I have an air mileage account. Why does it take more air miles than actual miles to fly somewhere?
At first you could only earn frequent flier “miles” for flying on an airline. It was only later that they started offering other ways to earn “miles”. i.e. credit cards. Each airline has different rules about how you can redeem miles that you have earned and turn them into “free” flights. You can find the details for Alaska airlines here: http://www.alaskaair.com/as/mileageplan/faqs/Awards.asp But just knowing the number of miles required to get a “free” flight is not enough. Also you should note the text “Availability is limited” text on the website. So even if you have enough miles you cannot always use them and there are also some fees and taxes you have to pay when you book a ticket with miles. Hope this helps. Here is the text from the Alaska website: • AS50 Award Money & 7,500 Miles One Way- Valid on itineraries with flights operated only by Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air.” Receive up to a 50% discount on most fares. Maximum discount allowed is $250 (USD) off of the base fare.”
