Our Verdict

Our Verdict

The AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®* is targeted toward those who fly American Airlines but not often enough to earn status. The card offers benefits when flying American Airlines, such as a free checked bag on domestic American Airlines flights, preferred boarding and 25% savings on inflight food and beverages when you pay with your card. The current welcome bonus could potentially cover two round-trip tickets within the continental U.S. and the annual fee is similar to other cards in this segment.

AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®
AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard® *
3.4
Our ratings take into account the card’s rewards, fees, rates along with the card’s category. All ratings are determined solely by our editorial team.
Welcome Bonus
50,000 miles
Annual Fee
$99
Regular APR
21.24%, 25.24%, or 29.99% variable
Credit Score
Excellent/Good

Pros

  • Easy to earn the generous welcome bonus
  • No foreign transaction fee
  • Annual companion certificate earned after spending $20,000 in a year with card renewal
  • Rich AA flight benefits

Cons

  • No bonused spending categories other than AA purchases
  • Depending on creditworthiness, APR can be very high

Highlights

  • Earn 50,000 AAdvantage bonus miles after your first purchase and paying the $99 annual fee in full, both within the first 90 days of account opening
  • Earn a companion certificate for one guest at $99 (plus taxes and fees) after spending $20,000 on purchases and your account remains open for 45 days after your anniversary date
  • Up to $25 back as statement credits on inflight Wi-Fi purchases on American Airlines operated flights every anniversary year
  • 25% discount as statement credits on food and beverage purchases when you use your card on American Airlines operated flights
  • Earn 2 miles for every dollar spent on eligible American Airlines purchases and 1 mile for every dollar spent on all other purchases
More Highlights
Credit Score ranges are based on FICO® credit scoring. This is just one scoring method and a credit card issuer may use another method when considering your application. These are provided as guidelines only and approval is not guaranteed.
Earn 50,000 bonus miles after your first purchase and paying the $99 annual fee in full, both within the first 90 days of account opening

Barclay AAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard Introduction

If you fly mostly on a single airline but not enough to earn frequent flyer status, having a co-branded credit card can give you access to many of the benefits that come with entry-level status in your airline’s frequent flyer program. The AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®* comes with flight benefits including preferred boarding, free checked luggage for you and up to four companions on the same reservation and a discount on in-flight purchases.

In addition the card offers earnings of 2 miles per dollar on eligible American Airlines purchases and 1 mile per dollar on all other purchases. The card features a number of travel insurance coverages, including trip cancellation and interruption insurance, baggage delay insurance and an auto collision damage waiver. Finally, the card grants the opportunity to earn a $99 companion certificate after spending $20,000 on purchases and renewing your card.

When American Airlines and U.S. Airways merged in 2013, it left many people in the credit card space wondering which bank would ultimately be the issuer of the American Airlines co-branded credit cards. At the time, American Airlines co-branded cards were issued by Citi and U.S. Airways co-branded cards were issued by Barclays. The answer ended up being both.

That competition is probably one of the factors driving this card’s generous welcome bonus: 50,000 bonus miles after your first purchase and paying the $99 annual fee in full, both within the first 90 days of account opening.

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Quick Facts

  • $99 annual fee
  • Very easy welcome offer requirements
  • Bonus miles earned on eligible American Airlines purchases
  • Zero fraud liability
  • No foreign transaction fee
  • Luggage benefit

Barclay AAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard Rewards

Earning Rewards

The Barclays AAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard earns 2 miles per dollar on eligible American Airlines purchases and 1 mile per dollar on all other purchases.

If you participate in Flight Cents, you can automatically round up your purchases to the next dollar and use those additional cents to purchase AAdvantage miles at a rate of 1 AAdvantage mile per 2 cents. This is normally not a good value.

Finally the Barclays AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®* offers a welcome bonus: 50,000 bonus miles after your first purchase and paying the $99 annual fee in full, both within the first 90 days of account opening.

Redeeming Rewards

When it comes time to redeem your AAdvantage miles, head over to American Airlines, sign into your account and search for a flight with the “Redeem Miles” option selected. Because American Airlines publishes its award chart, it is easy to estimate how many miles a particular flight might cost.

At just 15,000 miles round trip plus taxes and fees, a Main Cabin ticket can be booked within the contiguous 48 U.S. states and Canada. Fly to Mexico for just 5,000 more miles round trip.

The welcome bonus (plus taxes and fees) can be used to book a round-trip MileSAAver economy-class ticket to Europe from the U.S. Considering it takes one purchase and payment of the annual fee, it’s relatively straightforward to earn a ticket to Europe. If you want to travel in style, starting at 75,000 miles plus taxes and fees you can book a one-way business-class ticket to Europe.

American Airlines has made it easier in recent years to redeem AAdvantage miles toward flights on its partners, as it has added the ability to book awards on all of its Oneworld alliance partners and many of its non-alliance partners on its website. American’s partners include British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, Qantas, Qatar and more.

Rewards Potential

Forbes Advisor uses data from various government agencies to determine both baseline income and spending averages across various categories. The 70th percentile of wage earners bring in $118,438 annually and we base our sample household spending on that number.

The Barclays AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®* earns 2 miles per dollar on eligible American Airlines purchases and 1 mile per dollar on all other purchases. Based on Forbes Advisor’s estimate, our sample household spends $770 on flights during an average year, earning 1,540 miles assuming all flights are booked with American Airlines. This family’s remaining $38,567 in annual expenses that can be charged to credit cards would earn 38,567 miles, for a total of 40,107 miles earned annually in addition to the first year welcome bonus.

Read more: Best Credit Cards


0% Introductory Rates

The Barclays AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®* offers a 0% intro APR on eligible balance transfers for 15 billing cycles, followed by a regular APR of 21.24% - 29.99% variable APR on purchases and balance transfer. Balance transfer must be completed within 45 days of account opening and a balance transfer fee of either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater, applies.


Other Barclay AAdvantage Aviator Red Rewards World Elite Mastercard Benefits

  • Anniversary Companion Certificate. Awarded annually to credit cardholders who spend $20,000 on their card per year. This voucher acts like a “buy one get one” for $99 (plus taxes and fees).
  • First checked bag free. The first bag for the primary cardholder and up to four companions on the same itinerary is free on domestic American Airlines flights.
  • Preferred boarding. Enjoy earlier boarding for the primary cardholder and up to four companions booked on the same itinerary.
  • Inflight Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi purchased while on an American Airlines flight will receive a statement credit of up to $25 per year, keeping you connected in the air.
  • $0 fraud liability. Zero liability on transactions made on your card if it is lost or stolen.
  • Travel coverage. Includes various travel protections such as travel accident insurance, trip cancellation, baggage delay insurance and an auto rental collision damage waiver.

Fine Print

Interest Rates

  • Regular APR: 21.24%, 25.24%, or 29.99% variable
  • Purchase intro APR: N/A
  • Balance transfer intro APR: 0% Intro APR on eligible balance transfers for 15 billing cycles following each balance transfer that posts to your account within 45 days of account opening. After that, 21.24%, 25.24%, or 29.99% variable

Fees

  • Annual fee: $99
  • Balance transfer fee: Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater
  • Foreign purchase transaction fee: None

How the Barclays AAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard Mastercard Stacks Up

AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®* vs. Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®*

The Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®*, issued by American Airlines’ other credit card partner, Citibank, offers similar flight benefits including a free checked bag on domestic American Airlines flights, preferred boarding and a 25% statement credit on inflight purchases on American Airlines when you use your card. Cardholders who spend $20,000 or more during the year and renew their card earn a $125 AA Flight Discount. The card also carries an annual fee of $99, waived for the first 12 months.

The Citi card’s primary advantage is the ability to earn miles with additional bonus categories beyond just the purchase of American Airlines flights. Cardmembers earn 2 AAdvantage miles per dollar spent on eligible American Airlines purchases, restaurants and gas stations and 1 mile per dollar spent on all other purchases.

The card currently offers a welcome bonus: 75,000 AAdvantage bonus miles after spending $3,500 in purchases in the first 4 months of account opening.

AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®* vs. Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card

If Delta Air Lines has a larger footprint in your particular area, it could make sense to go for its co-branded card instead. Like the AAdvantage Aviator Red card, the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card (Terms apply, see rates & fees) offers benefits like a first checked bag free when flying with Delta and priority boarding. Cardholders can earn 2 miles per dollar on Delta purchases, at U.S. supermarkets and at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery in the U.S. and 1 mile per dollar on other eligible purchases.

The card also features an innovative benefit called TakeOff 15 which discounts award travel booked with miles by 15%. The benefit only applies to Delta flights. If you find yourself frequently booking award travel with Delta, this could be a valuable benefit.

The Delta SkyMiles Gold Card charges a $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $150. While it doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees, American Express doesn’t quite have the same global acceptance as Visa or Mastercard. This is something to keep in mind if international travel is frequently on your schedule.

The Delta SkyMiles Gold American Express card comes with a welcome bonus of 40,000 bonus miles after spending $2,000 in purchases in the first 6 months of card membership.

AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®* vs. United℠ Explorer Card

United also offers a mid-tier co-branded card for its flyers. The United℠ Explorer Card earns 2 miles per dollar on dining including eligible delivery services, hotel stays and United® purchases and 1 mile per dollar on all other eligible purchases. From a pure ability to earn bonus miles, this card covers many travel-related categories.

Similar to the other cards covered, benefits include priority boarding, a 25% inflight purchase discount and one free checked bag when you use your card to purchase your United flight. It also comes with a few additional perks. First, there is an up to $100 statement credit available for Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or NEXUS available every four years. This is useful for fast-tracking through security and in the case of Global Entry, at immigration, at many airports. Second, two, one-time United Club passes are awarded annually on your card anniversary. This gains access into United Clubs where complimentary beverages, snacks and free Wi-Fi are available.

The United Explorer card features a welcome bonus of 50,000 bonus miles after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months of account opening.


Compare AAdvantage Aviator Red Card With Other Cards

Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card
Partner OfferDelta SkyMiles® Gold American Express CardApply Now →
On American Express's Website
Welcome Bonus
Earn 40,000 Bonus Miles
Annual Fee
$0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $150
Credit Score
Good,Excellent
Regular APR
20.99%-29.99% Variable
Credit Score ranges are based on FICO® credit scoring. This is just one scoring method and a credit card issuer may use another method when considering your application. These are provided as guidelines only and approval is not guaranteed.
Earn 40,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $2,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
United℠ Explorer Card
On Chase Bank USA, NA's Website
Welcome Bonus
Earn 50,000 bonus miles
Annual Fee
$0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95
Credit Score
Good/Excellent
Regular APR
21.99% - 28.99% Variable
Credit Score ranges are based on FICO® credit scoring. This is just one scoring method and a credit card issuer may use another method when considering your application. These are provided as guidelines only and approval is not guaranteed.
Earn 50,000 bonus miles after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open.

Is the Barclays AAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard for You?

If you are an occasional flyer, but fly most often with one airline, a co-branded credit card makes sense, as you can quickly recoup what you pay for an annual fee with bonus miles and through benefits such as free checked baggage. The Barclays AAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard checks all of the boxes needed for a mid-tier airline credit card and can be a good option for the occasional American Airlines flyer.

Although the Barclays AAdvantage Aviator Red card’s welcome bonus is more generous than Citi’s offering, American Airlines flyers should seriously consider the Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® as it offers stronger mileage earnings at restaurants and at gas stations.

Even if you’re not a traveler, this card could still make sense with the promotional 0% introductory offer on balance transfers, though there may be a card with a better 0% APR offer for you.


Methodology

Forbes Advisor considers a variety of criteria when assigning credit cards a rating. Cards are graded based on numerous factors, including:

  • Annual fees
  • Welcome bonus offers
  • Ongoing earning rates
  • Value of individual points or miles
  • Included travel or merchant credits
  • Additional cardholder benefits

Card features we expect cardholders to use the most often are weighted more heavily in our ratings. Altogether, the factors come together to provide a star rating for each individual card.

To learn more about our rating and review methodology and editorial process, check out our guide on how Forbes Advisor rates credit cards.

To view rates and fees for Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card please visit this page.

*The information for the following card(s) has been collected independently by Forbes Advisor: AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®, Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.