American Is Finally Letting You Pay for Flights With a Slider

American Airlines has announced a booking feature that will let AAdvantage members pay for a ticket with a mix of miles and cash. Logged-in members will see an adjustable slider on the booking page, and the ticket cost summary updates automatically as they move it.

The feature will roll out in the coming weeks on aa.com and in the airline’s mobile app. American has not said what minimums apply, what each mile is worth in the mix, or whether any fares are excluded, so those details matter and are still unknown.

The idea is to remove the all-or-nothing choice that often leaves travelers sitting on miles balances that are too small to cover a whole ticket. A partial payment could turn a few thousand leftover miles into real savings at checkout.

Scott Long, American’s senior vice president of AAdvantage, called it another step toward more personalized ways to engage with the program. Before you spend miles this way, compare the value you get per mile against what the same miles would buy as a full award ticket, since a weak conversion rate can make the convenience a poor deal.

Sources: AirlineGeeks