airlines offer a credit card to join in to earn more miles. Keep in mind that most airlines credit cards have a high APR somewhere between 18 and 28%, which you generally earn an annual percentage rate of 1.5 to 2.33 percentile of the monthly rate for borrowing money, meaning that you will pay for each 1.5 to 2.33% of the price for each amount each month. That’s high enough that you will have to pay more to avoid each high APR by the due date.

You will need a good to excellent credit score to apply for these airlines’ credit card.

There are some drawbacks, regardless of the “grace period” of inactivity, which some programs expire, ranging from 3 months and 24 months. My program policies in an agreement stated that my miles would expire in 18 months after the recent mileage transactions. It was a long time until my miles are expiring, so I don’t worry about losing my miles on my airline’s account.

For the lifetime miles accrual, the premier status is only applied to flights (partnered with airlines or alliances).

For United’s Frequent Flyer Program, they offered MileagePlus dining, so I signed up for dining, yet I sometimes eat out when I was in a rush of my evening class. I make sure I entered the right personal information and the FF number to the embouchure.

I remembered when I was downtown, just before an evening class, I usually went to the cheap restaurants that partner with the MileagePlus Program, such as mile accrual.

Benefits

1) Savings – There are reasons why some Arizona friends – especially the University of Arizona friends who regularly traveled to see the family might need airline programs that enrich them to offer a free flight once miles reached the minimum for domestic flights.*

*Subject to change without notice.

2) More Options – You will earn more miles through everyday activities such as dining at participating restaurants or online shopping. Log onto your account partner with airlines to explore your options. 

3) Credit Cards partnerships – Some credit cards offered great benefits relating to an everyday purchase.*

*Some credit cards may charge with higher interest rates and higher APR (preferability 18 to 28% APR).

4) Free flights – Once you reach specific numbers of miles, you can redeem your free flights**

**You will have to pay a fee (tax-based, security fees, etc.) to confirm your flight itinerary. 

Drawbacks

1) Wasting Miles – Some people asked me why they thought of themselves as “wasting the money for unused miles,” complaining about the miles was “stolen” or “had expired” without notice, which customers are required to pay a hefty fee to restore lost miles on the account. They also don’t want to sign up for the program because some customers thought of themselves as “flying” are not the passion or only air sickness.

2) Focus on one specific thing – There are some benefits in which it can limit yourself to one program in which can engage in online shopping – some airline programs don’t offer online shopping promotions or shop at participating stores. Some airline’s program only requires you to fly to earn more miles regularly to keep your account active, so there are no other options.

3) Program Rules – You will be subjected to its rules and regulations of the programs. If you don’t like the rules, you are dismissed from the program: plain and simple.

4) Expiration Date – Some airlines’ frequent flyer programs such as SkyMiles and Early Returns miles or points don’t expire. 

**Please, check your email and your airline’s account if your miles are expiring**

Why did you choose “Star Alliance” as your favorite airline alliance?

I remembered my first flying trip to Hong Kong when my mother only took my brother. I don’t know what airline we took when I was on the first plane ride. We took the old United Airlines from Philadelphia with a stopover at San Francisco and was excited when I was a little girl. I adore the first airline I made when I was a little girl, and my parents told me to wait after I got out of High School and asked them when will I graduate from high school. It was in June 2009 when I finally got accepted to both Pima and the University of Arizona, heaping me to travel opportunities.

I was eighteen at the time when kids (non-special ed) graduated from high school and to travel to colleges or universities.

Why did you love “United” when you are so little? What makes you signed up for a Frequent Flyer Program?

Overall, I love United Airlines and Star Alliance that I remembered my father signed me up for Mileage Plus (merged with MileagePlus in 2012) for my birthday gift in 2009 because I will fly to and from Arizona regularly. My father signed up for Dividend Miles (US Airways’ Frequent Flyer) but later dismissed [had not used his Miles in August 2013] when I returned home for school.

I usually took US Airways (exited Star Alliance on March 30, 2014), United, and Continental (merged in March 2012) when I was studying at Arizona and rarely Delta (SkyTeam) and American (OneWorld), which I checked for comparison between each airline and overall and the quality of the service. I also flew three of each airline Alliance (SkyTeam, OneWorld, and Star Alliance) between 2010 and 2011. Out of three airline alliances, I chose Star Alliance because this airline alliance has the best quality and overall best customer flying experience. This final verdict, in which one out of three airlines alliance, was Star alliance, so my father signed up for my birthday present.

For Star Alliance (MileagePlus) or other primary Frequent Flyer Program, you can earn more miles, not only flying but also use for everyday activities, as noted above. You also can go online to buy merchandise, go dining, book a hotel, rent a car, and so on. I compare to other Star Alliance airlines’ Frequent Flyer Program, and some programs have to pay a fee (e.g., El Al’s Frequent Flyer Program Matmid) to join a program and to abide by the rules of the program. If you don’t abide by the rules of the program or abuse its rules and conditions, your account may be suspended or terminated. Don’t let it happen to Milad Avazdavani because he had a desire to book a hotel stays in Miami for his trips. He stole someone’s frequent flyer accounts, which worth over $260,000 (Ovalle, 2016).

I am glad that my miles are not expiring and use my MileagePlus to earn more miles through dining, online shopping if I couldn’t find merchandise in stores, and currently sign up for vacation contests. I also feel surprised that my account has not terminated because I read and understand the terms and conditions on behalf.

I asked myself when I was at Temple University, studying for my upcoming quiz, “Why I keep my MileagePlus Miles if I love to travel for leisure in the future?” These questions will collaborate with my “freedom of choice” in an economic term.

What’s freedom of choice in an economic term? – from Macroeconomic class at CCP. 

In Macroeconomic terms, freedom of choice refers to one customer has the right to buy something in exchange for goods or services without any restrictions. In other words, an example includes more attractive customers who have the right to purchase or give something that fulfills their needs and wants. 

Think of that way: Why the airfare and travel expense are a pretty penny than monthly rent, and what are some ways you can save up for a better future? Think of going to college to get a college degree, taking care of your business, and so on. You will also have to tighten the purse strings to focus on goals and objectives.

Responsibilities are our goals and objectives. Economically, Freedom of Choice is definitively essential to our society.

There are several ways I reward myself:

• I successfully graduated from Community College of Philadelphia with an Associate’s Degree (honors) and successfully transferred to Temple University to finish my undergraduate studies with an ambition of becoming a savvy traveler and a clerk.
• I got a job at Temple as a teaching assistant and (Blogger) relative to my tuition and savings. I since wrote my first travel blogger since October 2009.
• I budgeted my money and planned not to eat out too much. I created my healthy habits to save money, work and study hard, get a job, and make new friends. I had made excellent ways to fit in my long-term career and interests.
• I relatively made a nest egg when I did 7 to 14-day No-Eating-out-Challenge. Now, I can be able to save my money for tuition, other expenses, and travel. 
• I treated like an Airline loyalty program (airline account) as a saving account. Thus, I can use 12,500 miles for a domestic one-way trip and 25,000 miles for the domestic round-trip. Check with your local program information and terms and conditions as long as some loyalty program requires users to either add or deduct some miles from your account at least once every 12 to 18 months, the account and miles never expire. 

Consider this: I am a United Airlines member (MileagePlus) for over six years, and I had experienced no mileage loss nor any breach of rules.

Additionally, MileagePlus will expire miles if no activity occurs within 18 months. For example: If I accumulated about 45,000 miles (both flights and non-flights activities) into my MileagePlus account in September 2015 (example: My trip to Santiago, Chile), my expiration date for both account and miles is March 31, 2017. I earned miles every other week because I am an active member of the MileagePlus with other MileagePlus Friends who did similar things. 

There are general guidelines that help you to save money on the Airline loyalty program relatively to massive funds for an airline ticket to somewhere you want to go. Comparatively, the airfare is related to a season where more people are taking vacations in the summer, which is why it’s better to use an airline account if you have enough miles to book an airline ticket instead of paying an expensive cost of booking a ticket for one person of your choice. If you are going to book an airline ticket by using your miles, you must pay taxes and fees to confirm your flight reservation. That saves you more money for travel during the high season.

I remembered the last time the airline to Melbourne was a $1,200 round-trip. 

How many airline members are there?

There are roughly 60 million American members (Greenburg, 2005, p. 141). Out of 60 members, twenty-eight percent of members are active- meaning that a member earns or uses miles in his or her airline’s account at least once every 12-18 months. The remaining seventy-two percent of members are inactive, meaning their miles’ are expired when they did not recognize when they checked onto airlines’ account. They have “zero” in the airline’s account (Greenburg, 2005, p. 141-143).

Bible Study:

1 Corinthians 6:12 – “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything,”—but I will not be mastered by anything.

I read the bible, and I could conclude the freedom of choice is relevant but necessary. People develop new skills and interests, but not skills are equally important. Some people are superb with numbers; others are splendid with art. Rather than give up, pray the Lord and the holy spirit. 

Learn the importance of developing the new skills and talent you had not tried before. Don’t give up – learning is a lifelong process, and you will expose to new great things, the unique personality. In summary, freedom of choice is not just about people’s characteristics; it’s people’s values and skills they admire, enjoy, and endorse.

References:

Greenburg, P. (2005, May 3). The Travel Detective; How to Get the Best Service and the Best Deal from Airlines, Hotels, Cruise Ships, and Car Rental Agencies. (pp. 141-143). Villard.

Ovalle, D. (2016, Apr 30). Student accused of flying high on $260,000 worth of stolen miles. Miami Herald. Retrieved from https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article74727227.html