An Unexpected Side Effect For Me From The Merger of AAdvantage and Dividend Miles Has Me Thinking Of The Darkest Day In My Aviation History

There were lots of moving pieces when American Airlines and US Airways combined the two loyalty programs recently.  I heard from plenty of folks who had no problem at all and a few that had glitches to deal with.

I had zero issues during the process. All my miles moved over from US Airways just fine. But, I did have one oddity arise.

If you login to your AAdvantage account, you’ll see a date listed which signifies when you joined the program.  I’ve been a member of the program for a very long time. My father was a million miler from back in the days when miles were accumulated primarily from flying as opposed to credit cards.

I can’t recall for sure when I did join, but I can say with some degree of certainty it wasn’t the date displayed on my account for the longest time.

September 11, 2001.

I’d see that date every time I logged in for years.  And I’d wonder why it reflected that date. Did I really not have an AAdvantage account before then?  I’m pretty sure I did. And, I had flown AA before then, if maybe only on a family trip using my father’s miles.

The only thing I could fathom is that sitting on the couch that day after our office shut down, I decided to make a donation as I watched the horror.  I don’t recall that given the blur of events throughout the day, but anything’s possible.

And yet, the reason never really mattered. It was a reminder of that terribly painful day, not that anyone needs the reminder.

When I logged in yesterday for the first time since my accounts combined, I saw the date had changed to an earlier date, back in the 90s. Maybe that’s the date I joined US Airways, I don’t know.

While the changing of the date isn’t significant, that date is.  As my grandfather relayed what it was like to learn about Pearl Harbor, I’ll share my memories with my children and grandchildren, in the hope that they can understand the pain and suffering so many felt, and so many still feel.

There are charities out there that work to preserve the memory of those lost and turn it into something positive.  The Jason Dahl fund is one that comes to mind that I’ve been proud to support, and there are plenty of others. My realization of the account change yesterday is a good reminder that remembering those we lost on 9/11 doesn’t have to be confined to one day a year.

The post An Unexpected Side Effect For Me From The Merger of AAdvantage and Dividend Miles Has Me Thinking Of The Darkest Day In My Aviation History was published first on Pizza In Motion.

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