Fort Worth, Texas — American Airlines Group (Nasdaq: AAL) continues to make travel more rewarding by introducing a new business loyalty program. The first program of its kind, AAdvantage Business™ rewards both eligible companies and their travelers with AAdvantage miles and additional Loyalty Points for booking business travel on aa.com or on the American Airlines app. AAdvantage Business™ offers a faster pathway to a more rewarding experience for companies and travelers alike.
How the new AAdvantage Business™ program works
AAdvantage Business rewards travelers will earn Loyalty Points in addition to their regular earnings for being an AAdvantage member. AAdvantage Business™ is a simple, convenient loyalty program for businesses of at least five employees, without any minimum spending requirement for the company to start earning miles.
For every $1 spent on eligible business travel, businesses earn 1 AAdvantage mile to redeem on travel and more including hotels, car rentals, Admirals Club lounges, and other experiences for employees. For that same $1 spent, eligible individual travelers earn 1 Loyalty Point that counts toward their accrual for earning status as an AAdvantage member. These Loyalty Points are in addition to any miles or Loyalty Points the traveler is earning as an AAdvantage member. Companies can learn more and begin registering now for the AAdvantage Business™ program at aa.com/aadvantagebusiness.
American Airlines is recognizing the loyalty of AAdvantage® members by extending their elite status amid reduced travel related to the coronavirus (COVID-19). Changes include:
Extending elite status for AAdvantage members until Jan. 31, 2022.
Reducing elite status qualifications for 2020.
Extending Admirals Club® memberships purchased from American for 6 months.*
Introducing up to $400 special credits for future travel on American Airlines Vacations packages for elite members.**
Every dollar spent on an eligible AAdvantage co-branded credit card through the end of 2020 will count for one mile toward Million Miler℠ status.
Award reinstatement fees waived for travel through September 2020.
“We are grateful to our AAdvantage members and want to show them that loyalty is a two-way street,” said Bridget Blaise-Shamai, Vice President of Customer Loyalty & Insights and President of the AAdvantage program. “When people are ready to fly again, we will be there to help them reconnect with loved ones, friends and colleagues.”
Extended AAdvantage elite status
AAdvantage members will automatically receive an extension of their current elite status through Jan. 31, 2022. These updates will be reflected in member accounts in a few weeks.
Admirals Club membership extension
Admirals Club memberships and One-Day Passes purchased from the airline will be automatically extended for 6 months beyond their expiration date as part of American’s effort to care for customers.*
American Airlines Vacations credit
Elite members will also receive a special credit up to $400 to use toward an American Airlines Vacations package, giving customers something to look forward to when travel resumes. Customers can receive the credit when they call American Airlines Vacations to book a trip. Members can learn more by visiting aa.com.**
Making it easier to earn elite status
Lowered elite qualification requirements
The airline has lowered AAdvantage elite qualification requirements for all of 2020. AAdvantage members will achieve status more easily during the current elite qualifying year through lower Elite Qualifying Dollar (EQD), Elite Qualifying Mile (EQM) and Elite Qualifying Segment (EQS) requirements.
Reduced qualifications for Executive Platinum rewards
Members who qualify for Executive Platinum status previously received a choice of one reward upon reaching 150,000, 200,000 and 250,000 EQMs. Lowered EQM requirements in 2020 will now make these rewards more attainable.
The above changes will take effect by May 15, 2020.
$1 spent on eligible AAdvantage credit cards equals 1 mile toward Million Miler status
For all Citi®/AAdvantage and AAdvantage Aviator® products, as well as select AAdvantage credit cards outside of the United States, every dollar spent on net purchases that post to your AAdvantage account between May and December 2020 will count as one mile toward Million Miler status.
Making travel more flexible
Waived award reinstatement fees for travel
The airline is also giving members more flexibility with waived reinstatement and change charges for awards booked by May 31, 2020 for travel through September 30, 2020.
Award travel ticketed on or after June 1, 2020 will include free changes if made at least 60 days in advance. A new variable fee structure based on elite status and days before departure will apply to any changes made fewer than 60 days in advance:
More information about these updates is available on aa.com. Customers and AAdvantage members with questions about other actions regarding COVID-19 should visit www.aa.com/coronavirus.
*The membership extension applies to all active members as of March 1, 2020. New annual Admirals Club memberships purchased between March 1 and May 31, 2020 will also be extended for 6 months beyond the normal 12 months. For Admirals Club One-Day Passes, the extension applies to any unused passes with an expiration date between March 1, 2020 and May 31, 2021.
**Terms and conditions apply. Note only U.S. point of origin bookings.
Airline also adds service for special events next year
FORT WORTH, Texas — American Airlines is giving customers a treat this holiday season with the announcement of two new routes from the vibrant and eclectic city of Austin, Texas (AUS), to the capital of Silicon Valley, San Jose, California (SJC), and to the historical city of Boston (BOS). These new routes will operate twice daily beginning in April.
The airline is also introducing unique service in support of special events like golf tournaments in Augusta, Georgia (AGS), music festivals in Palm Springs, California (PSP), and the annual visit to one of the nation’s biggest shareholder meetings with increased service to Omaha, Nebraska (OMA). Austin flights will be available for purchase starting Dec. 16 and special events flights will be available for purchase starting Dec. 22.
New Austin flights takeoff in April
American’s newest service is in response to strong demand from customers who need to travel between one of the nation’s largest tech cities, Austin, to the tech centers in San Jose and Boston.
“Our customers have expressed the desire for more routes between major tech cities, and we’re pleased to respond to their needs by helping them reach these important destinations with ease,” said Alison Taylor, Senior Vice President of Global Sales and Distribution. “These new routes reflect our commitment to partnering with customers to seamlessly support their travel needs.”
Flights will operate twice daily, Monday through Friday, on a Boeing 737-800, year-round. The aircraft features high-speed Wi-Fi, access to power at every seat and 16 first class seats, providing additional comfort while commuting. With convenient flight times, customers flying the new service can get to meetings early and get back home in time for dinner. The airline has also recently renovated the Admirals Club to relax before flights, and, by the end of the year, American will have five contiguous gates at AUS.
“We added these routes with our customers top of mind to bring them closer to the places they value the most when conducting business,” said Vasu Raja, Senior Vice President of Network Strategy. “While it’s not our traditional hub and spoke routing, we understand the importance of travel for the tech community and look forward to offering these new flights to our loyal customers.”
And, for a quick weekend beach escape from the capital of Texas, American will also introduce the only service from AUS to Los Cabos, Mexico (SJD) on Saturday and Sunday, starting May 9.
Special flights for special events
In addition to the yearly increase in service for special events, American is also adding more unique flights that will make it easier than ever to attend must-see special events such as sports tournaments, concerts and meetings. American is adding direct service from Los Angeles (LAX) to PSP in April, for a faster way to get to one of the biggest music festivals of the year. The airline is also adding new service to AGS from BOS on an Embraer E175, and upgauging existing service from Chicago (ORD) to Augusta on a 737-800 to help customers who want a front row seat to golf’s biggest championship tournament. And in May, American will have the most seats to Louisville, Kentucky (SDF), for one of the most unique sporting events under the Twin Spires at Churchill Downs, from BOS, CLT, DCA, DFW, LAX, LGA, MIA, ORD and PHL. American also has customers covered who care more about investing with the only service from BOS to OMA, as well as new flights from New York City (LGA) and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) to OMA on an E175 on May 1.
“It’s important to spend time and resources on memorable experiences, and we want to make sure our customers have options when it comes to the most important events around the country throughout the year,” Raja said. “We’re adding more seats, introducing new routes and making sure that our customers are taken care of throughout their travel journey.”
