Dec 9, 2013, 6:21 am

FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides

Last edit by: sabbasolo

Feel free to pitch in with edits for content, additional posts and threads to be linked in the wiki, or general clean up - but please be as accurate and clear as possible!

WELCOME TO THE FLYERTALK EL AL MATMID THREAD! THIS IS A COMMUNITY-MAINTAINED WIKI FOR FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT EL AL, MATMID, ELAL.COM, AND THE LY FT THREAD. PLEASE READ FIRST BEFORE POSTING!

This thread is FLAME-FREE! Please recognize newbies who are posting here as well, and respond accordingly!!

Help me understand FlyerTalk and EL AL Matmid Forum lingo!

Flying with EL AL?

Frequent flyer with EL AL?

Need to contact EL AL?

Want general information about EL AL?

EL AL Online:

Important Threads From the Matmid forum!

Flying EL AL, and want to guested into the King David Lounge? See TLV King David Lounge Get-togethers, started by yosithezet.
Want to know where there are King David Lounges or partner lounges around the world? See ELAL KD Lounges/Lounge Access across the world, started by sn1ke.
Want to know how to earn more Matmid points using your credit card? See Earning LY Matmid points with Israeli CCs, started by yosithezet.
Do LY have plans to add Premium Economy and overhaul the cabin? See LY Premium Eco and cabin overhaul?
Comparing Business Class on Lufthansa (LH) and EL AL: El Al or Lufthansa to TLV?
Want to know how to redeem Matmid points for an upgrade? How does one redeem for upgrade on LY?
Want more information on the AA/LY relationship? See American Airlines and LY / EL AL Israel Airlines Codeshares (consolidated) from the American AAdvantage forum
Travelling on a codeshare flight but LY metal and want to use your Matmid benefits? See Travelling with LY on an LX ticket - can I use my PL benefits?
What are the best seats on LY's 744? Seating advice: LY 744: row 34 or 21?
Beware! Flexible fare on EL AL may not be as flexible as you think! Total Economy vs Semi Flexible - what's the difference in flexibility?

Another FT thread: Traveling in Israel, for help navigating transportation in Israel

And from EL AL's website: Fly a Lot? EL AL Offers You a Ticket Pack
Upgrade to Premium Classes On-Board Your Flight!

Have a question? Do a SEARCH! Before posting a new thread, search first! There are 2 ways of searching FlyerTalk!

Inside the specific forum, click on "Search this Forum" for results from within the El Al Matmid forum. To search all of FlyerTalk, click on "Search" located above the forum.
By using Google. Duh! To search FT using Google, first type "site:www.flyertalk.com," and then a space, and then type what you want to search. (Leave out the quotation marks and comma!)

Searched? Can't find what you're looking for? Posting a new thread is simple. Try giving a descriptive title, and try not reviving really old threads! Note of caution: Posting in mega-threads (threads that may have been merged, or have posts from a wide range of years,) may not yield results.

The EL AL FAQ (Newbie Questions Welcome - Flame Free)

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Apr 29, 2013, 10:30 pm

#61

entropy

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Feb 2002

Location: San Francisco/Tel Aviv/YYZ

Programs: CO 1K-MM

Posts: 10,762

Anyone know what J class on LY metal earns on AA?

Dec 9, 2013, 6:31 am

#62

joshwex90

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Original Poster

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: HaMerkaz/Exit 145

Programs: UA, LY, BA, AA

Posts: 13,167

I have moved my entire OP into the newly created wiki. Feel free to update as needed!

I included some new threads relating to UP

Dec 9, 2013, 10:46 am

#63

yosithezet

Moderator, El Al and Marriott Bonvoy, FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Feb 2005

Location: SIN

Programs: SQ*G, Mar LTT, Hyatt Glb, AA LTG, LY, HH, IC, BA, DL, UA SLV

Posts: 12,018

Sure you need that bolder first part? The Wiki should be the clean area, no? If yes, we can remove Development from the title.

Dec 9, 2013, 1:59 pm

#64

joshwex90

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Original Poster

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: HaMerkaz/Exit 145

Programs: UA, LY, BA, AA

Posts: 13,167

Removed it - I literally copied and pasted from the OP and then added. It's been removed, and feel free to rename this without "Development"

We've come a long way!

Aug 3, 2014, 4:32 am

#65

joshwex90

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Original Poster

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: HaMerkaz/Exit 145

Programs: UA, LY, BA, AA

Posts: 13,167

As much as this remains somewhat dormant, I updated the wiki to reflect that this is a FLAME-FREE thread! Newbies may very well post here, and please ensure to respond in kind!

Aug 3, 2014, 5:55 am

#66

Nekamah7

Join Date: Jul 2009

Programs: All of 'em

Posts: 438

Is it easy to get them to waive the official $60 fee on award ticket changes? I'm being told that it is.

Aug 3, 2014, 6:14 am

#67

joshwex90

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Original Poster

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: HaMerkaz/Exit 145

Programs: UA, LY, BA, AA

Posts: 13,167

One thing I've seen with fees is they're more willing to waive when it comes to talking to PLs and TPLs, even if not for them. As in, I got them to waive a fee for me just by having my father-in-law call for me

Aug 3, 2014, 11:36 am

#68

Nekamah7

Join Date: Jul 2009

Programs: All of 'em

Posts: 438

Thx for the data point.
Would having an official TA call in help as well?

Aug 17, 2014, 5:06 am

#69

jonj

Join Date: Nov 2013

Posts: 11

If I am reading this correctly, if I fly from Seattle to TLV, book a flight via travel agent using El Al (code share flight on AA shows El Al flight number from TLV to JFK) would I have to pay bag fees for a second bag on the AA portion, even though I'm PL on El Al?

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshwex90

EL AL has standardized their luggage fees across all LY-operated flights.

All Non-Status Passengers, Including Matmid TLs and KDL Members

First Class - 3 pieces, each up to 32 kilo/70.4 pounds
Business/Platinum Class - 2 pieces, each up to 32 kilo/70.4 pounds
Economy/Tourist Class - 1 piece, up to 23 kilo/50.6 pounds (NOTE: Economy Class Plus/Tourist Class Plus has the same luggage limit - NO ADDITIONAL ALLOWANCE)

Silver (SL) Matmid Members

First Class - 3 pieces, each up to 32 kilo/70.4 pounds
Business/Platinum Class - 2 pieces, each up to 32 kilo/70.4 pounds
Economy/Tourist Class (Including Economy/Tourist Class Plus) - 2 pieces, each up to 23 kilo/50.6 pounds

Gold (GL)/Platinum (PL)/TOP Platinum (TPL)
First Class - 4 pieces, each up to 32 kilo/70.4 pounds
Business/Platinum Class - 3 pieces, each up to 32 kilo/70.4 pounds
Economy/Tourist Class (Including Economy/Tourist Class Plus) - 2 pieces, each up to 32 kilo/70.4 pounds

Aug 17, 2014, 5:47 am

#70

joshwex90

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Original Poster

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: HaMerkaz/Exit 145

Programs: UA, LY, BA, AA

Posts: 13,167

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonj

If you are booked SEA-JFK-TLV-JFK-SEA with the domestic flights on AA and the international on LY but marketed by AA (booked under AA ticket stock with AA flight number), then AA's rule would apply for the entire journey. Which means, if flying Y and not a OW elite, then yes, 1 X 23 KG bag.

The reason is that the MSC rule applies, which in this case would be LY for the JFK-TLV flight. HOWEVER, US law (which trumps IATA 302) defines the MSC as the MARKETING carrier (AA here) and not the operating carrier. (This rule applies for journeys starting/terminating in the USA.)

Last edited by joshwex90; Aug 17, 2014 at 6:03 am

Aug 17, 2014, 5:57 am

#71

jonj

Join Date: Nov 2013

Posts: 11

A bit different. TLV-JFK on LY, JFK-SEA on B6, then SEA-JFK-TLV AA/LY. But this shouldn't make a difference? Same idea? I can't find anything on American's site to confirm...

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshwex90

You're booked SEA-JFK-TLV-JFK-SEA, with the domestic portions on AA and the international portions on LY?

If so, I believe the Most Significant Carrier (MSC) rule should apply, granting you 2 X 32 KG.

Aug 17, 2014, 6:04 am

#72

joshwex90

FlyerTalk Evangelist

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Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: HaMerkaz/Exit 145

Programs: UA, LY, BA, AA

Posts: 13,167

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonj

A bit different. TLV-JFK on LY, JFK-SEA on B6, then SEA-JFK-TLV AA/LY. But this shouldn't make a difference? Same idea? I can't find anything on American's site to confirm...

I edited my previous response anyways. However, if that's the case, then the answer is slightly different.

Your first flight is TLV-JFK on LY?

Aug 17, 2014, 6:23 am

#73

jonj

Join Date: Nov 2013

Posts: 11

Hi Josh - my first flight is TLV-JFK on LY and the ticket number will be an LY ticket number.

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshwex90

I edited my previous response anyways. However, if that's the case, then the answer is slightly different.

Your first flight is TLV-JFK on LY?

Aug 17, 2014, 6:41 am

#74

joshwex90

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Original Poster

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: HaMerkaz/Exit 145

Programs: UA, LY, BA, AA

Posts: 13,167

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonj

Hi Josh - my first flight is TLV-JFK on LY and the ticket number will be an LY ticket number.

So you should be getting 2X32 for the whole journey according to IATA 302 (MSC Rule)

Aug 17, 2014, 7:11 am

#75

jonj

Join Date: Nov 2013

Posts: 11

Great - thanks so much for the help!

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshwex90

So you should be getting 2X32 for the whole journey according to IATA 302 (MSC Rule)