Updated 12.27.2020 

"If earning miles is addition and subtraction, then redeeming miles is calculus." 

"I've accumulated a lot of miles, but I don't know how to use them, please help..." 

I've heard that it's not easy to redeem miles, and I've done a lot of research, but when it comes time to ticket, I'm not sure where to start or what to look for. 

So, here we go: the epitome of ticketing!

Today, we'll cover the most basic basics, and next time we'll organize by major airline.

I'm going to organize it down to Korean Air, Asiana, AA, UA, Delta, and Air Canada.

When we finally finish the series, we'll create a menu on the big screen with the name "Ticketing 101" so that everyone can easily find it. 

While this series will be helpful, it's not a guarantee that you'll be able to level up to a mileage seat search and ticketing master in no time, as the path to mastery requires constant practice, simulation, and real-world ticketing experience. However, if you read and follow along with this series, which begins today, we hope you'll be able to avoid embarrassing each other when you post questions in the message boards and comments. 

Today is an introduction. 

One of the most important foundations of redeeming miles is the distinction between ticketing carriers and operating carriers.

The biggest mistake newcomers to the mileage game make is conflating the ticketing carrier with the operating carrier. 

Of course, in most cases, the airline you redeem your miles on is the same as the airline you fly on.

In other words, if you are using Korean Air miles to fly Korean Air (ticketing carrier) and Korean Air (operating carrier), you only need to be aware of Korean Air's mile redemption rules, as mile redemption carrier = flying carrier = Korean Air. 

However, with so many airline alliances these days, it's not uncommon for the airline you redeem your miles for to not match the airline you fly on. This means that sometimes you can use Delta miles to fly Korean Air, and sometimes you can use FlyingBlue miles to fly Korean Air. 

This distinction is important for three reasons. 

1. because mileage redemptions are completely dependent on the airline you use your miles on.

For example, let's say you're using miles to fly LAX-ICN Asiana Business on April 15, 2021.

It's common to think that since you're flying Asiana, you should use Asiana miles, but you don't have to.

You can also use UA miles, Lifemiles, and Aeroplan miles, which are part of the Star Alliance alliance that Asiana is a part of and allow one-way travel. 

In this case, the flight you end up on is the same Asiana flight, but the mileage program you use, and therefore the ticketing carrier, will determine how much you pay in miles + fees. 

1) First of all, Asiana miles are off-season, so it's 62,500 miles, plus fuel surcharges. 

As of the time of this writing, December 2020, that's $136.50 in tax-inclusive dollars. 

2) If you use United miles, there are no fuel surcharges, just taxes of $5.60.

Oh, $130 saved! It's a little early to do this, because it costs 8.8 million UA miles to fly Asiana with UA miles. 

3) Lifemiles can also be redeemed for $5.60 tax only with no limit, but there is an automatic $25 ticketing fee. The miles are 75,000 miles for one-way business. 

4) Finally, Aeroplan, Air Canada's mileage program, costs 75,000 miles, the same as Lifemiles. 

This will add $47 in Canadian dollars in fees.

(This used to be close to $100 with fuel surcharges, but the mileage program was recently revamped and changed to no fuel surcharges, which is better.) 

Okay, so you're on the exact same Asiana flight OZ 201, but your mileage redemption is completely different, right?

From 62,500 miles to 8.8 million miles.

For a single person, that's a difference of 25,500 miles, but for a family of four, it's a difference of 102,000 miles. 

2. because the change/cancellation rules also vary depending on the miles used.  

It's not just the mileage used that's different - the change/cancellation rules are also different depending on the miles used. 

For the Asiana flight example above, 

1) Change fees and cancellation fees when redeeming Asiana Milesis very cheap.

As you can see below, if you have more than 91 days until your departure date, you'll get a free reimbursement; if you're within 90 days, it's $30 or 3,000 miles. 

2) For United For regular members, you'll pay $75 to change/cancel if you have more than 61 days before your departure date, or $125 if you have 60 days or less. 

3) For Lifemiles, the cancellation fee is up to $200 for international flights (it used to be $50, but not anymore). 

4) For Aeroplan There are different fees for changes and cancellations. 

For changes, it's $75 or $100 in Canadian dollars for 60 days, or $150 if you cancel outright and get your miles back, assuming you cancel directly online. 

Now, one thing here.

I know some of you might be asking, "I know I used Lifemiles, but once I'm ticketed, I'm on an Asiana flight, so can't I just contact Asiana for date changes, cancellations, etc.?"

No, you can't. 

Generally, within 24 hours of departure, the operating carrier has the right to change/cancel the ticket (we call this the ticket control take-over), but before that, the ticket belongs to the ticketing carrier.

So even if you're flying on an Asiana flight If your ticket was issued using Lifemiles miles, contact Lifemiles to change or cancel your ticket You'll need to 

This is completely important, and it's important to remember. 

And it's for this reason that the

• Complex journeys with more than one change,
• The journey your parents are taking,
• The journey of ticketing others,
• For first-time mileage-redeeming trips for inexperienced travelers

If you have a choice, it's better to have the same operating carrier and ticketing carrier, even if it means paying a little more in miles and money. 

In this example, it's better to fly Asiana with Asiana Miles, even if you have to pay fuel surcharges.

The reason is that if the operating carrier / ticketing carrier is the same, it is easier to delay the flight, change the ticket in case of cancellation / reroute to another flight, endorsement, etc.

As mentioned earlier, on the day of departure, the operating carrier 'owns' the ticket, but it's not that simple, and if you have a cancellation or delay and need to find an alternative flight, they can either 1) say no, 2) tell you to go to the original ticketing carrier to find one, or 3) make a third-party call. Even if you do get a reservation, ticketing is often delayed when every minute counts (For the difference between booking and ticketing, see Sari's great explanation of formwork / tooling). 

That's why, in particular, the If you're flying adults from Korea, it's easier to just collect miles on the flag carrier and book on the flag carrier.  

3. because the number of seats on a mileage ticket that you can access varies depending on the issuing airline. 

A final reason why the distinction between ticketing carrier and operating carrier is important is that the number of seats on a mileage ticket that you can access depends on the ticketing carrier. 

Perhaps the best example is flying Korean Air with Korean Air miles and Korean Air's partner airline, Delta, with Delta miles.

1) First, when you fly Korean Air with Korean Air miles, the ticketing carrier and the operating carrier are the same.

Mileage tickets are most often flown on first-party airlines with first-party airline miles. 

For example, I searched for a nonstop flight from Los Angeles (LAX) to Incheon (ICN) on April 20, 2021 on Korean Air's site.

In this case, flight KE012 is showing as available, with 9 seats in Economy, 9 seats in Business, and 4 seats in First Class. (The maximum number of seats shown is 9, so if you see 9, think of it as 9+). 

I am charged fuel surcharges when I fly Korean Air with Korean Air miles.

If you're ticketing as a business, you'll pay $136.50 for 62,500 miles + taxes. 

(Please note that the Korean Air miles deduction will increase for tickets issued on April 1, 2021). 

2) What about flying Korean Air with Delta miles?

In this case, you won't be charged fuel surcharges, saving you about $100 for a one-way flight from the US. 

However, the problem is that flying Korean Air with Delta miles limits the number of seats available for mileage.

As you can see in the image below, there are only 2 seats available for business class, compared to the 9+ seats available on Korean Air's site, which is a huge difference, right? 

(Before COVID, it was 2 digits for Economy and 1 for Business, but I don't know if the policy has changed). 

This is because the mileage program is designed to prioritize their own customers.

I'm sure there are airlines that treat their own customers and partner customers the same, but I'd say that's the exception rather than the rule.

We'll cover each airline in more detail later, but since most airlines release more mileage seats to their own customers, you can use the While it's important to look on your operating carrier's site to find mileage seats, it's often more accurate to look on other partner airlines' sites to find seats. 

That's it for now, I'll cover how to search for mileage seats on each airline in detail in my next post 🙂 .