US Airways Double Miles AND Double Preferred Miles!!

US Airways just announced a promotion by which anyone can earn double miles (RDMs for Redeemable Miles) and double miles towards preferred status (EQMs for Elite Qualifying Miles) for flights booked and traveled between today and June 15. Its only valid for US Airways operated flights, but I think it should also be valid for codeshares with their partners (flights booked as Continental tickets, for example, but operated by US Airways).

You have to register with your dividend miles account before booking and before flying.

What does this mean for the Casual Flyer?

Well, its great news in particular for the Casual Flyer! This means its half as easy to get Preferred Status for your flying. Normally you would have to fly 25, 50, 75, or 100 thousand miles to gain status, but in this period you would only have to fly 12.5, 25, 37.5, or 50 thousand miles.

Elite Status (or Frequent Flyer Status) with a particular program is something Casual Flyers don't often have (it takes a lot of flying), but it comes with tangible benefits, even at the lowest tier. See my prior post when BMI was running a promotion for free Silver Status for a year. Even though most of us may never fly BMI, being BMI Silver means you are also Star Alliance Silver.

Star Alliance Silver has great tangible benefits like priority check-in, priority boarding, and most significantly, no baggage fees on Continental, United, and US Airways (the current 3 US Airlines in the Star Alliance). That is a potentially a $200++ savings each time a family of 4 travels on these airlines!

This promotion is also BIG NEWS because its the first announcement of a double EQM promotion this year. In past years, when one of the big airlines has announced a Double EQM promotion, most of the others are usually quick to follow up with similar (or better!) promotions.

Here's to keeping our fingers crossed that American, United, Continental, Delta and any others all quickly follow up with similar promotions so that we can each gain from the benefits and get Casual Flyers that much closer to Elite Status!