Back in December, American Airlines shared that very little would change for their AAdvantage loyalty program in 2025. In the current state of things, that was taken as a huge win!
There were a couple of minor tweaks to ‘Loyalty Point Rewards’ but nothing to concern members. American offers choice benefits along the way to status each year. For instance, Gold status is earned at after 40,000 points but the first chance to select a reward comes at 15,000 points.
- 1,000 Loyalty Points
- Priority privileges and Group 4 boarding for a trip
- 5 Preferred Seat coupons
Existing elite members can’t make use of the second or third items, and they aren’t transferable. So everyone who already has status choosing a reward selects the 1,000 loyalty points towards higher status (and more choice benefits).
This year American announced that they would add a fourth choice of a “personalized, collectable luggage tag.” The design has now been released, an it looks kind of meh? It doesn’t even appear that this shows current status.
American’s ConciergeKey members are sent metal luggage tags made from the skin of an aircraft.
Executive Platinum members still get a single plastic luggage tag.
In contrast, Delta offers metal elite status bag tags even to their silver members.
You might not want the bag tag, and that’s fine, choose the 1,000 Loyalty Points. But don’t forget that you can sell them on eBay and people buy them. This is called Stolen Valor.
I feel like American could invest in just offering this to all members who reach 15,000 Loyalty Points. They will sell 1,000 Loyalty Points to partners for about $50. So they consider the 1,000 Loyalty Points you’re giving up to select the bag tag to be worth real money.
In my case though, having more than double qualified for Executive Platinum months ago and intentionally slowed down crediting to American since I wasn’t going to make ConciergeKey, the 1,000 Loyalty Points probably is just a throwaway and I might as well take the bag tag, though the if there’s one way to enrage my wife it’s cluttering up a closet with ever more swag.
Do different partners pay different amounts for LPs? For example, I just bought something through the AA shopping portal and got 1800 LPs. Would they really be paying $50 for those first 1000 LPs?
For $50, it should come with an integrated BLE/AirTag tracker.
Where does AA say the tag is worth $50?
Haha at cluttering up the closet! I try to be minimalist but still a sucker for swag.
Yikes, bag tag wise Delta is making AA look really cheap. Or I guess AA is making themselves look really cheap seeing these were announced after Delta.
I’ll certainly be choosing the 1k LPs; I still haven’t selected my 15k reward from 2024; I have a reminder set to do so on 3/3, so I can kick off the new loyalty year right!
@Gary Leff — Luggage tags are hardly ‘stolen valor’—totally different degrees of dishonesty between those two situations. That said, I enjoy the mock tags, like r/delta’s ‘Cardboard Medallion.’ Definitely not paying American for a customized tag. I’ll accept the silly plastic one.
Stolen valor? It’s a sign of stupidity. While ff programs were great at first, lately they have been kicking us around, particularly SkyPesos and, recently, Avianca Life Miles.
Quite a few years ago, there was a story of disgruntled employees on the verge of a strike that purposely delayed bags with elite tags in order to tick off the best customers.
I use paper luggage tags on my bags, if I check them in, which is infrequently. When I get elite tags, I like them and might use them on carry on bags but usually just collect them.
@derek — Oh, yeah, never put ‘elite’ tags on checked bags—besides, check-in usually adds paper ‘Priority’ tags anyway.
As for Avianca, yeah, that’s a nope for me, dawg. They bankrupt. And even if Life Miles is technically a separate subsidiary, if the airline fails, it goes under, too, even if the points were redeemed for a partner-operated flight. Not worth the risks there anymore. And they regularly down-gauge their 787 with the lie-flat for all-economy a320, so if you do attempt their metal, set the lowest of low expectations.
When Delta Air Lines Flight 4819, operated by Endeavor Air, crashed and skidded down the runway before flipping over at Toronto’s Pearson Airport, the damaged Bombardier CRJ900 fuselage could be recycled by Delta Air Lines to produce thousands of unique Medallion elite bag tags. These tags would provide special recognition to frequent flyers who wish to commemorate their survivorship. When a midair crash like American Airlines flight 5342, with a United States Army Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter, results in fatalities, memorial bag tags made from the recovered aircraft debris could offer closure for grieving families while serving as a heartfelt memento many people would cherish and pass down to future generations.
@Ken A — For posterity!!