Frequent Fliers

There are frequent fliers, and then there are people like Steven Rothstein and Jacques Vroom. Both men bought tickets that gave them unlimited first-class travel for life on American Airlines. It was almost like owning a fleet of private jets. Passes in hand, Rothstein and Vroom flew for business. They flew for pleasure. They flew just because they liked being on planes. They bypassed long lines, booked backup itineraries in case the weather turned, and never worried about cancellation fees.

WASHINGTON - Congress approved a quick fix Friday to end the flight delays snarling the nation's airports, and President Obama will sign the bill when it reaches the White House, showing how swiftly compromise can be found when powerful interests demand it. The speedy resolution came after airlines and businesses warned of lost earnings, and travelers - including lawmakers leaving the capital for a weeklong recess - complained about the waits....

Reading your article "Navigating the New World of Frequent-Flier Miles" (Travel Insider, Aug. 30) made me more angry over my treatment by one airline. At the end of your article you blame your inability to fly from LAX or San Francisco on Aug. 11, 12 or 13 etc. on your late attempt to reserve and your lack of flexibility. Well, how about this: Recently I called the airline to use my frequent-flier miles to fly to London and back to Los Angeles. They had no coach seats for February, March or April of 1999.

A fascinating underwater trip I would like to compliment Nancy Baron for her incredible, gutsy and courageous underwater trip ["Blue Magic," March 10], which fascinated me. (I'm a former Italian navy frogman.) In her description of the underwater exploration, she made it look like an easy hobby. Scuba diving is very difficult and requires hard training and a very healthy body. John Rosati Simi Valley Kudos to Amtrak My husband, 10-year-old granddaughter Alyssa and I returned home Feb. 26 from a trip to the Bay Area on Amtrak Train No. 1. On Friday of that week, my daughter Chris received a call from her children's school in Ventura.

Question: On Aug. 1, I tried to book a round-trip flight on American Airlines between San Diego and Philadelphia for Oct. 1 using my frequent-flier miles. I thought a two-month lead would facilitate the reservation. There were no seats available for 25,000 miles for October. I paid $25 to speak to a human. She tried her best but with the same result. If I were willing to expend 50,000 miles, there were plenty of seats. How far ahead does AA release its frequent-flier seats? Is this bait and switch?

Frequent fliers can get more for less at some U.S. airlines this fall. Among the recent offers: Delta Air Lines is cutting 10,000 miles off the usual SkyMiles award requirements for travel in the continental U.S. and Canada through Oct. 14. That translates to 15,000 miles for a coach ticket and 30,000 miles for first class. Telephone (800) 221-1212, Internet http://www.delta.com. American Airlines has matched Delta's deal for its frequent-fliers club and extended it to travel through Nov. 15.

Frequent-flier miles are both a boon (to the vacationer who scores the award ticket) and a bane (to the person who has the miles but can't seem to score the ticket). That's where the commonality ends. Each program is different, with its own elite designations for very frequent fliers. Here's a comparison of seven plans for U.S.-based carriers. These are mileage plans (as opposed to points) unless otherwise noted. Alaska Pros: No fee to use miles to upgrade from coach; Alaska's MVP, MVP Gold and Gold 75K also receive a bundle of special elite benefits on Delta through a marketing alliance.

If you've been hankering to hug a koala, you can now redeem American Airlines Aadvantage miles on Qantas. In April, American Airlines gave frequent fliers the option of booking award flights on British Airways and Hawaiian Airlines as well as Alaska and American using AA.com .  It was so well received that American negotiated with Qantas to let customers redeem AAdvantage miles for Qantas flights on American's website too. AAdvantage MileSAAver...

When it comes time to trade in your frequent-flier reward points for seats on an airplane, low-cost airlines do the best job of getting you in the air. That was the conclusion of a study released last week by IdeaWorks, a Wisconsin-based consulting company for the airline industry. In March, IdeaWorks submitted nearly 7,000 booking requests through the frequent-flier websites of 23 airlines. Seats were requested for the airline's most popular routes in June through October. The study had a 93.5% success rate of finding available seats on low-cost airlines around the world, including U.S. carriers such as Southwest Airlines, AirTran Airways and JetBlue Airways.

Southwest Airlines has moved on (well, actually backward) from a lively discussion that began last week over changes it plans to make March 1 to its frequent-flier program. Its blog's Flashback Friday post shows upbeat "luv"-centric print ads that date back to the airline’s beginnings 40 years ago. I'm not going that far back, but a quick recap is in order: I wrote a blog post last week that was mostly positive about the revamp of the airline's Rapid Rewards program.

You keep hearing about people who take these fabulous trips (see story) and they don't pay a penny - or very many pennies. You have miles, but you don't seem to be getting much, well, mileage out of them. For the last seven years, my life has been all about points. I quit my recruiting job on Wall Street, for which I traveled more than 150,000 miles a year (and collected numerous corporate credit card points), and founded ThePointsGuy.com , a website that's all about maximizing frequent-flier miles and credit card points.

In the wake of the deal to merge American Airlines and US Airways, many business travelers are asking themselves the same question: What does this mean for me? Change is the only certain answer. And change, according to some airline experts, is not good for business travelers who have grown accustomed to their regular airline routes, connecting hubs and frequent flier programs. "What I can see is 900 pitfalls," said Joe Brancatelli, a business travel expert who writes a regular online column on the subject.

Loud grumbles can be heard by travelers at this busy time of year under normal circumstances, but what is that noise going on with itinerant virtuosos carrying on board million-dollar-plus Strads and Guarneris on their way to concert dates? It's the sound of bureaucracy. And it's overtaking what used to be a well-understood, mutually respectful transaction - between cellists (mostly) and the industry that transports them and their treasured instruments. Cellists have been bearing the brunt because their cargo is too precious to check as regular baggage but so large that it requires an extra cabin seat.

Question: My husband and I fly regularly on American Airlines to visit ailing parents in Austin, Texas. Most of our flights have been positive experiences, but a recent one was not. In short, the man in Seat 29D had horrendous body odor. Unfortunately, we were in 29E and 29F. For the next three hours, my husband diverted the air vent back to the cause. After the flight landed, the flight attendant looked me in the eye (everyone else was gone) and asked how we had endured the terrible odor.

In response to Christopher Reynolds' article on Mexico ["How Safe Is It for Travelers?," Sept. 9], I wanted to share our experiences traveling to Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo. Our daughter, who was raised in Huntington Beach, moved with her husband to Ixtapa in 2007, where she is now fluent in Spanish and works in a lovely hotel on Ixtapa beach. We have visited them each year in the spring and fall since 2007. We have had remarkable experiences: surfing at the most beautiful, deserted beaches, walking and gathering shells, photographing the beautiful array of aquatic birds and wildlife.

Question: On Aug. 1, I tried to book a round-trip flight on American Airlines between San Diego and Philadelphia for Oct. 1 using my frequent-flier miles. I thought a two-month lead would facilitate the reservation. There were no seats available for 25,000 miles for October. I paid $25 to speak to a human. She tried her best but with the same result. If I were willing to expend 50,000 miles, there were plenty of seats. How far ahead does AA release its frequent-flier seats? Is this bait and switch?

The rule for airline miles is use 'em or lose 'em. Or is it? This may not be news for all the frequent-flier fanatics out there ? you know who you are ? but it turns out there are lots of nifty ways to extend the life of your miles for virtually limitless periods. You just need to do a little homework to learn your options. "Ninety percent of people in frequent-flier programs are poor managers of their miles," said Randy Peterson, editor of Inside Flyer magazine and an expert on all matters of miles.

Regarding "Both Gentle and Genteel," by Christopher Reynolds, July 15: A place in Ojai that should have mentioned is Knead Baking Co. at 469 E. Ojai Ave. It is a family-run business, and you can eat inside or on the patio. They have great pastries, also breakfast and lunch sandwiches plus beer and wine. We had breakfast there both days we were in Ojai. It was outstanding. The sweets were amazing. I usually don't like scones. I tasted my wife's cheddar and dill. It was super. The bread was also very good.

If you've been hankering to hug a koala, you can now redeem American Airlines Aadvantage miles on Qantas. In April, American Airlines gave frequent fliers the option of booking award flights on British Airways and Hawaiian Airlines as well as Alaska and American using AA.com .  It was so well received that American negotiated with Qantas to let customers redeem AAdvantage miles for Qantas flights on American's website too. AAdvantage MileSAAver...