oliver2002

As ber rcs85551 over at VFT: http://www.vielfliegertreff.de/miles...ge-europa.html

M&M will:
- lower YQ on European regional awards operated by LH/OS/LX/SN from 40 to 5 EUR/segment in Y and from 43 to 20 in C.
- raise regional award redemption level by 5000 miles for a return
- raise flysmart: it will now cost 20000 in Y and 30000 in C
- still offer taxes to be paid with miles, now 15000 instead of 18000
- raise discounted award (meilenschnaeppchen) offers: 15000 in Y and 25000 in C

This will eliminate the anomaly that taxes & surcharges in Europe for an award often costed more than a regular ticket.

divjan

Thanks oliver2002!!
now if they can just work on the other chart and start eliminating/lowering those exuberant YQ charges

gojko88

The least competitive FFP in Europe undergoes significant changes to retain its status

Concerto

Beurk. Who's going to use it now? Even at 10,000 miles the Meilenschnaeppchen were barely worth it and I haven't used a FlySmart for years. For reducing the bogus surcharges, they're about 10 years late waking up to that game. It's a shame airberlin's program is so crap. Unless anyone can suggest a relatively easy way of stopping miles expiring on AB (no point asking on that forum because it's as dead as a door nail).

Flying Lawyer

I like that change. This is by far more a free flight than it was in the past. Miles are paper money and I have close to 4 Mio. of these I rarely use because surcharges were so high.


I don't know why it is considered "crap". Pretty could for Ethiad flights. And there is a more than easy way to stop miles from expiring. Simply get Gold status which is not the hardest task one can have.

Concerto

Yes, you are indeed right, the reduction of taxes and surcharges will be a really good thing, even if it means the mileage prices go up a bit. It was becoming almost pointless to use miles in Europe.

Concerning airberlin, you're right, I'm being a bit unfair. But I'm a bit annoyed with TopBonus at the moment, because award ticket availability on routes to North America in business class seems to be almost non existent. And to change a ticket, the amount of time (and money spent) waiting for someone to pick up the phone is shortly going to equate the price of a new ticket on this particular route (I've given up four times now). So, really, it's not stellar.

ralfkrippner

Hmm, to save 70 Euro on a typical return in Y or 46 Euro on a return in C I have to pay 5.000 more miles.

Not a good change IMO - I see it as a further devaluation.

gum

A comparatively easy way to stop award miles expiring if you want to use them for airberlin flights is:

Credit your flights to the British Airways Executive Club. Firstly you should do the math and look up how many award miles are corresponding to your favourite booking class.

Then you should be fine and BA has no expiry date if you have any transaction on your account for 24 (?) or 36 (?) months. Didn't remember exactly.

More info can be found here:
http://www.britishairways.com/en-de/...|||||L2|||||||

Hope this helps.

Sternberg

Well said!

Grog

German: http://www.miles-and-more.com/online...aMpar0616arwde

English: http://www.miles-and-more.com/online...en&cid=1000390

06/01/2016
New conditions for Miles & More flight awards in Europe

Flight awards are Miles & More’s most popular awards. We are now focussing even more on the wishes of our many members and offer award flights with improved conditions from 15 September 2016.

Lower additional payment for award flights

For award flights on Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and SWISS within Europe, Miles & More members will pay a significantly lower surcharge from 15 September 2016 - just 5 Euro instead of 40 Euro per flight segment in Economy Class and just 20 Euro instead of 43 Euro per flight segment in Business Class.*
All Miles & More flight awards, including mileage bargains, will require an additional 5,000 award miles for an outbound and a return flight.**
An example of a Lufthansa flight award from Frankfurt to Rome
(outbound and return flight) in Economy Class (as of May 2016)

Up to 14 September 2016: 30,000 miles + additional payment of €157.26 (taxes, fees and surcharge)

From 15 September 2016: 35,000 miles + additional payment of €87.26 (taxes, fees and surcharge)
Maintaining proven benefits for you

If you decide to take an award flight within Europe at short notice, the Fly Smart Flight Award will also be available in future for 20,000 miles in Economy Class as well as for 30,000 miles in Business Class. In addition, award miles can, as usual, be redeemed to pay for taxes, fees and surcharge. From September, only 15,000 instead of the previous 18,000 awards miles will be sufficient for all Economy and Business Class flight awards, including transfer connections within Europe. This reduction is valid for all Lufthansa and selected Miles & More airline partner flight award bookings.***

All above mentioned changes will come into effect for bookings (ticket issuance) of flight awards within Europe from 15 September 2016. Award flights booked (issued) before then, even if they are for departures after 15 September 2016, are subject to the currently valid conditions.

An up-to-date overview of all flight awards is available for you at http://www.miles-and-more.com/online...s/spend/flight[Their original link in the English version (www.miles-and-more.com/flight) is incorrect] .

* National/international surcharge.
** Valid for the outbound and return flight in Economy or Business Class on all Miles & More partner airlines; one-way flight awards and children’s flight awards will be increased proportionally.
*** As before, this offer does not apply to Miles & More members who are resident in Poland.

vincentjanv

This would seem mostly beneficial, I guess. The taxes/fees for Lufthansa were always ridiculously high IMO.

htb

Let me try to get this right.

After reducing the mileage earnings to a minimum and keeping the fuel surcharge at record highs even though fuel prices are rock bottom at the moment, LH finally lowers the fuel surcharge on regional award flights, but only in exchange for higher redemption levels.

I think it's clear who's getting the shorter end of the stick here.

HTB.

GBM.flights

muahahahahahahah


LH and its usual annoying spin.

It's a devaluation.

Flying Lawyer

What ist the problem with the mileage earning?

Most of my domestic flights are in the normally pretty cheap 4U Best and this earns a very good ratio. The same is true for my TG flights to the East or A-Class flights to the West.

he entire sorrow about cheapest Eco no longer earning 1000 miles per segment is getting tiring. This was an abnormality in the system and too good to be true. A FFP is a discount model and not a charity.

I appreciate the new idea. I have millions of miles and they keep coming in. Getting true (nearly) free flights for a few more miles is at least for me a pretty good deal.

Lack

Earning more from a cashback portal or through CC spending then per the operation airlines FFP is the new abnormality here.