A Solid New Promotion for AAdvantage Members With a Business Extra Account

Are you an American Airlines AAdvantage member?  How about a Business Extra member?

Business Extra is a program American has had around for quite some time.  16 years, to be exact (more on that in a minute).  Essentially, you apply for a Business Extra account to earn extra points when you fly on American Airlines.  It’s geared towards business travelers but works just fine for family members, friends, etc.  You enter your Business Extra number into any reservation to earn Business Extra points for those flights.  This is in addition to the miles that the ticketed passenger earns, in other words a double dip.  Now, you’re not going to earn tons of free tickets and other goodies. But, they do have everything from Admirals Club passes to upgrades and free tickets.  They also have free Gold status you can gift to a friend or family member which can be quite useful.  And, the program is free to sign up (though I had a bit of trouble getting the website to come up this morning).

I got notice that they’re celebrating their 16th birthday today.  They’re offering some pretty cool perks if you fly round trips on American Airlines over the next two months:

5 round-trips anywhere in the system between September 1st and October 31st, 2013 yield you a free flight award through the Business Extra program.  These awards are capacity controlled like Saver Awards, but imminently usable.  Flights on codeshare partners such as British Airways, Iberia and Qantas count as well, as long as they’re issued on American Airlines ticket stock.

Here’s a registration link if you already have a Business Extra number.

There’s not much in the way of restrictions.  It appears these can be tickets you already booked as long as the base fare is at least $250.  And, since the awards are structured as bonus points, even if you can’t complete 5 flights you can save the points you earn towards a bigger award.  Note:  Business Extra points have a different (quicker) expiration period than AAdvantage miles.

Is this enough to move business from another airline to American?  No, especially if you’re trying to hit a status tier on that other airline.  But, if you’re not chasing status (or already have enough miles to requalify), this is a nice plus to book some tickets on AA.  And, those with tickets already booked appear to benefit as well!

Full T&C here:

*Based on an Economy PlanAAhead award valid for the Continental U.S., Canada and Mexico. All taxes and fees assessed at the time of ticketing are the responsibility of the passenger.

Offer valid between September 1, 2013, and October 31, 2013. To qualify for the bonus points, your company must register prior to travel at BusinessExtra.com/birthday using promotion code BIRTHDAY. A $250 minimum base fare (before taxes and fees) applies for each round-trip ticket. Retroactive ticket requests may not be eligible for promotional points. For your company to earn bonus points, company employees must travel on American Airlines, AmericanEagle®, AmericanConnection® or codeshare (AA*) flights operated by British Airways, Iberia, Japan Airlines or Qantas Airways and ticketed on American Airlines 001 ticket stock using the company’s Business Extra account number between September 1, 2013, and October 31, 2013.

Your company’s Business Extra account number must be in the employee’s reservation to earn bonus points. Your company will earn 300 bonus points after the first employee flies one round-trip using the company’s Business Extra account number during the offer period. Your company will earn another 700 points after flying 2 additional eligible round-trips during the offer period. Your company will earn another 1,000 points after flying 2 additional eligible round-trips during the offer period. Maximum number of bonus points associated with this offer is 2,000. Business Extra bonus points will be posted to the member company’s account within six to eight weeks after the offer ends.

American Airlines, Admirals Club and Business Extra are marks of American Airlines, Inc.oneworld is a mark of the oneworld Alliance, LLC. © 2013 American Airlines, Inc. All rights reserved.

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