Air New Zealand Air Points - Clarification of Airpoints Upgrades

Can members please check that these statements are correct ?

Pax whom have requested upgrades are welcome to priority check in [and receive “priority” luggage handling]. Pax receive the luggage allowance for their originally ticketed cabin.

If your upgrade request isn’t confirmed until arrival at the departure gate you don’t receive lounge access unless you hold the applicable status.

Gold Airpoints members may not gift their complimentary upgrades to anyone [not even in the same household].

Prior confirmation of standby upgrades for Gold Elite and Gold members is subject to limited booking class availability being present within the cabin sought at the time the upgrade request is considered. Can anyone elaborate on this part ?

Are you asking whether there's a limited number of confirmed in advance upgrades on any NZ flight?

My guess would be yes.

Are you asking whether there's a limited number of confirmed in advance upgrades on any NZ flight?

My guess would be yes.

What I'm asking is how do they decide whether to confirm pax’s upgrades in advance ?

The rest of this is correct however ?

Can members please check that these statements are correct ?

Pax whom have requested upgrades are welcome to priority check in [and receive “priority” luggage handling]. Pax receive the luggage allowance for their originally ticketed cabin.

I'm not sure, but I thought that you got the luggage allowance of the upgraded class. There was a recent thread on this, so others are likely to have a defineite answer. The issue hasn't arisen in my experiences of an upgrade as I have only ever had one bag.

If your upgrade request isn’t confirmed until arrival at the departure gate you don’t receive lounge access unless you hold the applicable status

I think this is wrong - it is certainly wrong in my experience, although that may just be an example of good service by the lounge staff. In my experience lounge access has been available even while waiting for an upgrade to clear, with lounge staff welcoming me in and offering to let me know when/if the upgrade cleared.


Gold Airpoints members may not gift their complimentary upgrades to anyone [not even in the same household].

Sadly, I think this is correct.


Prior confirmation of standby upgrades for Gold Elite and Gold members is subject to limited booking class availability being present within the cabin sought at the time the upgrade request is considered. Can anyone elaborate on this part ?

I'm not sure. I think the number of seats must be controlled, so maybe *GE members get the confirmation only if there are free reward seats available - this would surprise me, but as a lowly *G how would i know (lol). The load factor may also come in to play at the 48 hour point (when *G upgrades clear), although my recent upgarde did clear at that point. Sadly I missed the flight so I have no idea what the load ultimately was.

I'm not sure, but I thought that you got the luggage allowance of the upgraded class. There was a recent thread on this, so others are likely to have a defineite answer. The issue hasn't arisen in my experiences of an upgrade as I have only ever had one bag.

I'm quite sure that you get the luggage allowance of your ticketed class.

If pax have waitlisted upgrades say departing from CHC and have a connection with stopover departing a day earlier from say AKL are the pax entitled to priority check in at AKL ?

My experience of the above has been;

1. Priority check in - never heard of this being an issue

2. Baggage - ticketed class, but if upgrade cleared before checkin then you can often get away with more. But as a jade member not sure how you would check this and as a *G or *S you get more luggage anyway.

3. lounge access - correct you should not have lounge access at a Koru Club, but again have never heard of this being an issue (except LAX - but that is another thread). Probably is also a problem where NZ uses another lounge (e.g. SATS lounge at SIN) but I imagine that yu could say you were waitlisted for C and they could probably see comething in the system to that effect (i.e. conveniently leaving up the upgrade part).

4. Cannot be gifted - except NZ*E - v. annoying rule.

5. Prior confirmation. As an NZ*E I am fairly sure that the 'upgrade team' as they call them take seats straight out of inventory. I have even had a seat confirmed on a flight that was C0 D0 Z0. Not sure about other levels as they are run at 48 and 24 hours and in order of status so if there are seats free they will get them and the chance of NZ selling say 10 seats at 48 hours notice is rare.

Generally speaking, the system works extremely well, and especially well for those with status and who make sure the flight is a sensible one to try and upgrade on. Of course for a jade member in Xmas time or northern hemisphere summer time trying to upgrade NZ1/2 that is another story.

Mark

I was at the premium check-in desk the other day and a pax approached the counter next to me. He had requested an upgrade and asked (something I don't think I would have done) whether he could check in there or had to go to the regular counter. The woman at the desk asked him whether his upgrade had cleared. He said he didn't know. Without offering to at least check this for him, she told him to go to the regular counter (which was a bit of a zoo).

BTW, it was very quiet in the premium area at that time.

slightly OT; I see that VS is a partner airline of NZ. Does this mean I could earn VS FF points, and then use them on NZ? ( I believe the booking would have to be done through VS).

VS is definitely a partner of NZ (ie can earn and burn on VS through Airpoints). I believe NZ is similarly a partner of VS. You may want to post to the Virgin forum to get a sure answer.

I was at the premium check-in desk the other day and a pax approached the counter next to me. He had requested an upgrade and asked (something I don't think I would have done) whether he could check in there or had to go to the regular counter. The woman at the desk asked him whether his upgrade had cleared. He said he didn't know. Without offering to at least check this for him, she told him to go to the regular counter (which was a bit of a zoo).

I flew AKL SYD on Friday afternoon in January hoping to use my comp upgrade. I went to the premium check in area and the nice agent gave me lounge access even though chances of a ug were unlikely. Alas it never came thru!

I flew AKL SYD on Friday afternoon in January hoping to use my comp upgrade. I went to the premium check in area and the nice agent gave me lounge access even though chances of a ug were unlikely.

^ ^

5. Prior confirmation. As an NZ*E I am fairly sure that the 'upgrade team' as they call them take seats straight out of inventory. I have even had a seat confirmed on a flight that was C0 D0 Z0. Not sure about other levels as they are run at 48 and 24 hours and in order of status so if there are seats free they will get them and the chance of NZ selling say 10 seats at 48 hours notice is rare.

Mark[/QUOTE]

Quote from Upgrades centre...

Confirmation of the Upgrade is subject to the seat availability. We have looked at your request and at this stage there is no Upgrades Availability on the flights. We do continue checking the Upgrade request for you.

There is still C availability.....so clearly the practise (if not the policy) on LHR-AKL has changed given demand.

Same also for me on NZ-US flights.

Some of this thread is a bit old due to the change now that Gold level can gift to two people not living at the same address but here is something that just happened.

I had 2 NZ*E complimentary upgrades that were going to expire at the end of Feb. As is my NZ*E. I booked a flight at Xmas to use up the vouchers. So even though they expiry this month - the flights are not for another 11 months away.

We are travelling as a party of 4. I used the upgrades for my son and Wife, my points for me and my daughters points for her.

Air NZ wrote to me and said did we want to hold off for all 4 people until 72 hours before the flight and I said no - happy to travel as two groups. So they split the booking into two and confirmed me and my son into Business and will look at the other 2 at 72 hours out. Even though the comp upgrade was used for my wife, they didn't look at the instrument they just upgraded 2 out of the 4.

Really wanted her to travel in Business as it will be great for her to try it.

The reason why I did it this way is that if the upgrade doesn't happen, the points will go back into my account. But as the comp. Upgrades are now over a year old they will just vanish. Should I complain or the likelihood of 2 business class seats being available on NZ124 (the jumbo between MEL and AKL on the Thursday before xmas) should be okay.

And yes, I am in PE, so it is a one class upgrade not from Economy to Business.

Now I am confused about why all the upgrade requests didn't clear. I am not sure if this has changed recently, but under the rules. for standby upgrades it has. As a Gold Elite in their last month, the rules should still have applied.

For Gold Elite members, standby upgrades may be confirmed once their booking has been ticketed. These are considered within 48 hours of the request being made.

I have read the rules in the past and I am sure it didn't say Gold Elite would get confirmed straight away for anything but the complimentary upgrades.

Something I need to follow up on.

The key word is may. Unless the load is light you just waitlist.

Some of this thread is a bit old due to the change now that Gold level can gift to two people not living at the same address but here is something that just happenedWell not really, due to Gold level members still not being able to gift their complimentary upgrades (even to their own spouse while travelling with them !), a negative loyalty policy IMO.

Reading the fine print, it seems that the complimentary upgrade for Silver members cannot be used for upgrades from PE to Business on long haul flights, only short haul :confused:

Reading the fine print, it seems that the complimentary upgrade for Silver members cannot be used for upgrades from PE to Business on long haul flights, only short haul :confused:Spot on - basically meaning your Silver voucher is effectively worth 200 airbucks now.

Spot on - basically meaning your Silver voucher is effectively worth 200 airbucks now.

That's assuming you can actually use it. Once again I'm facing the prospect of vouchers expiring :(

Well I managed to use my complimentary upgrade SIN-AKL last December after the local Air NZ office shifted my to a flight a day earlier. On Monday, I managed to score an AP standby upgrade on NZ 81 inspite of the flight showing C0 D0 Z0. (The new business seat/bed is great!) But now I am wondering what I could use that Silver complimentary upgrade for because I plan on booking PE for most of my SIN-AKL-SIN flights and it looks like only points can be used for long-haul upgrades PE to C. What is the situation like with AKL-PER-AKL?

On another note, I have recently flown on OKA, OKD (the newest B777!) and OJA, OJD, and OJE (my first time on the airbuses). On a recent flight from CHC to AKL which happened to be operated by an A320, Air NZ has kindly allocated me a seat in the business zone without any prompting on my part! ^

Well not really, due to Gold level members still not being able to gift their complimentary upgrades (even to their own spouse while travelling with them !), a negative loyalty policy IMO.

Yes - I had made the assumption that as Gold level we could give points to non family members, we could also give the complimentary upgrades as well. Thanks to your note - I looked into it and have just found out that I can't. And because Air NZ upgraded me on the leg to AKL at Christmas rather than the person I asked them to, I will have a voucher that is likely to expire at the end of the year. (I could have used my vouchers in both directions).

My plan was to buy BC for myself, and use my vouchers for two other members in the party (and points for a Fouth). But now it will be use voucher for myself, points for one child and wave to wife and other child back in PE!

:-)

It was cheaper to go Emirites Business than Air NZ PE - but we chose Air NZ as at least we would get Airpoints and I knew that I had the Upgrade vouchers. If I had realised then what I know now (Bang Head) maybe I would have chosen something else.