Air New Zealand Air Points - *A 5th birthday / 55,555 mile promotion

When is Air New Zealand / AirPoints going to announce its version of the Star Alliance 5th Birthday promotion?

This is from the Star Alliance website (http://www.star-pr.com/aweb/n.asp?ID=aaaaaaaaaaaaabm):
STAR ALLIANCE 5TH ANNIVERSARY OFFER: Fly 5 airlines and earn up to 55,555 bonus miles

Star Alliance (tm), the airline network for Earth, will be offering its customers a fitting „birthday present“ as the global airline grouping celebrates its fifth anniversary in May. Customers belonging to a Star Alliance airline loyalty program will earn up to 55,555 bonus miles by flying five different Star Alliance carriers over a given time period.

„We feel it is appropriate to say thank you to our loyal customers who have supported Star Alliance for the past five years,“ said Louise McKenven, Vice President, Marketing of the alliance. „The anniversary mileage bonus easily qualifies for an award ticket in any Star Alliance airline loyalty program.“

The fifth anniversary offer is not, however, exclusive for customers who already are members of a Star Alliance carrier’s frequent flyer program. Anyone wishing to participate needs only join a Star Alliance airline loyalty program of his or her choice.

The promotion period for the Star Alliance fifth anniversary offer may vary with each airline’s frequent flyer program. However, several of the carriers plan to run it for 55 days from May 14 – the day Star Alliance was founded five years ago - until July 7. The exact terms and conditions will be communicated by each member airline through newsletters, web sites and inflight magazines.

Star Alliance is the first truly global airline alliance, and is consistently being rated as the world’s most successful undertaking of its kind. The Star Alliance route network currently serves some 730 airports in 124 countries with 11,000 daily flights. This corresponds to a Star Alliance aircraft taking off or landing somewhere in the world every four seconds.

The Star Alliance member airlines are Air Canada, Air New Zealand, All Nippon Airways – ANA, Austrian Airlines, bmi british midland, Lauda Air, Lufthansa German Airlines, Mexicana Airlines, SAS Scandinavian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways International, Tyrolean Airways, United Airlines and VARIG Brazilian Airlines.

This promo has given me some seriously good ideas. I have my LH, SQ accounts to play with, and my next rtw is booked in J. Now I could score 55,555 on both SQ and LH but even better would be to do it with AZ and SQ. Then 55,555 is more than enough to upgrade my LAX-AKL flight. Just that stupid rule about UK members joining - hold on whats this.

Computer Associates (NZ) Limited
Level 8
67 - 69 Symonds Street
P O Box 5668 - Wellesley Street
Auckland, N.Z

Looks like I have an adress afterall http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

Well done getting that New Zealand address http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif. Just a reminder to anyone else in the UK who wants to join Airpoints, membership is free but you have to provide a business class or first class ticket and boarding pass, which needn't be as expensive as it sounds - on some economy fares you can upgrade one segment to business class for a surcharge, and this should count for membership (that's how I originally joined airpoints), or if you're travelling around the South Pacific, buy one of the segments seperately in business (e.g. Rarotonga to Papeete). It's obviously only worth it if you plan to fly AirNZ alot, but if so then it's really really worth it. And I've just noticed that this post has nothing to do with the topic, sorry for ranting on http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

Cheers, Zac

Or ............ go to the Air NZ Australia website, and join for FREE if you simply supply an Australian mailing address. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

For what it's worth, I've just got off the phone to AirPoints (had to call about something else, so snuck in a question about this promotion) and the very efficient, informed woman I spoke to said that Air New Zealand will definitely be participating, but that the promotion period won't be until around June/July, and that details will be released closer to the time. Sounds like AirNZ are going to go their own way on this one...

Can AIRNZBOY give us the inside scoop here please on dates and rules?

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by mad_atta:
Air New Zealand will definitely be participating, but that the promotion period won't be until around June/July, and that details will be released closer to the time. </font>

It's already nearly May. What are they going to do? Wait until flights aren't available before announcing the details?

May 6 and no announcement at all? If it starts May 14 they have got to be kidding? http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

Air NZ finally posted their rules and it's not good:

Its Star Alliance's 5th birthday, so we're making 5 the lucky number for Air Points members over the next few months. Fly First or Business Class with 5 or more different Star Alliance airlines in 55 days and you'll receive an additional 55,555 Air Points! This offer is valid for all sectors flown from 14 June to 7 August 2002 inclusive.

· To qualify for this special Star Alliance birthday present, you must be an existing Air New Zealand Air Points Member as at 14 June 2002.
· Please note that Air Points Members are only eligible for one award of 55,555 Air Points regardless of how many sectors are flown during this promotion. Your Air Points will be added to your account four - six weeks after 7 August 2002
· In the case of codeshare flights, the sector is eligible for this promotion when the operating airline is a Star Alliance member. The operating airline is the one which will be counted towards the 5 different airlines.
· Only sectors travelled in First or Business class are eligible for this promotion, and must be ticketed passengers. Upgrades and Award (redemption) flights are not eligible.

http://www.airnz.co.nz/travel/frequentflyers/index.jsp

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

Well, at least it seems that the sectors can be domestic, but still. I think I'll be sitting this one out http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

Cheers, Zac

Wadste of time for us that one. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

This is a neat twist as well that I do not *think* any other Star partner has announced:

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">· To qualify for this special Star Alliance birthday present, you must be an existing Air New Zealand Air Points Member as at 14 June 2002.</font>


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~ Glen ~

This really is a particularly mean-spirited version of the birthday promo - even stingy ol' UA with its limited fare codes and 'intercontinental roundtrip' requirements looks generous by comparison. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

Who, I wonder, 'pays' for the bonus points handed out in these sort of promotion? (And yes, I know that ultimately I, the customer, pay in the form of marketing budgets built into the fare cost.) If I fly, say, TG/UA/NG/LH/SQ in business but credit the miles to AirPoints, is it NZ who stumps up with the 55K bonus? Or does each carrier flown contribute? Or would it come out of some central *A slush fund?

Charming http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

Is there any way to do this cheaply, or should I forget it & try for the United alternative?

Or is there another * member FF programme that offers a better deal?

Or should I just forget it, and go buy a heap of Inside Flyer subs? http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/tongue.gif

justakiwi

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by justakiwi:

Or is there another * member FF programme that offers a better deal?

justakiwi</font>

I'm doing it with Lufthansa as they have no restrictions and their FT/*Silver status is easy to achieve from NZ.