American Airlines Rewards Now Include Travel Agency Bookings

The AAdvantage Business incentive program of American Airlines which is intended for small and midsize businesses has started awarding miles and loyalty points for reservations made through travel agencies. 

The change, put into effect in month of July, significantly amended American Airlines policy that earlier only rewarded AAdvantage Business members for direct reservations. That policy has been in effect since last October, when the airline changed its Business Extra Program to AAdvantage Business. 

The program welcomes companies that have at least five active passengers and have spent a minimum of $5,000 on AA flights over the past year and to all companies or organizations that utilize the Citi AAdvantage Business World Elite Mastercard.      

This latest move of the American Airlines to reverse actions taken between April 2023 to May 2024, when the airline emphasized on pushing travel agencies to employ NDC's cutting-edge merchandising technology for reservations and increasing direct bookings. 

In response to the decline in the corporate travel share, the airline discarded that strategy in late May.  Since then, the airlines have returned most of the fare content earned from legacy booking systems, jettisoned the plan to remove the accrual of loyalty points on the flight tickets booked via travel agencies that had not fulfilled NDC targets, and initiated a summer-long 10% commission program for seat assignments through NDC and sales of bundles.  

Companies registered with AAdvantage Business earn one reward mile for each dollar spent on flights, also an extra two reward miles for each dollar spent on flights booked via the AAdvantage Business Mastercard. Now companies can save points for flights, Admiral Club passes, car rentals, and hotels, or they can distribute points to employees as perks. 

Along with the reward miles and loyalty points they obtain as individual AAdvantage members, employees can also earn points toward loyalty status. 

In addition to implementing point accrual for agency reservations, the airline has announced that it has launched a customer support phone number for the AAdvantage Business program. The customer support phone line is open on weekdays from 7 AM to 7 OM.

Later this summer, businesses or companies will be able to save and manage miles straight from their account registered on the American website and will be able to keep company credit cards in the business account for quick checkout. Also, by the end of the year, companies will be able to define and configure their travel policies on AA.com and handle and manage the shared trip credits in that account. 

Additionally, toward the end of the year American Airlines will permit name change waivers for every registered passenger in the AAdvantage Business account, which will offer companies flexibility to transfer flight tickets between employees. 

Also Read: Can I Change The Name On My American Airlines Ticket?

What Is American Airlines' New Business Travel Rewards Program?

AA has simplified and changed its award program for unmanaged business travel. This program was implemented on Oct 16 and is known as AAdvantage Business, rebranding the previous Business Extra program. It provides an opportunity for quick status accrual for business passengers and offers more redemption options for companies. 

According to the AAdvantage Business program, employees flying for participating in small- and mid-sized companies will obtain one point per dollar spent on AAdvantage loyalty status, a reward that was not available under Business Extra. The points will be added to the loyalty points and reward miles that passengers already receive as an individual AAdvantage member. 

In the meanwhile, companies that sign up for AAdvantage Business will receive one reward mile per dollar they spend on flights. The flight ought to be booked from the official American Airlines website or mobile app. Companies can save their miles for the service or facility available for purchase within the AAdvantage program, like Admiral Club passes, hotels, flights, and car rentals. 

As per the American announcement, the redemption options are much more than what was accessible under Business Extra. The program has its unique system of giving points, with one point obtained for each $5 a business spent on flights. Those points would be used for flights, lounge access, upgrades and Platinum status or AAdvantage Gold, but could not be used for car rental or lodging.    

In order to get the benefits of AAdvantage Business, companies should have a minimum of five active employees. They can sign up at aa.com/aadvantagebusiness. Businesses can still save points obtained under Business Extra via Jan 31. 

Companies can earn points AAdvantage Business for their next travel by canceling and rebooking Business Extra reservations. 

If you still have concerns or queries regarding AAdvantage Business incentive program of American Airlines and American Airlines' New Business Travel Rewards Program, you can talk with a flight expert at +1-866-738-0741 and get your queries answered in a few minutes.