Fewer AA card holders does not mean more seats for you. About 10 years ago AA had a promotion that if you flew a certain number of times from the NE to Florida, you would receive a trip anywhere in the world where AA flies. My wife and I were retired at that point and we wanted to go to Japan. Of course our calendar was wide open. No matter what month or day (as far as 9 or 10 months in the future) we asked for, there were no seats to Tokyo.
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