Help!
Anyone ever try to use airmiles for 1 ticket AND purchase a discounted ticket and be able to get on same flights?
Its now 75k miles to get to Oz used to be 60k so I need to be creative since I don't have enough airmiles...and I have purchased the limit for this year. They also reduced number of stopovers from 2 to 1. That sucks!

Any suggestions or advice would be appreciated.

Want to go in Mar,April or May 2004 for 6 weeks

Hi. I considered buying one ticket and using miles for the other. When I called American I told them I might do that and they said we were able to. They put both tickets on hold and told me how much the paying fare would be. I ended up buying more miles to have 2 tickets though (I guess I was lucky, must have just made it in time for the 60k)! Another thing to check out, when I booked, if you were paying full fare on one ticket, your companion was able to use less miles (it used to be 50k) if you were paying for one ticket.

Helo JIVV,
I agree, it certainly makes it harder -we fly American and fortunately took advantage of our miles earlier this year on our trip to Sydney and New Zealand! It used to be that you could only purchase 15,000 miles per year but until 1/31/04 the web site states that you can either purchase or have someone "gift" a total of 25,000 miles. We have also been scrambeling to put together enough miles to make a long trip next year but were not effected by recent award changes.
Good luck, I really feel for your plight!

Gynna, Thank you so much for telling me about the AA website and the extension for buying/gifting miles. Now I can have my friend 'gift' to me the additional 25000 miles I need. I might just get there next year after all! THANKS again!!
I just learned a lesson: I need to keep looking at that AA website more often!

Hi, again JIW!
I think it is a total of 25,000 miles, both offers combined, but check it out. If you are still short miles and can afford to lay out a few $'s, here is something else I did to get a large amount of miles: Kellog's has offers on some of their cereal for 500 miles per box - no limit last year when I did this. I bought tons of cereal when it went on sale (some were 2 for 1)and cut out the coupon and donated the unopened cereal to our local food bank. When tax time came around this year, I had a receipt from the food bank stating the number of "boxes" of cereal and the receipts to back it up. Not only did I get over 14, 000 miles but the cereal went to help people less fortunate than us and in the end the cost was minimal. Seemed like a win-win situation. Good luck - the trip will be well worth it!

Gynna, That cereal thing is a good idea, too.
Here's what the website says in the FAQ's
"For a limited time, through January 31, 2004, the maximum has been increased to 25,000 that you may purchase for yourself , and receive as a gift for a total of 50,000 miles per calendar year."

Therefore, I'll get my 50k miles now so I can make my reservations. Whoo hoo!!
Thanks again. JIW