British Midland is offering 5,000 miles for new account signups prior to November 2nd. It’s also supposed to come with ‘Blue Plus’ status.

If you don’t have a bmi account, this is the perfect time to sign up. It’s my favorite frequent flyer program at the moment, though if the program is eventually swallowed up by Lufthansa its special benefits could well go away.

• This is the account where I credit my short flights, now that United and US Airways give only actual miles flown rather than 500 miles minimum (bmi gives 600).
• bmi is the best place in my view to credit Hertz rentals and Hilton double dip miles.
• Gold members who have requalified for their status earn 625% mileage on paid first class travel.
• bmi offers one-way awards and a cash and points award chart that really leverages the value of miles, especially for premium cabin international travel.