“You bought a cheap ticket,” the agent said. Turns out I had a T fare, which doesn’t qualify for an upgrade. For that I would have had to buy a more expensive M, B, or Y economy fare, she said. The agent was willing to rebook me at the cheapest price for an upgradable ticket: $2,393. On top of that I would have had to use 50,000 SkyMiles (worth $1,000 based on the commonly accepted value of 2 cents per mile), for a cash equivalent of $3,393. Here’s the kicker: I could have bought a business-class ticket on that same flight for only $2,800—$600 less than the upgrade would cost.

Frustrated as I was with Delta, this situation could have happened with any airline, as fare codes have become increasingly difficult to decipher. So what are the restrictions? It depends on the carrier: American, Continental, and US Airways have little to no restrictions on economy fares; Delta and United have more rules. ” (via travelandleisure.com ) by Mark Orwoll

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read the rest of  The Truth About Frequent-Flier Upgrades

• Earn 25,000 bonus miles after your first purchase..

• Earn 5,000 additional bonus miles when you add an authorized user..

• Earn $50 statement credit after your first purchase /Pay No Annual Fee the first year..

• Earn 10,000 bonus miles annually when you spend $25,000 on your card..

• Use Miles for Car Rentals and Hotel Stays..

• First Checked Bag FREE - you and your companions on the same reservation

• 2 Annual Travel Discount Certificates / • 2 Annual Presidents Club Day Passes

• Special Guest Privileges through The Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection

• Premier Travel Protection Insurance / • Comprehensive Purchase Protection

• OnePass Plus Concierge Service / • 24/7 Customer Service Specialists

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here for more info  about  - Up to 30,000Miles + $50 when you get Continental Airlines OnePass® Plus Card

• Earn 25,000 bonus miles after your first purchase..

• Earn 5,000 additional bonus miles when you add an authorized user..

• Earn $50 statement credit after your first purchase /Pay No Annual Fee the first year..

• Earn 10,000 bonus miles annually when you spend $25,000 on your card..

• Use Miles for Car Rentals and Hotel Stays..

• First Checked Bag FREE - you and your companions on the same reservation

• 2 Annual Travel Discount Certificates / • 2 Annual Presidents Club Day Passes

• Special Guest Privileges through The Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection

• Premier Travel Protection Insurance / • Comprehensive Purchase Protection

• OnePass Plus Concierge Service / • 24/7 Customer Service Specialists

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here for more info  about  - Up to 30,000Miles + $50 when you get Continental Airlines OnePass® Plus Card

Dear AA,

You and I have had a close relationship for nearly 20 years, and it has been mostly wonderful.

In the beginning, as we were getting to know each other, I was OK with being herded to the back of coach as I worked hard to gain favor with you. I was committed to loyalty.

The day that I reached 25,000 frequent flier miles was a big deal for me. Wow. A free trip. But I wanted more. I wanted 50,000 miles for two free round-triptickets. So I persevered. I flew and flew and flew. And finally, I made it. And you came through, just as promised. My husband and I loved that vacation in New England with free airfare and all.

I was hooked. I made sure that all of my trips were booked on AA. You loved that, didn’t you!

Through the years, we have logged nearly 1.5 million miles together. And I thank you for my lifetime elite status. But things have changed. I haven’t seen an upgrade to first class in what seems like years. I notice you are booking the flights to full; there is not an open seat anywhere.

I don’t mourn so much for myself, because despite all the downgrading you’ve done, I retain my lifetime elite status. But I have to warn you that my eyes have been wandering.

In a few weeks, I’ll be flying to Massachusetts. On Delta.” (via  dailybulletin.com) by Mary Hunt of debtproofliving.com

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read all of  - Frequent flier breaks up with favorite airline

Today, AirTran, which also flies nonstop from Detroit to Orlando, released their flights for our travel dates. Delta, as I expected, modified their fares. The Delta flights initially cost more, but once you factored in the baggage fees ($20/bag each way on AirTran), the prices were almost identical. Which means Delta, which is where all my frequent flyer miles are, had the edge.

But there’s a problem. We’re all flying down together, but we’re not all flying back together. DW and I are coming home after a week, but son and family are staying a few extra days. So I called Delta to find out how to handle this.

The reservation agent told me there was nothing she could do. It had to be booked as two separate reservations, and the free bag perk only applies to the party that includes the cardholder. So only two out of six of us get to check our bags for free. Suddenly, the pricing is no longer competitive.

I booked our flights with AirTran. Not only was it cheaper, the flight times were better. (Our flight down leaves Detroit at 12:10, while the cheapest Delta flight doesn’t take off until 5:43.) Funny thing is, I still paid for the tickets with the Delta AmEx. I got it under a sign-up offer where I get 20K FF miles for my first purchase, and another 10K if I spend over $1000 in the first three months. So buying AirTran tickets is getting me 30K SkyMiles. Sheesh. ” (via tugbbs.com) by markbernstein

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read the comments readers had about - Delta lost a sale but the customer got 30,000 miles.

Driving Every Loyal Traveller Away – the new Delta ( by Carolinian )

In honor of Super Bowl XLV (Dallas 2011) a 10% off coupon will be sent to your email address after you vote in contest- see link below…

There is 1 contest period left.

First Day of Entry Period – Last Day of Entry Period

July 26,2010                               -Sept. 12,2010

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here for how to get Promo codes for 10% off American Airlines

Just because you show up at the airport with a ticket reservation doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll end up on your intended flight…

Most airlines overbook flights to compensate for last-minute cancellations, but they don’t always get the numbers right. And with so few seats open on later flights, fewer folks are volunteering to get bumped. As a result, the number of involuntarily bumped passengers is up, having grown 45% between 2005 and 2009, according to the Department of Transportation.“Instead of fixing the problem,” says Tony Polito, an associate professor in the college of business at East Carolina University who has published academic articles about airline industry issues, “they are institutionalizing it.”

What’s worse, travelers who get involuntarily bumped aren’t necessarily entitled to “denied-boarding compensation.” If the airline arranges substitute transportation that gets you to your destination within one hour of your original scheduled arrival time, there is no compensation. If you arrive an hour or more later, the airline is required to pay you, up to a maximum of $800, depending on the price of the ticket and length of delay, according to the DOT’s rules.

2. “Your hard-won air miles are probably worth less.”

Air miles are easy to accrue. You can earn them using your credit card, getting a mortgage, “for anything short of breathing,” says Tim Winship, editor at large of SmarterTravel.com. American Airlines, for example, has thousands of participating companies in its frequent-flier program, making it an important revenue center. And United Airlines’ Mileage Plus plan brought in $700 million for the company in 2008, the most recent year for which data is available, up from $600 million in 2006.

But as miles flood the market, they’re getting harder to use. Some airlines have reduced the shelf life of air miles, while others have increased the amount required for an upgrade. Winship says customers can keep their account current by using a credit card affiliated with the program, which will build miles as they make purchases. You can also redeem a small amount of miles, to keep your account active, on things like magazine subscriptions.

3. “We’ll give you a good deal — if we can get something out of it.”

Airlines prefer that you book directly with them, so they often feature promotional codes and special deals exclusively on their own web sites. The goal is to get more consumers to book airfare there as opposed to on the discount web sites that list pricing from most airlines. Why? Airlines pay these online booking sites a commission for the tickets they sell — something they prefer not to do.

While consumers can find helpful deals on the airlines’ sites, they should compare pricing there with what the other sites are offering. Also, travelers might find the lowest fare by booking two separate airlines for each leg of their trip, but they’re unlikely to be informed of that when they book a ticket on an airline’s site.

Some airlines, like Southwest, only permit travelers to buy tickets online from their own web sites. However, Southwest’s computer application Ding will scan for the best fares and update you on deals. What does the carrier get in return? Loyalty and repeat fliers. In 2007, American launched a similar application called DealFinder, which offers big discounts on flights.

4. “We love adding fees.”

A big chunk of the price you pay for a ticket covers additional fees that are often added at the end of the booking process, when buyers are less likely to change their mind. That way, the listed ticket price looks lower than it actually is.

The most common fee these days is for checked bags. For example, United now charges $23 to $25 for the first bag a traveler checks in at the airport, and $32 to $35 for the second. Other examples of fees: Passengers who reserve a seat on Spirit Airlines pay $15 extra for an exit row seat.

Even frequent-flier programs, which are supposed to let you book “free flights,” have added fees for things like booking too close to your travel date.

Passengers booking a flight just seven to 20 days before takeoff can incur a fee of $50 fee or more, and those who book between two hours and six days before departure can incur a $fee of 100, minimum. In addition, she says, there’s a $10 security service fee that’s collected on roundtrip airfare for passengers boarding in the U.S., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

5. “Customer service isn’t always our top priority . . .”

After being stuck in a plane on the tarmac for nine hours in 2006, Kate Hanni decided to fight back against poor customer service. She formed the group Flyerrights.org, which in December was successful in getting the DOT to issue a rule on “enhancing airline passenger protections” that includes requiring the airlines to allow passengers to disembark after three hours on the tarmac and requiring airlines to provide adequate food and water to passengers within two hours of them being stuck in a plane.

A DOT spokeswoman says the rule will take effect on April 29, after the department reviews requests from certain carriers that have asked for temporary exemptions. ” (via  smartmoney.com) by Jonathan Dahl and the editors of SmartMoney

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read the rest of 10 Things Your Airline Won’t Tell You

In honor of Super Bowl XLV (Dallas 2011) a 10% off coupon will be sent to your email address after you vote in contest- see link below…

There are 2 contest periods  left – so you can get a coupon for each period thru September….

First Day of Entry Period – Last Day of Entry Period

Third:  June 7, 2010             – July 25, 2010

Fourth:  July 26,2010           -Sept. 12,2010

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here for how to get Promo codes for 10% off American Airlines

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here for details on how to Enter to win The Capital One 1,000,000 Miles Sweepstakes

Click here for instuctions on how To Enter Without Opening an Account or Other Obligation go to paragraph #2

You have to have the AAdvantage Visa Signature, World Mastercard,  AA American Express, or AA Business card -click link below…

Third Quarter awards are valid for round trip travel originating in the 48 contiguous United States…

Booking is valid June 1, 2010 – September 30, 2010 for travel from July 1, 2010 through September 30, 2010….

All travel must be completed by September 30, 2010…

To claim your award, or for more information, call American Airlines AAdvantage® Reservations at 1-800-882-8880…

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to get more info about – Reduced Mileage Awards – American Airlines