American Airlines is just giving travelers more reasons to avoid basic economy.
Starting Wednesday, the airline will no longer allow its AAdvantage loyalty members to earn miles or earn status loyalty points when flying on its free tickets.
This is a blow to AAdvantage members, who are willing to endure basic financial constraints in exchange for saving some (often a lot) money.
The changes, detailed on the airline’s website, apply to all new bookings from December 17.
The news was first spotted by industry observers “JonNYC” and Thrifty Traveler, and later confirmed by TPG.
Tighten basic economic policies for AAdvantage members
This isn’t the first time American Airlines has cut loyalty revenue from passengers on basic bookings.
As of now, AAdvantage members on basic flights earn 2 miles and loyalty points per $1 spent, down from the normal 5 points per $1.
Going forward, they will gain nothing.
“We regularly evaluate our fare products to remain competitive in the market,” American Airlines said in a statement. “Basic Economy passengers will continue to receive one free personal item and one free carry-on bag, free snacks, soft drinks and inflight entertainment.”
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Basic economy becomes more basic
Airlines’ basic economy cabins have evolved over the years.
Airlines first introduced discount ticket options in the mid-2010s as a way to compete more vigorously with budget carriers.
From ticket flexibility to carry-on rules and loyalty earnings, we’ve seen policies rise and fall in subsequent years.
Basic U.S. Economy: What to Know
American offers by far one of the most lenient basic economic policies among U.S. airlines, especially for its members.
American Airlines’ base fares come with a number of industry-standard restrictions:
- Most travelers don’t have free seat selection.
- Passengers cannot change their tickets and will need to pay a fee if they want to cancel.
- Basic economy passengers board last.
But AAdvantage elites and credit card holders still enjoy most of the benefits even when flying on discounted tickets.
Because of this, I occasionally choose to book in the airline’s base fare class — especially as the price gap between economy and basic economy tickets has grown over the years.
Since AAdvantage memberships don’t earn money, I’m certainly unlikely to do so any Miles or loyalty points.
Comparison with other airlines
American’s move to eliminate basic ticket loyalty revenue is not unprecedented in the airline industry.
- Delta Air Lines similarly prohibits its SkyMiles members from earning any miles or Medallion Qualifying Dollars required to qualify when flying on its Basic Economy (now “Main Basic”) fares.
- United Airlines passengers do earn miles on basic bookings, but only with some Premier elite status points (specifically, they earn Premier qualifying points but not Premier qualifying flight points).
Will there be more restrictions coming?
At this point, U.S. passengers can only hope the airline doesn’t take additional steps to make basic economy more restrictive — and more like its competitors.
Delta Air Lines, for example, does not allow its basic economy customers access to its Sky Club.
United prohibits most basic economy passengers from bringing full-size carry-on bags on board, except for elite VIPs and certain cardholders.
Elites on both Delta and United don’t get free access to the airline’s extra legroom seating area — a status perk that’s usually free.
We should also point out that Delta is also going one step further on the “basic” side with the launch of Economy Comfort fares, seemingly opening the door to first and business class base fares in the future.
As for American Airlines, AAdvantage elites can still upgrade and select extra seats in the main cabin when flying on regular flights…at least for now. But they will get zero mileage.
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