U P F R O N T

Forbes.com Rates the Airlines' Chances of Survival
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Much as we'd like to have the resources to undertake an exhaustive analysis of the individual U.S. airlines' odds of surviving the current travel... what, slump? recession? depression?... we don't.

Forbes does, and they did. The results should be of interest not only to investors, but to those who see their frequent-flyer miles potentially jeopardized by failing airlines. (For more on ways to protect your miles from premature "expiration," see http://frequentflier.com/ff101801.htm.)

Here's a summary of the Forbes analysis--

                           LIKELIHOOD OF
      AIRLINE                LIQUIDATION
      ----------------------------------
      Alaska                        15%
      American                      20%
      America West                  90%
      Continental                   20%
      Delta                         25%
      Northwest                     20%
      Southwest                    0.5%
      United                        30%
      US Airways                    80%

                  

Note that the above predictions were made prior to the crash of American flight AA587 on Monday. It remains to be seen what effect this latest incident will have on consumers' confidence in air travel and, ultimately, on the travel industry's recovery.

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O N S I T E

New on the FrequentFlier Forum
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Annette wonders: Can I transfer miles from my Alaska Air account to AAdvantage? David reports: Still having problems redeeming ClickMiles. Gretchen asks: Any Hertz triple-mile offers out there? Ronald advises: I'm compiling a list of merchants and their mileage-program affiliations. And more...

Do you have questions, answers? Post them to the Forum!

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M I L E S & P O I N T S

E-Bookings Earn Up to 10,000 US Airways Bonus Miles
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Purchase 3 tickets at http://usairways.com and fly US Airways between Oct. 28 and Dec. 31, 2001. to earn 10,000 bonus miles.

Earn 3,000 miles after the first trip, 3,000 miles after the second, and 4,000 miles after the third. Offer only valid for members that have NOT purchased online prior to Oct. 28, 2001.

Register here.

Sprint Offers Midwest Express Bonus Miles
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Members of the Midwest Express Frequent Flyer program who sign up for Sprint 7¢ AnyTime residential long distance service before Feb. 28, 2002, can earn up to 7,500 Frequent Flyer miles: 1,500 miles for each of the first 5 monthly Sprint invoices.

After signing up, earn 5 miles for every dollar spent with Sprint.

United Offers Bonus for Tampa Flights
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Between Nov. 16, 2001, and Feb. 13, 2002, earn 1,000 bonus Mileage Plus miles for roundtrip flights between Tampa and any United city in the contiguous 48 U.S.

Offer may be earned up to 3 times during the promotion period, for a total of 3,000 bonus miles. Register on United's website using promotion code MPN N71.

Delta Lounge Memberships Earn Bonus Miles
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Through Dec. 15, 2001, SkyMiles members who renew or purchase a new 1-year Crown Room Club membership will earn a onetime bonus -- 2,500 miles for regular members, 4,000 miles for Medallion members. In addition, Delta is discounting the membership fee by $20.

To enroll or renew, visit a Delta Crown Room Club or print an application from http://delta.com/ and fax it with credit card information to 1-404-773-1950.

WorldPerks Miles Awarded for Cyber-Packages
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Northwest's CyberSavers weekend packages, including air and hotel, award WorldPerks miles for flights plus a 500-mile bonus per person for packages costing $500 or more.

And no, Northwest's policy on regular individual CyberSavers fares hasn't changed: they still do NOT earn miles.

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At Hyatt: Hometown Getaways
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Starting Nov. 16, Gold Passport members who check into participating Hyatts on a Friday or Saturday for 2 nights and pay a qualifying rate using an American Express credit card will receive a $50 American Express Gift Cheque.

S T E A L S & D E A L S

Deal Alert from SmarterLiving.com
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This week's hot deals from SmarterLiving.com...

Southwest Renews Coast-to-Coast Fare Sale
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Southwest has extended its nationwide fare sale for travel through Apr. 5, 2002, with cross-country fares starting at $198 round-trip. Book tickets at least seven days before departure and by Thursday, Nov. 29.

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Fares from Central/Western U.S. to London From $287 R/T
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TWA has announced a Web-only fare sale on travel from cities throughout the Central and Western U.S. to London, England. Fares are valid for departure through Nov. 24, and return travel must be completed by Nov. 30.

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S W E E P S T A K E S & F R E E B I E S

From Travelocity: "Home for the Holidays" Sweepstakes
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Register on Travelocity's website by Nov. 25 to be entered in the "Make it home for the holidays" sweepstakes. Prizes include 8 roundtrip airline tickets, holiday decorations, and a $3,000 home-entertainment system.

Complete rules and restrictions are at http://travelocity.com.

[Other travel-related sweepstakes and giveaways are online.]

R E A D E R R A N T S & R A V E

SWA's Expiration Policy
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"Am I mistaken or do all Southwest 'segments' expire in a year?

"The way I read it, and the way the agent confirmed, is that if you don't fly 4 round trips in a year your miles are gone. Not, like Delta, where if you fly once every three years all miles stay intact, but totally gone a year from the date of the flight.

"If this is so, people should know it. Unless you live by a Southwest hub and travel for business, Southwest miles are pretty worthless. Who flies 4 round trips in a year for leisure, all to places any SW flies to?"

- Jeneene

Southwest's program gets high marks for simplicity and ease-of-use. But Jeneene is absolutely right... the 1-year life of earned credits is a real negative. And it's a negative that consumers need to be reminded of, since the natural assumption is that SW follows the same 3-year rule that other airlines use.

S I T E 2 S E E

Unofficial Guide to AAdvantage
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"This website focuses on providing information on the undocumented features of the AAdvantage frequent flyer program, specializing in the topics of elite status and the Gold and Platinum Challenges."

What's an elite challenge? According to the site, "It's the 'back door to elite status.' Basically, you sign up for the Gold or Platinum Challenge under the premise that you can demonstrate a quantity of qualifying flight activity within a limited time period that justifies your request for fast-tracked elite status."

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Until next week...