In 2021, Alaska Airlines joined the oneworld alliance, which was a major development for the Seattle-based airline. To coincide with that, Alaska Airlines and American Airlines also rolled out reciprocal upgrades for elite members, as part of a strategic partnership between the two airlines.
Continue reading: American & Alaska Reciprocal Upgrades For Elites (First Class & Extra Legroom)
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Best network on the west coast: oneworld — hubs in every major west coast city
Biggest hub on the west coast: Star
Delta and skyteam: well… the usual: smallest network vs star and oneworld, the worst partners across the pacific, no WiFi across the pacific, a joke of a mileage program
Delta can market all they want but what a joke they truly are on the west coast.
Tim can crow all he wants about current status at lax— AA gates and new terminal come back soon and delta is still the smallest alliance at lax and SoCal
My wife and I both have Atmos Gold, but we never show up on the upgrade list for American flights. So far I haven’t even bothered talking to a gate agent about this because the upgrade list is huge and we wouldn’t get upgraded anyway. But seems like there’s some problem with the system. We do get other benefits like Main Cabin Extra, so AA is recognizing the status to some extent.
If I book an Alaska award (I'm AA Platinum) how do I know which award allows be to select a seat at the time of booking?
This is where AS screws you. They wont change your MileagePlan number to your AAdvantage one. They claim its somehow "double dipping" which it of course isn't because you dont earn anything on an award ticket.
Similar question as below. If I'm Alaska elite and I book an AA award on AA metal, how do I have AA recognize my Atmos status as I wasn't able to change my FF# online?
The trick is to book the award ticket not for yourself but for a "guest" and then just put in your own personal info. That'll allow you to put in your Atmos number and status will be recognized.
What Luis said, but go one step further and add yourself in as a travel companion (under Reservation Preferences) with your Atmos #, so you can just deselect your AAdvantage account and select your Atmos account at booking. Done this multiple times no problem.
Yep. And if your Atmos elite status does not show correctly, you can just go to your booking on AA and enter your Atmos number there. Refresh or log off and log back in and your Atmos status should be recognized, and you can select MCE seats.
Has any of the U.S. based travellers ever stopped to think, that perhaps the U.S. airline industry is doing all in its power to power to complicate your travel experience? Credit cards, points, perks, status, lounge access, reciprocal upgrades, etc, etc. Boy, Oh Boy, they really are taking you punters for a ride …. and …. that is before you even leave the ground!
Bonkers, bleeding bonkers, the whole sad business.
This if for booking using AA miles. But as an AS elite booking AA metal with AS miles, can you just choose an AA main cabin extra
I have received premium upgrades on American. Why am I not getting them on Alaska? I have Alaska Gold and last year got free premium on almost every flight. Now I'm only getting them regularly on American.
I've surprisingly had great luck on Alaska as an AA EXP. Always can secure Premium Class immediately at booking, and my upgrade percentage, even on transcons, is HIGH. Maybe I'm just lucky, but I've found that being an AA EXP on Alaska is great. And that is on top of the baseline really good Alaska service.
I’ve booked AA metal on AS (with my Atmos # attached) and it have no issue selecting MCE seats when I open up the record locator on AA.
It’s pretty difficult to know why without more info, but just to double-check:
AS Gold members can select Premium seats for free at booking if they book specific fares (Y, B, H, K, M, L, V, S or N).
To view eligible fares, you’ll need to select Gold in the Upgrade Type field when searching and then book the Premium Upgrade option (not Main or Saver).
Depending on fare buckets available, this might be the same price as Main or more expensive – but it should guarantee your free Premium seat at booking.
https://www.alaskaair.com/atmosrewards/content/benefits/complimentary-upgrades/alaska
More AA news for the proletariat ….
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/02/27/vogue-editor-flees-first-class-cabin-full-white-men/
More AA news for the proletariat to ponder ….
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/02/27/vogue-editor-flees-first-class-cabin-full-white-men/
But it's awesome for DL travelers when flying around the west coast... upgrades are a piece of cake... if there's a flight where you're going.
I got to say I have a 100% upgrade rate with Alaska as an American Platinum Pro and usually get it confirmed at least 2-3 days before the flight. Unlike American where I get upgraded maybe 20% of the time and its usually when I have sat down in my economy seat while on the plane. Sad that I get treated a lot better on Alaska than I do with my "home" airline.
I have been told by Alaska today that AA no longer gives complimentary upgrades to Alaska Elite members. Change went into effect couple of months ago. I don't see any information on upgrades to Alaska Elites on AA pages as well.