American Airlines & American Express Partnership For Cheaper Flights

According to TPG, American Express and American Airlines (& their alliance partners) have reached agreement on a preferred partnership. Their official statement is as follows:

At the end of September, American Express announced a preferred partnership with American Airlines and their alliance partners, British Airways, Japan Airlines, Finnair and Iberia. With this partnership, all U.S. travel counselors and Relationship Managers now have access to the American Airlines’ SalesLink tool to assist you in promoting sales on American Airlines and their alliance partners. In addition, travel counselors and Relationship Managers have access to AA Flex Funds account where they can book Preferred Seats and access other waivers. Our partnership enable us to provide more value and better experiences for our Card Members by offering preferred pricing, dedicated sales support, agent incentives, servicing funds and more.

The most interesting part of this is the preferred pricing. From what I’ve seen the biggest discounts seem to be on transcon business & first class routes (understandable as they are likely to be the most profitable for American Airlines and partners, so they have more room to move in terms of discounts). To get the discounted rates, you need to book through Platinum and Centurion Travel Service by phone (800-801-6564). It’s also possible to combine these discounted rates with the 50% pay with points bonus on the American Express business platinum card (first/business class).

The problem with all of this is that when you call in, the representatives haven’t been properly trained and know little about this. Apparently the program is called ‘Global Business Travel’, using those words might help when you call in. I don’t fly premium cabins so this isn’t really of use to me, but if you do then please share your experiences in regards to pricing in the comments.