Another one bites the dust. The 10% rebate on American Airlines redemptions will end on April 30th, 2019. We heard rumors floating around last week. Now both Citi and Barclay have confirmed the removal of this card benefit from the AAdvantage Platinum Select and Aviator Red cards.
What is the 10% rebate?
Both the AAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard and Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard previously had a 10% rebate on mileage redemptions. Book a flight for 25,000 AAdvantage miles, and you’ll get 2,500 miles back. This is a great benefit for anyone using lots of AAdvantage miles! The rebate is maxed out at 10,000 annually, so you’d need to book 100,000 AAdvantage miles of flights to get the maximum value.
Unfortunately, you’ve only got until April 30th to take advantage of your 10% rebate! So far this year I’ve already spent 60,000 American Airlines miles on flights, qualifying me for 6,000 miles back. I don’t think I’ll have enough time (or flights to book) by April to max this benefit out, but I’m sure going to try!
The 10% rebate was the only reason for me to keep my Citi AAdvantage Platinum card. Sorry Citi, the other benefits just aren’t worth the annual fee in my opinion. Free checked bag on domestic itineraries? I typically fly carry-on only. Priority boarding? It’s cool, my patience could use some practice anyway. From now on, the only American Airlines card in my wallet will be the Citi AAdvantage MileUp card. No annual fee and double miles on groceries? Yes, please!
H/T – Doctor of Credit and View From the Wing