Frequent fliers are finding many U.S. airlines cutting back on the value of programs that awarded them for miles logged in the air, industry observers said.

"Elite-level fliers are presumably better customers than non-elite fliers, though it often doesn't seem like the airline takes that into account," frequent flier Bob Beilstein of North Syracuse, N.Y., told USA Today.

Cuts into flier award programs include US Airways ending bonus miles for many customers and fuel surcharges and ticket redemption fees added at Delta Airlines. Continental Airlines said it would reducing the number of miles it awards on many flights.

Frontier Airlines in Denver said it would soon stop awarding a minimum of 250 miles on most short routes, cutting back to the number of miles awarded.

The airlines are reacting to fuel cost increases, the newspaper reported.

"We have to be careful to walk the line between the value we provide to our customers and the impact to our business," company spokesman Steve Snyder told USA Today.