From September 1, 2016, Qantas will be removing the Minimum Points Guarantee that it offers for flights on American Airlines. The change to remove the Minimum Points Guarantee matches the equivalent removal of the guarantee American Airlines is making for Qantas flights.
The announcement can be found on various pages around the Qantas website. For example, on the American Airlines partner page, the following note has been added:
Minimum Points Guarantee
For travel on and from 1 September 2016 Qantas Frequent Flyer members will no longer earn a Minimum Points Guarantee† on American Airlines flights booked with an AA flight number. From 1 September 2016 Qantas Points and Status Credits will be earned per segment based on where you fly and the fare you purchase on eligible flights. Members can still earn a Minimum Points Guarantee on American Airlines flights with a QF flight number.
The current Minimum Points Guarantee offers a minimum of 500 points on any American Airlines sector. As from September 1, these sectors will earn at the standard partner rates for the route flown. The following chart shows the earn rates for short haul intra USA sectors:
As can be seen, a base member on a very short flight could earn as little as 100 Qantas Points. This is a significant downgrade from the guaranteed 500 points that is currently on offer. While this is a bit of a downgrade, it does only affect the very short sectors that might be flown
In order to take advantage of the Minimum Points Guarantee, you would need to be on the Qantas codeshare. While this is possible when connecting to an international flight, standalone Qantas codeshare flights on American Airlines are not readily available.