The distance between two cities is measured "as the crow flies" rather than in highway miles. You can easily determine the amount of air miles between two cities using air mileage calculators or via an airline's website. For those concerned with frequent flyer miles, it is best to consult the airline, as it often offers bonus mileage or minimum mileage for very short flights.
If you simply choose to use a mileage calculator to find the air miles between two cities, you can use WebFlyer.com to enter airport codes from your itinerary into the calculator, which will be more precise than entering cities. This will determine the distance you'll be flying. If you have more than one stop on your itinerary, use a calculator, such as that on MileCalc.com, that lets you enter multiple airport codes.
If you choose to get the exact mileage from your airline, you can simply access the airline's website. If you haven't booked a flight, your search will usually provide you with itinerary options along with the air miles that the airline will credit you. If you've already booked your flight, your itinerary will generally list the amount of miles you'll be flying.
Check the airline website's frequent-flyer section for air mile rules. For instance, many airlines award a minimum amount of miles for a very short flight, and bonus miles for flights based on your seat class or other promotions that may be in force.
If you want to earn frequent-flyer rewards, keep track of your frequent-flyer miles on your airline and the deals available for redemption. Note that most frequent-flyer miles have an expiration date, so it is imperative to check your statement on a regular basis. When redeeming miles, you will have many more options if you book free flights or upgrades as far in advance as possible. You may also redeem miles for things like hotel rooms, rental cars, vacation packages, and even magazine subscriptions if you do not want to cash them in for free flights. See the "USA Today" website for applications you can download to help you keep track of your miles and redemption possibilities.
