DutchBoeing
Jun 5, 12, 4:12 pm
Hi all,
Warning for everybody who collects Flying Blue miles: over night (last night!) KLM (probably AF too, but I always book through KLM) devaluated the FB-miles with 50% without warning!!! You now need 50% extra miles for an award within Europe (at least in Business Class). I contacted KLM today and they confirmed. I.e. a business class ticket from AMS to the Balkans / Greece used to be 60.000 miles (well, actually, it used to be 50.000 a few years back. Airlines seem to think miles need an inflation correction...;)). Now you need a shocking 90.000!!! miles. The strange thing is that a business class ticket to i.e. Dubai costs now 80.000 miles and to Belgrade or Athens 90.000! I wouldn't be surprised if they will change the amounts needed for ICA-flights soon too.
Another bad point: they also cancelled the promo awards (50% discount on miles) for Europe!
There is one positive point though: you now no longer have to pay the fuel surcharge and that does save a few tens of euro's. However, if you'd give me the option, I'd rather spend E 50 or 70 extra on a ticket, then pay a whopping 30.000 miles for that!!! If you buy miles, you need E 53 per 2.000 miles, so 30.000 miles is a gross exaggeration.
I am very shocked and appaled, esp. since they didn't warn about this upcoming change at all, but sneakily did it over night, so nobody had time to use the miles anymore. Very bad customer service I think. Wasn't there a law suit about something like this recently? Wasn't an airline ordered to give a decent advance notice about huge changes like this? I believe it was LH or CX. Or even KL with a recent change to FB. I can remember that a business man sued them and settled out of court.
KLM should make it an option: people should be able to choose if they want to pay the fuel surcharge with miles or money.
So everybody who has FB-miles, complain to AF/KL and spent your miles as soon as you can!!!
Regards,
DB
Warning for everybody who collects Flying Blue miles: over night (last night!) KLM (probably AF too, but I always book through KLM) devaluated the FB-miles with 50% without warning!!! You now need 50% extra miles for an award within Europe (at least in Business Class). I contacted KLM today and they confirmed. I.e. a business class ticket from AMS to the Balkans / Greece used to be 60.000 miles (well, actually, it used to be 50.000 a few years back. Airlines seem to think miles need an inflation correction...;)). Now you need a shocking 90.000!!! miles. The strange thing is that a business class ticket to i.e. Dubai costs now 80.000 miles and to Belgrade or Athens 90.000! I wouldn't be surprised if they will change the amounts needed for ICA-flights soon too.
Another bad point: they also cancelled the promo awards (50% discount on miles) for Europe!
There is one positive point though: you now no longer have to pay the fuel surcharge and that does save a few tens of euro's. However, if you'd give me the option, I'd rather spend E 50 or 70 extra on a ticket, then pay a whopping 30.000 miles for that!!! If you buy miles, you need E 53 per 2.000 miles, so 30.000 miles is a gross exaggeration.
I am very shocked and appaled, esp. since they didn't warn about this upcoming change at all, but sneakily did it over night, so nobody had time to use the miles anymore. Very bad customer service I think. Wasn't there a law suit about something like this recently? Wasn't an airline ordered to give a decent advance notice about huge changes like this? I believe it was LH or CX. Or even KL with a recent change to FB. I can remember that a business man sued them and settled out of court.
KLM should make it an option: people should be able to choose if they want to pay the fuel surcharge with miles or money.
So everybody who has FB-miles, complain to AF/KL and spent your miles as soon as you can!!!
Regards,
DB