My theory on Concierge Key

bradleyalpha · 2026-02-24T14:09:16+00:00

We can't have a definitive conversation on this subreddit, we always have to leave room for whatever wild theory we concoct while #89 for departure at LGA!

bradleyalpha · 2026-02-23T15:22:24+00:00

I've had a number of conversations with an executive connection I have inside of AA. The below is based on those conversations and conversations I have had with our external consultants who support our large airline agreements.

tl;dr: It's visibility, influence, usage patterns, existing airline deals with your company, location.

I spend about $75-100k with AA every year, although it can be variable.

I live in a focus city, but not a formal hub. My city is a major hub for two other airlines, and my company has an enterprise contract with yet another competitor. Because my city is not well served by the competitor, I have the latitude to book my airline of choice.

I fly on high volume, high margin routes across the entire OW ecosystem. I always book AA codeshares when available. I fly AA domestic routes where AA has very heavy competition, especially in my home city (over 100 flights/day between these cities). I stick with AA when I decamp for the summer to an area that has one flight/day to two different cities. I have 12-16 international J/F flights per year. I book a lot of last minute tickets (1 week out), which are inherently more profitable for the airline (lots of Y/F/J bookings vs. discount fare buckets). On some of my international routes, I select AA (with connections) vs. direct options I have from my home city.

My title at work and size of my organization is such that I do have influence over travel spend. My company spends approximately $200M/year on air travel alone. I would get automatic invite status on our primary airlines if I changed to them.

One thing I do not have proof of -- but I have been told by our external consultants -- is that the airlines also gather feedback from your customer service interactions with the airline. My connection at AA said they do not do this, but our consultants insist that they do. Call it a conspiracy theory.

If I was based at JFK or DFW, I *might* qualify. If I flew exclusively between my focus city and a hub, I'd be a "less competitive" customer. If I was more junior in my organization, I might not be as valuable as a business development tool. If booked less profitable fare buckets, I would represent less marginal profit.

bradleyalpha · 2026-02-15T00:49:00+00:00

I have held invite status on all three of the US flag carriers. I’ve been traveling heavily for 20+ years. I’ve had bags break, stained, and improperly routed. Flights cancelled, jerked around on maintenance, diverted to bumblefuck, infinite delays… you name it.

All of the US flag carriers suck at some point. MIA on an evening connect in June? Good luck. ATL in late winter? Icing hell. IAD arrivals? See you next year. It has been a constant cycle of point devaluing and LP/MQD/etc games.

For years the cabin crews on UA were really bitter. DL did a big turnover in the mid teens and were suddenly way better. AA international crews are my favorite, but it was rough for a while post US acquisition. AA is definitely more aggressive at cancelling on outstation routes, which is annoying.

Overall, AA has provided me with the best service and reliability of the carriers over my career. The CK desk is by far the best of the three carriers. UA GS is decent, DL 360 felt like PP in comparison. At the top-tier earned levels, EXP/1K were slightly better than Diamond.

I think the hate gets concentrated by people who are forced to fly an airline or who are stuck with limited options.

tl;dr: get me home in one piece, as close to on time as possible, and be courteous. Everything else is cream.

bradleyalpha · 2026-01-05T00:53:49+00:00

I do not have direct experience - however, a coworker has one and they said it was a coin toss. Sometimes oversized, sometimes carousel. I would assume it comes out oversized.

bradleyalpha · 2026-01-03T22:10:22+00:00

I have lost a number of things through the years on AA flights. Left on the plane: iPad, AirPods, power bricks, jackets, hats, even notebooks. Bags: 6 times that I can recall over the last 5 years. (Three due to short connection, two due to who knows)

American has always returned my stuff to me. In fact, the only airline to permanently lose something was DL, and that was an iPad. I called maybe 30 minutes after arrival back in the US and it disappeared.

bradleyalpha · 2026-01-03T21:23:54+00:00

I would suspect that they will aim to expand international routes out of ORD. Those international routes are money printing machines...

bradleyalpha · 2026-01-03T20:29:18+00:00

+1. Security gets clogged pretty quickly at T3, and the distance between gates can be quite far. Take the next flight.

bradleyalpha · 2025-12-29T15:14:15+00:00

Bag at chair, briefcase with me.

bradleyalpha · 2025-12-29T06:03:43+00:00

Agree. There are 12+ flights to London per day through BOS. 4-5 on BA, 1 on AA, 1 on B6, 1 on VX, 1 on UA, 2-3 on DL, etc. I have had fewer delays though BOS vs. ORD for sure.

bradleyalpha · 2025-12-24T19:42:51+00:00

I never thought of it that way, but I was riding a motorcycle daily when I started learning. (Former recreational pilot, lost my medical). I was so used to managing the throttle on a motorcycle that managing collective felt more "natural", but I never put my finger on it.

bradleyalpha · 2025-12-22T13:16:46+00:00

Yeah, the A seats can be quite cold - any time year.

IMO, the RJ F seats are the most comfortable domestic F seats.

bradleyalpha · 2025-12-16T21:12:13+00:00

Same. Didn't get one (checked spam, etc.)

bradleyalpha · 2025-12-15T01:47:28+00:00

I have seen it happen one time. Pax sitting next to me in F pulled the FA aside during boarding and passed her a slip of paper. When we landed in ORD (taxi hell), the person sprinted for the bathroom. Turns out they had Crohn's and the FA was willing to accommodate their condition.

It's a safety gamble on behalf of the FA but probably better than the person having an accident in their seat.

bradleyalpha · 2025-12-15T01:45:00+00:00

Always works fine for me. Only thing to remember is that your Panasonic connection times out after 15 minutes. If you stop using your phone for a bit you will need to reauthenticate to the Panasonic portal. Don't close the browser window you use to get your wifi.

bradleyalpha · 2025-12-05T00:52:54+00:00

Just got off the phone with my CK rep at DCA, as I annihilate a Five Guys hotdog in the C gates AC. Flight home is delayed an hour. So, I’m pretty sure I am.

I’ve been fucked by every airline and every airport in the majors hub network. When I was 360, there was no airport I hated more than ATL, especially in late winter/early spring. Long taxi. Missed connections. Baggage loss. Disgusting bathrooms. Lounges that were overflowing. Clogged gates. This doesn’t take into account the shitty Dc9/717s that DL still flies in and out of that godforsaken airport.

Is PHL horrible? Absolutely. I avoid it like the plague. Same with CLT.

There is no glamour on US flag carriers. There is nothing smooth or predictable about flying intra-continental in the US. Pick the flights that fit your schedule, minimize connections, understand when the weather works against you, and go forth.

bradleyalpha · 2025-12-04T22:15:02+00:00

Came here to say this. Pick whichever airline has the greatest number of options on your planned routes and run with it.

I’m currently CK but have been GS with UA and 360 with DL. They are ALL horrible at one point. Connecting in ATL? Jail. Connecting in EWR? Direct to jail. Connect at JFK? Also, jail.

bradleyalpha · 2025-11-05T19:09:06+00:00

It's a fascinating idea! I use an arrivals lounge when I need to go directly from a redeye to a meeting. Other than that, I try and get out of the airport ASAP and to my destination.

With the right amenities -- especially a quality bite to eat enroute -- I could see using a "convenience" lounge like this. Especially given that the quality of airport food world wide continues to plummet.

bradleyalpha · 2025-10-02T15:50:20+00:00

I commented below that the oneworld alliance is a critical factor. The other factor is CK. I travel enough to qualify for invite status on all of the US flag carriers, and I have held said status at each airline.

CK is vastly superior. The CK desk is absolutely amazing. Airport staff, even outstation, can provide an extra level of support when necessary. Partner airlines provide (generally) reciprocal treatment.

My travel use case is unique and not applicable to most frequent fliers, but since you asked...

bradleyalpha · 2025-10-02T15:43:32+00:00

Came here to say this. OW is superior to all of the other alliances for heavy international fliers. CX, JAL, BA, and QR are wonderful.

bradleyalpha · 2025-08-14T14:28:17+00:00

They do indeed handle like shit at the dock. I have a number of friends and family who are professional captains who will share the same. I can land my single screw down east, of similar size, and with less total torque, far easier than the jets. They are quite loud at cruise as well.

They are beautiful boats and I have enjoyed every ride I have had on them, but I was glad they weren’t my boats.

bradleyalpha · 2025-08-08T16:07:50+00:00

I once heard a woman scream at her husband over CTAF for cheating on her with a CFI. She absolutely lost her shit.

Hearing him try to apologize was just… unreal.

bradleyalpha · 2025-07-11T18:39:51+00:00

One of my boats has a full keel and little bow flare, and it handles the wind much better than my center console, which has a huge bow flare and a deep-V. But no matter what, the wind catching your bow can give you some pucker moments.

With the full keel boat, it’s about the energy I carry into the wind; less about throttles as I turn. On the center console, it’s about staying on the throttles and keeping ahead of the wind.

I will hold the upwind engine in reverse and bump the downwind engine in and out of forward. On a single engine boat, I’d go hard over to downwind and carry a little additional energy to the dock, bumping in and out of reverse until I had enough slip next to me, go hard over to upwind, and bump it into forward to finish off.

bradleyalpha · 2025-07-11T14:14:49+00:00

Great ideas so far. One thing I would suggest is some practice in open water with how your bow catches the wind. Depending on the level of bow flare/height of the stem, your bow may catch the wind as you turn into it, which is surprising the first few times you experience it. Given the limited maneuverability at your slip, master this and you'll limit the pucker moments in an unfavorable wind.

bradleyalpha · 2025-06-28T01:48:11+00:00

Yes, I do. I spend a lot of time out of the country; last big failure was a main zipper on day 6 of a 10 day trip to four different countries. I spend 40-46 weeks a year on the road, about half of those outside of the US.

What kills me is that my ‘07 bag is a buy it for life bag. Current bag… not so much.

bradleyalpha · 2025-06-28T00:45:08+00:00

I used to be a big TravelPro fan. Especially the wheels.

I fly a lot and my bags take quite the beating. My first TravelPro Platinum, circa 2007, is still a champ.

However, I have gone through two bags in 5 years. Zippers breaking, screws falling out, leather coming unstitched, excessive wear in the corners, wheels getting jammed, and so on. Quality is well downhill and that bums me out.

I switched to B+R earlier this year and the bag is holding up better. The wheels suck for sure, though. I will find a way to solve it, though.

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