I think it's a big mistake to be a hub-captive. There's no reason that the credit cards you open have to be related to the dominant carrier at your airport.

Your life will be better if you instead open up the best card for the trip you want regardless of the airline that dominates your home airport.

Why should you ignore your hubby?

Imagine someone in Atlanta who wants to visit Buenos Aires.

Delta is the dominant carrier at ATL, and the only one with a direct flight to Buenos Aires.

Long time reader Ken just blew my mind:

"No one in mentioning whether this looming merger will affect redemptions via BA. It seems this may be a great time to focus on Avios. With US Airways switching alliances, there should be more availibility for BA awards?

Any thoughts?"

It took me a bit to catch on, but then I understood: US Airways will join oneworld as part of its merger with American Airlines, but before the merger is completed. The current best guess is that US Airways joins oneworld on November 1, 2013.

Long time reader Ken just blew my mind:

"No one in mentioning whether this looming merger will affect redemptions via BA. It seems this may be a great time to focus on Avios. With US Airways switching alliances, there should be more availibility for BA awards?

Any thoughts?"

It took me a bit to catch on, but then I understood: US Airways will join oneworld as part of its merger with American Airlines, but before the merger is completed. The current best guess is that US Airways joins oneworld on November 1, 2013.

Note: This post may have a shorter shelf life due to the impending US Airways merger.

Our Award Booking Service receives numerous requests from clients trying to maximize the value of their miles. These savvy travelers want to fly in the best premium cabins and take advantage of any and all liberal routing rules available.

Luckily, many of our clients have large Dividend Miles balances.

Note: This post may have a shorter shelf life due to the impending US Airways merger.

Our Award Booking Service receives numerous requests from clients trying to maximize the value of their miles. These savvy travelers want to fly in the best premium cabins and take advantage of any and all liberal routing rules available.

Luckily, many of our clients have large Dividend Miles balances.

Two Star Alliance carriers are selling miles at a discount this month.

US Airways will sell you up to 100k Dividend Miles for $1,881.25 (1.88 cents each.)
TACA/Avianca will see you up to 150k LifeMiles for $2,250 (1.5 cents each.)

Is either your ticket to a deeply discounted vacation?

US Airways

US Airways constantly runs its 100% purchase miles bonus. Sometimes the bonus is targeted that month, and sometimes it is open to everyone like the current August bonus.

During the promotions, you can purchase up to 100k US Airways miles for 1.88 cents each.

Award seats are bookable when airlines load their schedules. And there are two relevant airlines that need to load their schedules: the operating carrier of the flight and the airline whose miles you want to use.

You can't book a flight until both of the relevant airlines are ready.

For instance, American Airlines allows its miles to be used to book flights 331 days before their departure. Qantas loads its flights' award space space 355 days before departure.

Speculation is running rampant that US Airways will join oneworld November 1. The most recent fanning of the flames came from a post on FlyerTalk purporting to rely on an internal memo to US Airways employees.

Then View From the Wing pointed to this article quoting J.

I've already written about last second award space to Europe and to Asia this summer. The gist is that some airlines release unsold seats as award seats in the last few days or weeks before travel.

TAP Portugal does a bit of that on its three routes to the US, but it also has award space available in August to Europe in economy and business class, which is very scarce at the moment.

United scared me a lot on Friday when it tweeted that changes were coming to MileagePlus.

United still hasn't told us what those changes are, but insists we'll like them.

It's very unlikely I'll like them much. It could be a minor enhancement, but there are very few things I would change about United MileagePlus that United would also change.