Executive Travel

* Name: William Abowd, AlarmNet, Marina del Rey

* Position: Regional sales director

Almost all frequent fliers know the value of accumulating frequent-flier mileage points. We know you can earn miles by flying on a particular airline, but there are many other ways to watch your mileage statements grow.

One is by using credit cards. I charge everything I can on my airline-affiliated credit cards. That includes business expenses. I always use personal credit cards rather than company-issued cards on business outings, simply to obtain the miles.

Many distributors accept credit cards, and I have seen people earn several hundred thousand miles a year by charging company expenses on the card. However, some card providers and airlines now limit the number of miles that can be earned with them.

You can also earn miles with the phone. I spend about $1,000 a month on long-distance calls that earn five miles for every dollar spent. That comes to 5,000 frequent-flier miles a month. If you travel frequently on a particular airline, you can quickly reach “premium” status and accumulate credits more quickly. For example, I flew 60,000 miles in one year on Delta and reached the Royal Medallion level. Now my miles are credited at 1 1/2 times the rate of other fliers. The miles really add up fast.

By using the same airline (and rental car companies and hotels), I accumulate frequent-user program benefits fast. You too will be traveling for free!

I apologize to my travel agent.