We highlight more than the usual number of promotions this week, including three credit card offers. While the Delta bonus is a recurring summer contender, the offers from American and Northwest are almost certainly directly in response to the recent launch of United's new Choices card.

See "Miles & Points" below.

Also in the news recently have been the three global airline alliances, oneworld, SkyTeam and Star.

Ireland's Aer Lingus has announced its intention to sever ties with oneworld (American, British Airways, etc.). According to Aer Lingus CEO Dermot Mannion, "Alliance membership has inevitably become less relevant for the airline over time, with an increasing number of customers availing of our new direct services at low fares." Discount point-to-point carriers (think Southwest) have not been good candidates to fully realize the benefits of alliance participation, which focus on linking individual carrier route systems to create a global network.

The SkyTeam alliance (Delta, Air France/KLM, Continental, Northwest, etc.), which recently added Aeroflot to its roster, announced plans to add Portugalia Airlines as an associate member.

The Star Alliance (United, Lufthansa, Singapore, etc.) will add Air China to its partner list, its second Chinese partner after Shanghai Airlines.

The Star Alliance has also opened a new consolidated facility in Terminal 1 at Tokyo Narita International Airport, designed to allow passengers to make quick connections among Star carriers.

FrequentFlier Forum Topics

As always, there's plenty of activity on the FrequentFlier Forum.

In the "Airline Programs" Forum, avidflyer wants better elite-upgrade availability from Northwest: "NWA has a Platinum status level that is the lowest in the industry (75K). Given that flights/seats have been greatly reduced over the last few months and FC seats are in more demand for frequent travelers, when will NWA either: 1- add a new level for 100-150K flyers or 2 - move Platinum up to 100K where the rest of the industry seems to be? Last year I flew 140K actual on NWA and I got a nice 10K "thank you" bonus. I would rather have a better shot at international upgrades and domestic freebies (I never sat in the back till this year and I have been in domestic coach 6 or 7 times so far). They can keep the "1000 mile guarantee" I would rather a better shot at the bigger seat."

Also in the "Airline Programs" Forum, rab has plenty of miles. But are they the right miles? "I am buying a full fare business class ticket on Cathay Pacific LA to Hong Kong. I have 300,000 Amex points and 100,000 aa miles, and 200,000 United miles. Is there a way to use these miles or points to upgrade to first class?"

And much more. Questions, answers? Post them to the Forum!

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Alaska Bonus for Insurance Quotes

Mileage Plan members residing in the states of Washington and Alaska can now earn 500 miles for getting an auto insurance quote from Progressive Direct -- no purchase necessary.

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Big Bonus for AAdvantage Credit Cards

New Citi Platinum Select AAdvantage World MasterCard and CitiBusiness AAdvantage MasterCard cardholders will earn 25,000 bonus miles after using the card to charge $250 in purchases.

The normal sign-up bonuses for these cards is 15,000 miles.

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Earn Continental Miles for Marriott Timeshares

Through Aug. 31, OnePass members can earn up to 80,000 bonus miles for purchasing a one-week Marriott Vacation Club timeshare at any of more than 40 resorts in North America, the Caribbean, Europe and Asia.

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Double Miles, Points for Charges to Delta Cards

SkyMiles members can earn double miles or points for charges made through Aug. 31.

The start date for the promotion differs, depending on whether the member holds a Delta SkyMiles credit card or a Delta SkyPoints credit card. SkyMiles cardholders earn double miles for purchases made between June 1 and Aug. 31; SkyPoints cardholders earn double points between July 1 and Aug. 31.

Registration is required, online or by calling 1-800-653-6051 to enroll a Delta SkyMiles card or 1-800-615-0403 to enroll a SkyPoints card.

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Redeem NWA Miles for E-Certs

Members of Northwest's WorldPerks program who hold the WorldPerks Visa Signature card can redeem 10,000 WorldPerks miles for a $100 E-Cert good toward the purchase of Northwest tickets direct from Northwest, online at nwa.com or by phone, or from a travel agent. Refer to Reference Code PK133.

E-Certs are delivered within 36 hours after registration and redemption of miles. A maximum of 60,000 miles may be redeemed for six E-Certs during the promotion period. Travel on tickets wholly or partially purchased with E-Certs must be completed by Jan. 31, 2007.

This is clearly an on-the-fly response to United's new Choices card and the Delta SkyPoints card, both of which permit miles to be used to offset the cost of a paid ticket.

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Omni Offers Triple Miles for 2nd Stay

Through July 31, members of Omni Hotel's Select Guest program will receive triple miles -- 1,500 instead of the normal 500 -- for their second and subsequent qualifying stays.

Select Guest members can elect to earn their miles with American, Delta, United, or Amtrak.

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Double SWA Credits During LUV Week

Rapid Rewards members will automatically receive double Rapid Rewards credits for flights purchased at southwest.com or swabiz.com and flown between June 12 and June 19.

That's Southwest's 35th anniversary week. In addition to double credits: "You might even catch a Flight Attendant in one of our earlier uniform pieces - maybe even in our famous hotpants!"

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Up to 2,500 United Miles for E-Booking, Check-in

Through Sept. 30, United Plus members can earn 2,500 bonus miles for booking and checking in online at united.com. (If you're wondering what's new here, it's a new bonus for combining two existing bonuses.)

Here's how it works:

1) Earn 1,000 bonus miles for booking online.

2) Then earn 500 bonus miles for each segment checked in using of EasyCheck-in Online, up to a maximum of 5,000 miles for 10 segments during the promo period.

3) And finally, there's an additional 500 bonus miles for completing both of the above on the same itinerary.

So: 1,000 bonus miles for booking online, an additional 1,000 miles for checking in online for both legs of a roundtrip flight, plus the 500-mile kicker.

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Double US Air Miles for Vegas Packages

Through Dec. 31, Dividend Miles members can earn double miles for Las Vegas bed and breakfast vacation packages including stays at either the Westin Casuarina Las Vegas Hotel or the Aladdin Casino & Resort.

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Deal Alert from SmarterTravel.com

1) Fall Flights to Hawaii on Delta from $338

Fall flights to Hawaii are on sale from Delta, and prices start at $338 round-trip. Destinations include Maui, Oahu, and the Big Island.

Travel is valid from Sept. 6 through Nov. 15. Book tickets at least 14 days in advance, and by June 14. Fares require a three-day minimum stay, and the maximum stay is 60 days.

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2) Ireland Fall Fares on Aer Lingus from $400

October flights to Dublin and Shannon start at $400 roundtrip with Aer Lingus' current sale. Departures are available from both coasts.

Travel is valid from Oct. 16 through 31. Aer Lingus has not listed a booking deadline.

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Win a trip for 2 to Maui

Enter Continental Airline's FLY AWAY Sweepstakes by June 30 for a chance to win a trip for two to Maui, including air, three nights' hotel, and a round of golf.

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[Visit http://frequentflier.com/sweeps.htm for more travel sweepstakes.]

Feedback from the Frontlines of Travel

"I have accumulated miles in a few different programs. Most are concentrated but 1 or 2 are not. I have heard that you can "sell" miles in some programs (for a small amount, I presume). Is that correct and is it legal? Do you do it online?" [Bob D.]

[FrequentFlier.com replies - Depending on which programs the "orphan miles" reside in, there may be a way to convert them into miles in other programs. Have a look at Points.com, which is in the business of making just such conversions. There may also be opportunities to convert miles into points in either the Hilton HHonors or Diners Club programs, and then convert those points into miles in a second airline program. The problem with such tactics is that as much as 90% of your original miles may be lost in the conversion process.]

"Saw your squib in BudgetTravel and your endorsement of Courtyards .. I agree with you that has been one of Marriotts best brands for value .. BUT .. I just discovered .. the hard way .. that they are buying Ramadas and trying to convert them .. it does not work .. fair warning .. check before you book because a remodeled Ramada does not a Courtyard make." [Don B.]

"How do I let people know of the wretched experience we recently had with Iberia? Start to finish, 3 flights (2 transatlantic) were terrible, including a flight staffer screaming at my child.

"I've written to Iberia; used their comment form, too--no response. I have begun to hear other stories once I mention ours. How to warn people?" [Maureen]

Until next week...