Most airlines within the major alliances will allow you to use your mileage stash with that brand to book award
flights on partner airlines.
As is always the problem with lots of international award tickets is finding the domestic flights to connect to the long
haul flights on partners.
When you look for award
flights on partner carriers, including some partner airlines that aren't part of an alliance, then you will find a lot more award seats available.
Also, you can earn status purely
with flights on partners, so the possibilities for mileage runs are even easier (although partner miles require a higher threshold for status).
Many flights on partner airlines also include a guaranteed minimum, but you should check the appropriate partner earning chart prior to booking.
For flights on partner airlines miles will continue to be awarded based on the fare booked and the distance traveled.
You can't transfer the miles you earn to any other frequent flyer program, though you can
book flights on partner airlines.
Award flights on partner airlines need to be booked at least a few days out, as last - minute availability (within 24 - 48 hours prior to departure) is blocked out.
Many flights on partner airlines also include a guaranteed minimum, but you should check the appropriate partner earning chart prior to booking.
For example, you can book non-stop
flights on partners like American Airlines and Alaska Airlines for as little as 4,500 points (instead of 12,500 miles).
Using points on flights with partners, you can get anywhere from around a 1 - cent - per - dollar value on domestic
flights on partners such as Delta, Hawaiian, JetBlue and Virgin America during peak periods to a 10 - cent - per - dollar value on such high - end redemptions as Cathay Pacific or Singapore Airlines long - haul flights in first class suites.
You can use to get lots of Big Travel like British Airways Avios points for short
domestic flights on partner airlines like American Airlines and US Airways.
There is no downside to booking South America
flights on partners since United charges the same amount of miles whether it's a United flight or a flight on one of the partner airlines.
The qualifying flight can not be a
codeshare flight on a partner, but must be on Alaska Airlines or Virgin America metal and taken before October 1, 2017.
Contrast that with United, which after the most recent devaluation now charges 180K miles for these
same flights on partners.
You could transfer just 40k SPG for 50K Asiana which is enough for a one way FIRST
CLASS flight on partner Lufthansa from the USA to Europe.
Alaska Airlines is changing the miles earned
per flight on partner American Airlines which are credited to Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan starting August 1, 2016.
Oddly this would make a connecting flight cheaper than a
direct flight on a partner airline since you have to fly at least 1 Delta segment in order to get the favorable price.
You can still book award
flights on these partners by searching for award availability on other Oneworld airlines» websites; via ExpertFlyer; or by calling AA and seeing what's available.
If you can't find a
good flight on a partner airline, you also have the option to book travel directly through the Starwood Preferred Guest program.
United is part of the Star Alliance and you can use its miles for award
flights on its partners such as Lufthansa, Austrian, Air Canada, Brussels, Turkish, Swiss, Ethiopian, and South African.
Cathay Pacific is a member of the OneWorld Alliance so you can use Asia Miles to book
flights on partners like British Airways, American Airlines, Qatar, etc..
The flag carrier of Mexico is not a very popular airline for North American frequent flyer aficionados because it usually adds fuel surcharges to its partners» rewards flights, and because finding Aeroméxico availability, especially for
premium flights on partners, can be a daunting task.
Points earned from flying JetBlue can take up to 14 days to be added to your account,
while flights on partners can take up to 30 days.