The Upgrade Brief — Monday, September 28, 2026

Monday, September 28, 2026

Chase just doubled the price of an airline card and handed out the status it used to make you earn — and behind it two transfer bonuses are running down their clocks while a headline offer refuses to match its own fine print.

1. Chase doubled the Aeroplan card's fee to $195 — and threw in automatic 25K status plus its best-ever offer

WHAT HAPPENED — Chase refreshed the Air Canada Aeroplan Card on September 11. The annual fee goes from $95 to $195, and in exchange every cardholder now gets automatic Aeroplan 25K Status on approval — a tier that previously took $15,000 of annual spend to hold. The welcome offer is the richest this card has ever carried: 75,000 points after $4,000 in the first 3 months, plus 40,000 more after $20,000 in the first 12. Existing cardholders keep both the old and new benefit sets through December 31, 2026.

WHY IT MATTERS — 25K status is real status, not a consolation prize: Zone 2 boarding, priority check-in, extra baggage, Star Alliance recognition across the whole alliance, and eUpgrade credits. Handing it out at $195 is Chase buying loyalty at the exact moment Amex and Citi are making their own cards harder to qualify for. Quietly, though, the 10% bonus on Ultimate Rewards transfers to Aeroplan is gone — a nerf that landed in the same announcement.

YOUR MOVE — If you fly Star Alliance even occasionally, this is the cheapest automatic mid-tier status in the U.S. market and the 75,000-point tier at $4,000 is very reachable. Skip the $20,000 chase unless that spend was happening anyway. If you hold the old card and don't fly Air Canada or Star Alliance, use the grace period through December to decide whether $195 is worth it, then downgrade rather than cancel. Note the grocery and dining rate stays at 3X only through December 31, 2026, dropping to 2X after.

Offer ends: Not published · Verified: September 28, 2026 · Source: https://creditcards.chase.com/travel-credit-cards/aircanada/aeroplan

2. American's new Starlux codeshare starts earning miles Wednesday — redemption is still a promise

WHAT HAPPENED — American Airlines and STARLUX launched a codeshare on September 24 covering Los Angeles, Ontario, San Francisco and Seattle to Taipei, with Phoenix–Taipei pending regulatory approval. Bookings are open now for travel beginning September 30. American's release is explicit that "AAdvantage members can earn miles and Loyalty Points when booking an American codeshare flight operated by STARLUX," and that the two carriers "will work together on future opportunities including mileage redemption."

WHY IT MATTERS — Loyalty Points are the currency that drives AAdvantage status, so a new trans-Pacific earning route matters more than a typical codeshare. Starlux flies one of the better business-class products in Asia, and this is the structural step that usually precedes award redemption access. It also gives American a Taipei answer to United's and Delta's Asia networks.

YOUR MOVE — Nothing to book on miles yet — redemption isn't live and American hasn't committed to a date. If you were already flying to Taipei, book the AA-coded Starlux flight to earn miles and Loyalty Points you'd otherwise forfeit. Don't reroute a trip for it, and don't stockpile AAdvantage miles expecting Starlux business-class awards; that access is announced as an intention, not a product.

Offer ends: N/A · Verified: September 28, 2026 · Source: https://news.aa.com/news/news-details/2026/American-Airlines-and-STARLUX-Airlines-launch-codeshare-partnership-to-expand-trans-Pacific-flight-options-NET-ALP-09/default.aspx

3. Chase is running a 70% bonus to Marriott Bonvoy — the biggest it has ever offered

WHAT HAPPENED — Chase Ultimate Rewards transfers to Marriott Bonvoy are earning a 70% bonus through October 15, turning 1,000 Ultimate Rewards into 1,700 Bonvoy points off a 1:1 base. AwardWallet's transfer-bonus history puts this at the top of more than a dozen Chase–Marriott promotions run since early 2021.

WHY IT MATTERS — At roughly 0.9¢ per Bonvoy point, 70% gets you to about 1.5¢ per Ultimate Rewards point — real value, but still below what Hyatt or a decent airline partner returns.

YOUR MOVE — Use this to top off for a specific expensive Bonvoy booking you've already priced, especially a Ritz-Carlton or St. Regis where cash rates are absurd. Don't convert a general-purpose Ultimate Rewards balance into Bonvoy on spec — Marriott devalues by stealth and sells points at around 0.9¢ several times a year, so you're not gaining much over just buying them. Verification note: Chase's transfer-bonus terms live behind cardmember login; the 70% rate and October 15 end date are consistent across AwardWallet, Frequent Miler, Upgraded Points, InsideFlyer and The Points Guy.

Offer ends: October 15, 2026, 11:59pm ET · Verified: September 28, 2026 · Source: https://awardwallet.com/news/chase-ultimate-rewards/marriott-transfer-bonus/

4. Citi added Japan Airlines at 1:1 — with a 30% launch bonus attached

WHAT HAPPENED — As of September 20, JAL Mileage Bank is a Citi ThankYou transfer partner at 1:1 for annual-fee cards (Strata Premier, Strata Elite) and 1:0.7 for the no-fee Citi Strata. A 30% launch bonus runs through October 24, so 1,000 ThankYou points becomes 1,300 JAL miles on a fee-paying card, or 910 on a no-fee card.

WHY IT MATTERS — JAL was previously an Amex-only relationship in the U.S., and JAL miles are one of the cheapest ways into premium cabins on Japan Airlines and partners like Emirates and Qatar. Citi's transferable-points stack just got materially more interesting, and this pressures Amex's exclusivity.

YOUR MOVE — Worth acting on only if you can use it: JAL restricts award redemptions to yourself and family members related by blood or marriage, which kills the friends-and-partners bookings people assume. If you're booking for family and have a JAL route in mind, transfer during the bonus window. Otherwise sit tight — a new partner usually sees repeat bonuses.

Offer ends: October 24, 2026 · Verified: September 28, 2026 · Source: https://upgradedpoints.com/news/citi-japan-airlines-transfer-partner/

5. An 85,000-point Alaska/Atmos business card offer is circulating — but the terms don't match Bank of America's own page

WHAT HAPPENED — An elevated welcome offer on the Atmos Alaska Airlines Business Card surfaced this weekend at 85,000 Atmos Rewards points plus a $99 companion fare, accessible through a dedicated application link rather than Bank of America's standard page. Bank of America's own public product page currently advertises 70,000 bonus points after $4,000 in purchases in the first 90 days, with a $70 company fee plus $25 per card.

WHY IT MATTERS — 85,000 points is a strong number on a business card at this fee level, and Alaska's award chart plus the companion fare still make Atmos one of the better airline currencies. But the reported spend requirement varies by source — $5,000 in one account, $5,500 in three months in another — and neither figure appears on a Bank of America page we could reach.

YOUR MOVE — If you want the card, open the elevated link and read the offer terms on the application page itself before you submit; don't budget your spend around a blog's number. If the terms come back at $5,500 in 90 days and that's a stretch, the public 70,000-point offer at $4,000 is the safer buy.

Offer ends: Not published · Verified: September 28, 2026 (public offer only; 85K terms unverified) · Source: https://business.bankofamerica.com/en/credit-cards/atmos-rewards

Bottom line

Best opportunity: The refreshed Aeroplan card. 75,000 points at $4,000 of spend plus automatic 25K status is the strongest this card has ever been, and $195 for real Star Alliance recognition is underpriced.

Biggest risk: Moving points on a headline number you haven't read the fine print on. JAL's family-only redemption rule and the unverified spend terms on that 85K Atmos link will both cost you more than the bonus was worth.