Million miler programs are a bit mysterious. Some airlines reward their frequent flyers with lifetime status after accumulating one million miles.

United offers Premier Executive (mid-tier) elite status after one million flown miles. Delta offers Silver elite after one million flown miles, Gold elite after two million flown miles, and Platinum Elite after four million flown miles.

American offers lifetime Gold status after one million miles accumulated in a frequent flyer account from any source, and lifetime Platinum (mid-tier) elite status after two million miles accumulated in a frequent flyer account from any source. (Though I understand they are reconsidering this and may switch over to flown miles only – but that’s just a rumor.)

In addition to lifetime status, there’s usually a few upgrade certificates to mark the milestone.

The reason the programs are mysterious is that they’re generally ‘unpublished’ and rarely discussed. Programs believe they can change their criteria or terminate the program for new members at any time.

I just learned that this perk is offered by Phillipine Airlines, of all carriers: lifetime elite status after one million flown miles. Twenty-seven have achieved the milestone so far.