Q. I am sure you have heard from many flyers in my situation. I have qualifying miles on both United and Continental. It would be extremely helpful if we knew before the end of the year if we can combine these miles to qualify for 1-K. I realize it is too soon to know the answer. However, it is a major concern that my Continental miles are not wasted.

A. We took this one straight to our pal, miles expert and founder of FrequentFlier.com, Tim Winship, who had this to say on the matter: "Ultimately, the CO and UA programs will be merged, will all your miles consolidated into a single account. And elite-qualifying miles from both programs will certainly be combinable to qualify for status in the new program.

What we don't know is the time frame. The program consolidation may or may not be completed before the end of the year.

In either case, your CO miles will not be wasted."