American Express has announced that as of Sept. 30, 2011, members of American Express Membership Rewards will no longer be able to redeem their Membership Rewards points for frequent flyer miles in the Continental OnePass program. This is not surprising considering that Continental’s merger partner, United Airlines, does not have a relationship with Membership Rewards. Cardmembers will have a full year to transfer their AMEX points to OnePass.

Along with this announcement, American Express announced other changes for cardmembers to take effect on Dec. 1, 2010. Among these changes is a $200 credit given to cardmembers each year that can be applied toward incidental airline fees such as checked bags, in-flight meals, airport lounge day passes and flight change fees charged to the cardmember’s enrolled card.

Another new benefit as of Dec. 1 will be a 20 percent rebate of points when members use Membership Rewards Pay with Points to pay for part or all of their travel including airlines, hotels, cruises and vacation packages. For example, if a cardmember redeems 30,000 points to pay for an airline ticket, American Express will credit 6,000 points to the Membership Rewards cardmember’s account.

Along with Membership Rewards members losing the ability to exchange their points for Continental OnePass miles, those who are Platinum and Centurion cardmembers will no longer gain access as a cardmember to Continental Airlines President’s Club airport lounges when traveling on Continental Airlines. Visit http://insideflyerus.wpengine.com/link/?2985