Airline Credit Cards

One of the first rewards that were offered for using a credit card was the frequent flyer mile. Many major airlines used credit cards that were issued through major credit card companies to promote their airline and offered these incentives. They used this as a way to get you to use their airline exclusively for all your travel needs. For those who traveled a lot and used their airline credit card, collecting frequent flyer miles could easily result in free travel over the period of a year.

Credit Card	Details	Credit Card	Details
	Capital One No Hassle Miles Rewards - 1.25 miles for every dollar spent on purchases - 0% APR on purchases until May 2010 - Book travel with any airline, hotel, cruise line, or rental car company - No blackout dates and no seat restrictions - No annual fee		Capital One Orbitz Visa Platinum - Excellent - 3 points per $1 spent on eligible Orbitz.com bookings - 1 point per $1 spent on regular purchases - Redeem for Travel, Merchandise, Gift Cards and more - No annual fee
	Citi Premier Pass - Elite Level  - 20,000 bonus points after $600 in purchases made within 3 months of account opening - Earn 2 points for every dollar spent on everyday purchases and 1 point for all other purchases* - Earn 1 point for every mile you fly on any airline* - Earn 1 point for every mile friends and family fly on tickets purchased with your card* - Get a complimentary companion ticket when you buy a qualifying ticket*		Miles by Discover Card - 12,000 Bonus Miles* - 1,000 Miles each month you make a purchase for the first 12 months - Double Miles on up to $3,000 in travel and restaurant purchases each year - 1 Mile for every $1 on all your other purchases - Book any travel, anytime with no blackout dates or restrictions - Unlimited Miles that never expire* - Redeem for travel credits to your account, gift cards from any of our 70 brand-name Partners or cash starting at just 1,000 Miles - No annual fee
	American Express Gold Credit Card - Earn 10,000 Membership Rewards® bonus points when you spend $500 in 3 months - redeemable for a $100 gift card - Gold Card Events - exclusive access to tickets for select concerts, shows, major sporting events, and more in cities nationwide - No pre-set spending limit - Express approval - get a decision in less than 60 seconds - No annual fee for the first year - $125 thereafter		Escape Discover Credit Card - 25,000 bonus miles* - 1,000 miles each month you make a purchase the first 25 months - Unlimited double miles on all purchases - Book any travel, anytime with no blackout dates or restrictions - 2 additional miles for every $1 you spend through ShopDiscover, our exclusive online shopping site - Enhanced travel benefits - Redeem for travel credits to your account, gift cards from any of our 90 brand-name partners or cash starting at just 1,000 miles
	Platinum Delta Sky Miles Card - Earn 20,000 bonus SkyMiles after first purchase and another 2,500 for adding an additional cardmember - Earn at least 1 mile for every eligible dollar spent - Earn one companion Coach Class ticket each year upon renewal - Miles never expire and there is no cap on the miles you can earn - Pay with miles: pay for all or part of your flight with miles - Express approval: get a decision in less than 60 seconds		Discover More Credit Card - Wild Life Collection - 5% Cashback Bonus for gas, travel, home, movies, restaurants and more - Up to 1% Cashback Bonus on all other purchases automatically - Cash rewards - 0% Intro APR for 6 months on purchases and balance transfers - No annual fee

However using a particular airline's credit card meant that when you wanted to travel you had to abide by all of their policies and use their airline to fly to your destination. Often this included not being able to travel on certain dates called blackout dates or in some cases there were destinations that these airlines did not have flights to.

However with the increase in popularity of airline credit cards, the competition to be the company with the best credit cards has heated up. Merely offering frequent flyer miles is no longer enough to get the average consumer's business any more. Companies are finding that using airline credit cards that can only be used to buy flight tickets no longer appeals to anyone as they can do the same thing with their regular credit card.

Those who have American Airlines credit cards can now take part in a program known as the AAdvantage mile program whereby you earn one mile for every dollar you spend using your credit card. United Airline credit cards known as the Mileage Plus First Card also offer the same program and both cards since they are issued through Citibank can be used anywhere for all of your purchases making it much easier to build up your frequent flyer miles.

In many cases the miles you earn on your airline credit cards can be used to get discounts on other aspects of your travel needs. You need to check your particular program but in many cases you can use your airline credit card reward points for discounts on hotel rooms or even on rental cars at your destination to make getting around a little easier.

However credit cards from airlines are not the only way to earn rewards for frequent use. In fact some of the airlines charge a relatively large fee for the pleasure of using their frequent flyer programs often up to and over $100 per year. You might be better off checking with your local bank to see if they offer a credit card that has some form of reward program. Many of them have similar programs to those airline credit cards that allow you to choose the particular reward you want to earn.

As with any credit card you need to take a look at the whole package and decide whether a particular airline's credit card program is really a good deal. You need to look at the rate of reward versus the interest rate they charge. You should also look to see if you can convert your rewards to other things besides miles such as cash back or hotel discounts. Make sure that you are getting the very best credit card deal you can before you sign the contract so that you will be happy with your choice.