Frequent flyer programs have crash landed

Those of you who are longtime frequent travelers might remember the Pudding Guy.

Back in 1999, David Phillips, a civil engineer at the University of California at Davis stumbled upon a frequent flyer promotion that more than caught his eye.

It completely consumed him as he frantically set out to amass as many frequent flyer points as he could by buying various food products from the Healthy Choice Co. before the June 1999 deadline date.

Phillips scooped up grocery carts full of soup, popcorn and lots and lots of those little chocolate-fudge pudding cups. He feverishly spent about $3,000 on 12,150 pudding cups, cleaning out every supermarket chain in the Sacramento area and "earning" 1.2 million miles.

The media latched on to his story and he was quickly dubbed "the Pudding Guy."

Then, Phillips, apparently dazzled by the ease of acquiring frequent flyer miles, went after another million miles, this time by flying on 10 Latin American airlines by July 1 of that year.

Encouraged by dire threats from his wife who was left at home with the couple's two small daughters, he finally came back to earth, seriously jetlagged after several long-weekend flights to Central and South America. Physical exhaustion and spousal angst aside, his mileage run was a success: He had added another million miles to his account.

Phillips' obsession with frequent flyer miles might be an extreme example of mileage mania, the "urge to earn" that overtakes some travelers. But when you consider the fact that there are about 15 TRILLION miles on the deficit side of airline ledgers, it's easy to see that David Phillips is not alone.

Fewer free seats available

In an airline industry version of the perfect storm fueled by millions of frequent flyer members putting in serious air time, dinky regional jets in place of "real" airplanes, downsized flight schedules, and financially thin airlines emerging from murky and prolonged bankruptcies, reward miles are piling up and opportunities for free airline seats are rapidly diminishing.

Here are a few examples:

Earlier this year, United Airlines announced that Mileage Plus frequent flyer miles in accounts that have been inactive since July 1, 2006 will expire on Dec. 31, 2007. If you are in this category, they say, you can keep your account active by:

(1) Flying on UA or one of its 28 airline partners.

(2) Purchasing products or services from its 100+ travel and retail partners.

(3) Using your UA miles to take a trip.

(4) Using miles for merchandise, hotel stays or dining.

(5) Transferring miles to another Mileage Plus member, or

(6) Donating miles to the Mileage Plus Charity Miles program.

Delta Airlines earned hisses and boos from its frequent flyer members when it dropped its allowed period of account inactivity from three years to two.

US Airways now allows its program members only 18 months of inactivity, down from a previous 36 months.

AirTran's reward credits expire after only one year.

Alaska Airlines has increased its lowest award level to 25,000 points, up from 20,000 when you call the airline to book your free ticket. And you can now upgrade to first class (using 10,000 points) only if your flight is booked in H class or higher.

Northwest Airlines' free seats in the "PerkSaver" category are as rare as fireflies in a snow storm. In fact, the airline ranks among the worst in the air in ease of capturing frequent flyer awards.

Airlines using fewer planes

Across the board, major airlines are downsizing their fleets. The result: fewer seats overall, and with no first class section, there are no opportunities to use points to upgrade.

Even the legacy carriers are peeling away opportunities to use frequent flyer miles. US Airways reduced the first class cabin on its 757s from eight rows to two, and Continental Airlines no longer counts mileage earned through promotions or partners toward its elite status.

There are plenty of program changes among partners programs too. The Inter-Continental hotel group, for example, (including Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza) recently bumped up the number of points required for a free night from 15,000 to 25,000. And American Express upped the per-mile fee they charge to convert points in their Membership Rewards program (though it's still capped at $75.00).

How to maximize benefits

This is not a pretty picture, to be sure. But you have all these points and miles, so what can you do to protect the value of your existing rewards programs and maximize the benefits when you do decide to use them?

Be aware of the rules that govern your programs. Even if you've been a member for a long time, it's possible you missed some of the recent changes. A review is especially important if your account has been idle for awhile. Check out program details at FrequentFlier.com or the Official Airline Guide (OAG).

Verify your account balances. There's a chance you didn't receive proper credit for a recent flight - rules can vary, especially among code-share partners - so log on to your airlines' Web sites or call the frequent flyer program desk to make sure you've been properly credited. Enroll in Mileage Manager for an overview report of points in each program you're enrolled in.

Maximize miles and points. In general, it doesn't make sense to use air miles on "cheap" tickets; reserve them instead for costly long-haul travel or upgrades to a better class of service. Use Mile Maven (www.milemaven.com ) to search for promotions by airlines, routes and specific flights.

Talk to other frequent travelers. User forums at Web sites like Flyer Talk and Web Flyer can be a good source of opinions and insider tips on new promotions and ways to maximize program benefits.

Airlines and hotels still work hard to entice program members to remain loyal though it's unlikely we'll see another pudding promotion anytime soon.

In the final analysis, it's best to forgo the indiscriminate mileage chase and focus instead on maximizing the value of current and future awards.