How much more valuable is an AA mile versus a QF point?

[Kangol]

I did not book it.

I found P from LHR to MEL in MAY and MEL to LHR in June then did a dummy booking on AA.com.

Thanks, must have been lucky because I can only find P availability on 4 days in June (QF10 LHR-MEL) and some on QF2 LHR-DXB only, none all the way LHR-SYD.

An important part of the discussion regarding value is availability and what you can exchange the points for.

Reminds me of this Oscar Wilde quote:
“Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing.”

ie. AA miles can be used to book flights from 330 days out. QF at 353 days. If the type of ticket you want gets snapped up in that 23 day period, resulting in no availability meaning you can't exchange your AA miles for your preferred ticket, then those miles have no value (to you). In this example, QFF points for U/P transpacific awards would definitely be more valuable if you want to have some degree of certainty.

Again, YMMV!

 

[Princess Fiona]

side note - funny how this guy seems to release articles to mainstream media when they begin to generate discussion on AFF, pure coincidence i'm sure - Frequent flyer points: how much are they worth?

He's a very active member of the Facebook frequent flying community.
Many of the same discussions go on there

 

[serfty]

...
ie. AA miles can be used to book flights from 330 days out. QF at 353 days. If the type of ticket you want gets snapped up in that 23 day period, resulting in no availability meaning you can't exchange your AA miles for your preferred ticket, then those miles have no value (to you). In this example, QFF points for U/P transpacific awards would definitely be more valuable if you want to have some degree of certainty.

Again, YMMV!

This be true and has been the case since I started on AFF; back when QFF points were worth much more than they are today - it was because of that value I stuck with QFF.

FWIW, with my searches earlier I saw quite a few dates with availability between MEL and LHR.

A quick E/F scan late Jan through June showed the following date with U/P class:

QF9: JAN 26, 27, 28, 31 FEB 3, 4, 7, 9, 10, 11, 17 MAR 7, 12 JUN 15, 17, 24 JUL 31

QF10: FEB 15, 17, 18, 21, 24, 25 MAR 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 14, 16, 17, 21, 22, 23 
APR 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 9, 12, 13, 16, 18, 21, 22, 24, 27, 28, 29 MAY 4, 5, 6, 9, 11, 13, 19, 20, 27 JUN 3, 17, 24

 

[serfty]

...

side note - funny how this guy seems to release articles to mainstream media when they begin to generate discussion on AFF, pure coincidence i'm sure - Frequent flyer points: how much are they worth?

Similar to many bloggers and journalists, they scour the interwebs and cultivate sources in the search for content to publish. This includes AFF, FT, F/B groups, blogger sites and others. Not much different from many journalists these days. I am still trying to work out how to redeem QFF points on an Etihad A380 to Auckland

...Top ways to use your points

So what are my choices for the best ways to use your Qantas frequent flyer points?
For an indulgent experience, 54,000 points will get you a private first class suite on Etihad’s Airbus A380, flying daily from Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane to Auckland. ...

(Although, if you could, then with AAdvantage {since EY is an AA partner} it would cost only 22500 miles rather than that 54000 points with QFF.)

 

[pagingjoan]

<... I am still trying to work out how to redeem QFF points on an Etihad A380 to Auckland (Although, if you could, then with AAdvantage {since EY is an AA partner}, it would cost only 22500 miles rather than that 54000 points with QFF.)

That "tip" in the article had me head scratching, too, Serfty. But I figured that AFFers much more informed and expert than I would have known how to pull off that trick.
Not sure whether to be pleased or disappointed that you can't?

 

[Kangol]

FWIW, with my searches earlier I saw quite a few dates with availability between MEL and LHR.

A quick E/F scan late Jan through June showed the following date with U/P class:

QF9: JAN 26, 27, 28, 31 FEB 3, 4, 7, 9, 10, 11, 17 MAR 7, 12 JUN 15, 17, 24 JUL 31

QF10: FEB 15, 17, 18, 21, 24, 25 MAR 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 14, 16, 17, 21, 22, 23 
APR 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 9, 12, 13, 16, 18, 21, 22, 24, 27, 28, 29 MAY 4, 5, 6, 9, 11, 13, 19, 20, 27 JUN 3, 17, 24

Ah, nothing for QF2 though

How do you do the E/F search for more than 7 days (preferred date +/- 3 days)?
It seems clunky to me having to search multiple times.. not quite the AA search engine but hey, it is what it is.

 

[amaroo]

Ah, nothing for QF2 though

How do you do the E/F search for more than 7 days (preferred date +/- 3 days)?
It seems clunky to me having to search multiple times.. not quite the AA search engine but hey, it is what it is.

+ 1 would like to know the answer to that

 

[serfty]

Ah, nothing for QF2 though

How do you do the E/F search for more than 7 days (preferred date +/- 3 days)?
It seems clunky to me having to search multiple times.. not quite the AA search engine but hey, it is what it is.

I didn't look at SYD flights.

Only did MEL/LHR direct flight searches and noted those.

I recall that QF1/QF2 connections at SYD or DXB did appear here and there.

It took about 20 or so return searches, 7 days at a time.

 

[Kangol]

I didn't look at SYD flights.

Only did MEL/LHR direct flight searches and noted those.

I recall that QF1/QF2 connections at SYD or DXB did appear here and there.

It took about 20 or so return searches, 7 days at a time.

Thanks, yeah I suspected you may have had to do multiple 7 day searches.

 

[amaroo]

and perhaps it would be different if this was in the QFF thread where there would be plenty more QFF users/ readers than in the current AA thread,

.......

LOL....maybe the title should have read "How valuable is an AA mile" If it was - I wouldn't have paid any attention to the post/thread and certainly wouldn't have bothered posting anything here :idea:

 

[Princess Fiona]

That "tip" in the article had me head scratching, too, Serfty. But I figured that AFFers much more informed and expert than I would have known how to pull off that trick.
Not sure whether to be pleased or disappointed that you can't?

It was a typo by Fairfax and has been corrected now.
The writer is astute enough to know that Etihad awards can be booked through EY, AA, or VA

 

[Nizar]

My youngest son thought business class from Rio to Miami was very ordinary but I have found the AA/BA combination over the Atlantic to be excellent.

It's because you spoil him too much cove. Just about everything is ordinary compared to SQ Suites lol

 

[burmans]

LOL....maybe the title should have read "How valuable is an AA mile" If it was - I wouldn't have paid any attention to the post/thread and certainly wouldn't have bothered posting anything here :idea:

Yes, well much as there are some who are keen to extoll the value of AA over QF, there are also some who are prepared to defend QFF to the death. Somewhat ironically some of these are bemoaning the lack of value in QFF on other threads but feel they have to defend here and would seem not to think some of us actually have points in multiple programs and hence know what they have said in the QF thread (and the VA thread, and JQ threads ...). Split personalities anyone?

 

[amaroo]

Yes, well much as there are some who are keen to extoll the value of AA over QF, there are also some who are prepared to defend QFF to the death. Somewhat ironically some of these are bemoaning the lack of value in QFF on other threads but feel they have to defend here and would seem not to think some of us actually have points in multiple programs and hence know what they have said in the QF thread (and the VA thread, and JQ threads ...). Split personalities anyone?

I only mentioned it because the title has been raised on multiply occasions as an excuse to deflect away from discussion. If you could be bothered to read posts in this thread you would have seen comments like....

QF is a dog of a scheme
BAEC is preferred but splitting the points is a problem
etc,etc,etc

No need to read other threads.....it's all contained in this one. Distraction much!

 

[burmans]

I only mentioned it because the title has been raised on multiply occasions as an excuse to deflect away from discussion.

Yes but changing the title implies that a comparison of point values is not what is intended. As an Australian site most of us have been a QF member at some stage even if we have moved away more recently, and hence a comparison gives us a baseline for valuing AA points. As such would have though that the title given by Cove was intended, and intended to serve as a basis to evaluate AA points value but in the context of the one other FF most are familiar with.

The only downside I can see is that mentioning QF will attract those who want to defend QF to the death. But many of those QF advocates seem to jump onto non-QF threads to express their pro QF preferences regardless of thread not being a QF thread and not having a QF title anyway.

I think the thread title is fine.

 

[serfty]

Posts discussing ease of garnering AA miles vs. QFF points for an Australian residents moved here: http://www.australianfrequentflyer....-aadvantage/how-much-harder-get-aa-61985.html

 

[amaroo]

Yes but changing the title implies that a comparison of point values is not what is intended. As an Australian site most of us have been a QF member at some stage even if we have moved away more recently, and hence a comparison gives us a baseline for valuing AA points. As such would have though that the title given by Cove was intended, and intended to serve as a basis to evaluate AA points value but in the context of the one other FF most are familiar with.

The only downside I can see is that mentioning QF will attract those who want to defend QF to the death. But many of those QF advocates seem to jump onto non-QF threads to express their pro QF preferences regardless of thread not being a QF thread and not having a QF title anyway.

I think the thread title is fine.

Using the words "a dog of a scheme" seems a funny way for an advocate to defend something - don't you think?

 

[quokka77]

Just a thought bubble / question from someone who has little experience of qff or aa (more a lifemiles, va and mh guy so far)... Does the recent loss of one world explorer reward tickets from aa's chart turn anyone's attention back towards qff (or cx)?

 

[serfty]

Just a thought bubble / question from someone who has little experience of qff or aa (more a lifemiles, va and mh guy so far)... Does the recent loss of one world explorer reward tickets from aa's chart turn anyone's attention back towards qff (or cx)?

It certainly make the QFF *O award more interesting, although the +++ is still onerous with a full 16 segment redemption.

It also brings to the fore the knowledge that AAdvantage can change at any time without notice.

There may be more changes in store for AAdvantage going forward, but for now, for me, the value of an AAdvantage mile is still at least double that of a QFF point.

 

[Nizar]

It certainly make the QFF *O award more interesting, although the +++ is still onerous with a full 16 segment redemption.

It also brings to the fore the knowledge that AAdvantage can change at any time without notice.

There may be more changes in store for AAdvantage going forward, but for now, for me, the value of an AAdvantage mile is still at least double that of a QFF point.

Agree with the above. A xONEx was attractive to credit to AA because you could reach Executive Platinum with it.

Has anyone done the calcs to see if you could achieve QF WP by doing a xONEx by crediting to QF ?

Also through AAs global desk my understanding was you could start your xONEx in places such as Khartoum or Cairo or Johannesburg where the prices are considerably cheaper. Can you do this with QF ? Or are the prices always the ridiculously expensive ex-Oz prices if booking through QF regardless of where travel commences ?

Thanks